Harry Potter Complete Book Spoiler Thread

[jwann]

Does anyone know/have ideas about why it was so important to DD that HP return to Privet Drive?
..

In the OotP, DD tells Harry that he set up a special "safe harbor" (my words) where Voldy's folks couldn't get him. It was the place where his mother's blood resides (Aunt Petunia) and he must stay there at least one night a year to keep the enchantment on Privet Drive. Remember (in OotP) when Uncle Vernon wants to throw Harry out and Aunt Petunia agrees but then she gets the Howler from DD and then says Harry has to stay....

 

[teacherforhi]

Does anyone know/have ideas about why it was so important to DD that HP return to Privet Drive?
Regarding book 7....I think that HP, Ron and Hermoine will look for the other pieces of V's soul. I strongly suspect that the final battle will be betwen Vand HP....HP will win, but he'll die as a result. Snape and DD will help, but I don't know how. I also think there's more that we don't know about Aunt Petunia and the deaths of HPs parents....according to mugglenet (i think) JK will start writing #7 in late 2005....

Because Petunia is related by blood to Harry's mother. The same magic that protected Harry when Voldemort tried to kill him the first time continues to protect him as long as he spends some time at the Dursleys'. The magic runs out when he turns 17. But because he left before his birthday the summer he turned 16 (remember he had only been at Privet Drive for two weeks when Dumbledore came to get him), he must return one last time so that he has the protection until his 17th birthday.

I'm assuming that the magic is only good for one calendar year since Dumbledore made a big deal about him returning one last time.

As an aside, how happy was I when Dumbledore took the Dursleys to task for not doing right by Harry and came out and accused them of being horrible parents to Dudley at the same time!

 

[Meezers]

I just finished reading this before I had to sleep today. So much of it hasn't quite sunk in yet.

I was pretty sure Dumbledore was going to die....I guess I feel the Obi-Wan connection too.

I think one of the things that is upsetting me that I haven't really seen mentioned....Fawkes. He really was one of my favorite entities in the book....I wonder where he has gone? Will he come back...will he belong to someone else or will he just be free? Maybe it is because Fawkes left that I felt the truth of Dumbledore's death.

Now for the funny....I am 43 years old....finished the American version...will re-read when I get the UK version. My brother (37 years old) got the book from me tonight....when he is done is will pass to my mother (64 years old)...the only reason she gets it last is because she is a slow reader. (Can you believe it...she has dyslexia and these are the first books in her WHOLE life that she has read for pleasure....of course...now we can't keep her nose out of a book...it is a great feeling!)

 

[branv]

I'm simply not convinced that AD is dead. I was surprised when my sister called me and said the same thing We simply do not believe for a second that Snape has turned. I may be wrong, but I'm usually pretty darn good at picking up on endings...also why I can't get through a mystery all the way

1) AD was sick/dying from the poison he drank to retrieve the horcrux (he kept telling Harry to go get Snape to help him.) It strikes me that it's always possible that there was something about this, that both he and Snape knew (Snape being such a master at potions...and antidotes, dark arts) the only way to SAVE AD was to kill him first. That's not as likely, b/c how would snape know unless he could see tell tale physical signs of the poison. More likely is that Snape told AD all about the Unbreakable promise, and knew all of this could happen, and AD planned some sort of protection that would make everyone think he was dead, so that Snape could still stay a double agent and not be suspected. Remember, Snape and AD argued...perhaps AD was saying "you must" and Snape was saying "but I can't!". Plus, they went OVER AND OVER the whole thing about making spells without saying a word...and they were sure to say a few times that Dumbledore was very good at that. Perhaps he did that just before Snape did the curse. Remember at the funeral when the beir bursts into flames, and Harry thinks he sees a phoenix? Don't forget, a phoenix dies, but rises from the flames anew. Then immediately after the flames die away, we see the "corpse" is suddenly in a white tomb...aka cocoon? Get the symbolism..way heavy in the whole "rebirth" thing.

2) Remember how MUCH Rowlings played up the death of Sirius? I mean, HUGE emotional reactions, pages of gut wrenching description of sorrow. From a description stand point, Dumbledores death was, by comparison, almost an aside! They spent more time in the infirmary recapping what had happened and the whole werewolf thing, then they did Dumbledore! And AD was a MUCH bigger character then Sirius. I just think she didn't play it up nearly as much, and that is because she has something up her sleeve with AD.

