2008 Woodie Awards
Harry Potter and the Coming of Age
A review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Sheeraz Hyder
Issue date: 8/31/07 Section: Opinion
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It has been a long and hard journey for both the Wizarding and Muggle worlds, but the final confrontation between Harry Potter, "The Boy Who Lived", and Tom Marvolo Riddle, who chose to be called Lord Voldemort, has arrived. J. K. Rowling's seventh novel, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," has been nearly a decade in the making. Rowling brings an epic closure to a series that has captured the hearts and minds of children and adults all around the world.
"Deathly Hallows" is faster-paced than the other six novels, with action starting from the get-go and not letting up. Rowling has weaved a story with intricacies and created a world with details enough to rival Tolkien's Middle-Earth and Lewis's Narnia. In this conclusion, characters that played seemingly minor roles in previous books are thrust to the forefront of the war. Those in the Wizarding World must choose whether they make a final stand with "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" or pledge allegiance to Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
"Deathly Hallows" departs from others in the series in that Harry does not return to Hogwarts… at least not for classes and not right away. Indeed half the book is gone before we step foot inside Hogwarts. However readers will certainly not be disappointed in this visit to Hogwarts. Although it is it brief, it packs more of a punch than any previous year.
The Harry Potter series began with a double murder and all have contained death in various degrees. This book brutally surpasses its brethren. There are far more deaths than any previous book. Beloved characters are murdered and hated enemies are killed. There are deaths, some surprising, some expected, and some that that fill the reader with remorse as characters that were closest to Harry meet their end. There is a closing of the plot lines begun in the saga. Above all there is redemption. Redemption for some of the most conflicted characters in the series as people's true allegiances are brought to light. Rowling also generously includes an epilogue that ties up the fates of all the main characters (those who survive, that is) in which there are a couple of pleasant surprises and confirmations of theories that have been floated for years.
In this seventh novel, Rowling has shown us that Harry Potter at 17 is different than the 11-year-old we were introduced to all those years ago. Harry has come a long way on his journey of morality. The first few books contained numerous instances in which Harry uses, or thought of using, magic for personal reasons. By the final novels of the series Harry has realized that magic should always be used to help protect all those who inhabit the Earth, whether they be wizard, Muggle, giant, werewolf, goblin or even a house-elf. That is one of the main lessons of the seven books, that all creatures are created equal and no one is better than anyone else. That is the magic of Rowling's seven books and that is why people will still be reading Harry Potter for years to come. Finite Incantatem.
"Deathly Hallows" is faster-paced than the other six novels, with action starting from the get-go and not letting up. Rowling has weaved a story with intricacies and created a world with details enough to rival Tolkien's Middle-Earth and Lewis's Narnia. In this conclusion, characters that played seemingly minor roles in previous books are thrust to the forefront of the war. Those in the Wizarding World must choose whether they make a final stand with "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" or pledge allegiance to Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters.
"Deathly Hallows" departs from others in the series in that Harry does not return to Hogwarts… at least not for classes and not right away. Indeed half the book is gone before we step foot inside Hogwarts. However readers will certainly not be disappointed in this visit to Hogwarts. Although it is it brief, it packs more of a punch than any previous year.
The Harry Potter series began with a double murder and all have contained death in various degrees. This book brutally surpasses its brethren. There are far more deaths than any previous book. Beloved characters are murdered and hated enemies are killed. There are deaths, some surprising, some expected, and some that that fill the reader with remorse as characters that were closest to Harry meet their end. There is a closing of the plot lines begun in the saga. Above all there is redemption. Redemption for some of the most conflicted characters in the series as people's true allegiances are brought to light. Rowling also generously includes an epilogue that ties up the fates of all the main characters (those who survive, that is) in which there are a couple of pleasant surprises and confirmations of theories that have been floated for years.
In this seventh novel, Rowling has shown us that Harry Potter at 17 is different than the 11-year-old we were introduced to all those years ago. Harry has come a long way on his journey of morality. The first few books contained numerous instances in which Harry uses, or thought of using, magic for personal reasons. By the final novels of the series Harry has realized that magic should always be used to help protect all those who inhabit the Earth, whether they be wizard, Muggle, giant, werewolf, goblin or even a house-elf. That is one of the main lessons of the seven books, that all creatures are created equal and no one is better than anyone else. That is the magic of Rowling's seven books and that is why people will still be reading Harry Potter for years to come. Finite Incantatem.