Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
I just finished Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix last night.
A friend who also recently finished this fifth installment of the Harry Potter series said that he thought this was a “darker” novell than the other four. After thinking about it, I had to admit that it was. In fact, the books have been getting progressively darker as time goes on. Which, really, is to be expected. Things have to get more and more dire for Harry and his friends all the way through the last book when he will, no doubt, kill Lord Voldemort.
Otherwise, though, the book was good. The characters are, as they have always been, quite engaging and J.K. Rowling manages to get us quickly interested in what’s going to happen to them next. This year at Hogwarts, we see Harry dating, dealing with family, and find out why he has to stay with the Dursleys every Summer. We also see Harry grow up a little bit, though it’s mainly teen angst and growing pains.
If you’ve been watching the news stories, you know that someone dies in this book. I won’t spoil it and say who, but it is someone significant. And, I correctly predicted who it was early on. I guess I’ve finally figured out Rowling’s writing style enough to make it a little predictable, but the book was no less enjoyable for all that.
Also, I’ve started reading Aliens and Linguists: Language Study and Science Fiction by Walter Earl Meyers. It’s out of print, so I was really lucky to find a copy, but it’s well worth the hunt. I haven’t gotten very far into it, but it’s about linguistics and language used in sience-fiction and fantasy. Very cool.