3) I was actually disappointed with this book to a degree. There was very little in the way of big revelations, and she's still relying on this standard format of the book (this book, I felt like I was only reading it to get to the ending.) It felt like this book was a little TOO heavy in the romance department...sure, all of those were fun: Harry & Ginny, Ron & Lavendar, then Ron & Hermione, Luna & Remus, Bill and..err..french girl whose name I can't remember. It was like she just wanted to get it out of the way so she could get to meat of things in the last book.

4) I absolutely believe that we will find out Voldemort is related to Harry in some way. Rowling has mentioned too many times how much Harry looks like Voldemort...sure you can explain some of their connections b/c of their initial battle, BUT remember: they also say Harry looks JUST like his father! We have never heard anything about Harry's father's family, other then that he's supposedly pure blood. Rowling sure spent ALOT of time going into Voldemorts family background for that to not be leading us somewhere important. Now Harry says in the end he is going to return to where he was born, and see his parent's graves...something's going to happen there in regards to that, I can feel it

Ok, go ahead, call me crazy...I already had a spirited debate over this

 

[MrsKreamer]

I have a question....What is the difference between the UK and US versions??? Why are there 2 versions??? They still use British dialect in the text, so what do they change?

 

[wasabi girl]

I'm not really sure. I have the UK version of HP and the Philosophers Stone (US Sorcerers Stone), and the UK version of Prisoner of Azkaban. The covers are different, different publishers...not sure what else.

 

[teacherforhi]

I have a question....What is the difference between the UK and US versions??? Why are there 2 versions??? They still use British dialect in the text, so what do they change?

Every country has a different cover. Plus, originally, the first book was Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. For some reason, it was thought Americans wouldn't get it, so it was changed to the Sorcerer's Stone. So any reference to that in the books would make them different.

 

[MrsKreamer]

yes but they seem to also have page number differences as well....the US version has xxx number of pages and the UK version will have a different amount.

 

[AdioSkater]

I just finished the book around 11 and i wish would hurry up and write the next books! Was not suprised in this book. Other books i was suprised be unexpected twists but not so much here.

 

[Just2554]

I am so glad this thread is here! My 12 year old sister has not yet finished the book, she's still up reading hoping to finish it tonight since I had her copy all day (although it is heading for 1am here lol). So I have been dying to discuss this with someone.

I am one of those people who feels that Dumbledore is dead. There were just too many statements that seemed to make it so final and so true (and I was pretty hysterical over them all too, I cried on and off from the death to the end of the book). I think the statements about Fawkes and the fact that the curse placed upon Harry was lifted spoke volumes. It was still heartbreaking to read though. The circle of people that Dumbledore had reached also spoke volumes. People's reactions to his death - Hagrid, Lupin, McGonagall especially - helped to reinforce Harry's statement that as long as there are people at Hogwart's who stand behind Dumbledore, he will never truly be gone.

I also agree though that there is a good chance that Dumbledore was ready and prepared for this. All of the last book, Dumbledore refused to let Harry be invloved in the hunt for Voldemort and the Order's duties, despite knowing what was said in the prophecy. Here in HBP though, it almost seemed as if Dumbledore was trying to imprint all his knowledge of Voldemort, past and present, into Harry as quickly as possible. Almost as if he knew that he was to die in order for Harry to fulfill the prophecy.

As for Snape and Malfoy redeeming themselves, I find both to be great possibilities. I would doubt Snape if JKR hadn't already said he would redeem himself, so for now I am forced to believe that he aided Dumbledore in whatever plan he had and that whatever forced Dumbledore to trust him will come into the open eventually. As for Draco, I feel that he is redeemable. His crying, his hesitation when attempting to kill Dumbledore, proves this. It also seems like he loves his parents somewhat deeply, which would set him apart from Voldemort, as he neither acknowledges nor understands love.

All in all, I think this book set everything up nicely for book 7 and that everything will fall into place. Harry has now lost his parents, his godfather, and his mentor. The fact that his strongest magic is love becomes even more important, as everyone has died for him and left him with their mark of love, strengthening him one of the only ways they knew how. Hermoine and Ron's support also follows this theory, because if they do indeed stand beside Harry and help him in finding the Horcruxes, they're also bonding themselves to him through love.

And most importantly: I believe the final fight will be at Hogwart's. How many times throughout HBP did Dumbledore tell Harry that the only thing Voldemort/Tom Riddle ever allowed himself to be tied to was the school itself? He considered it home and tried to come back after he had already been gone from school many years, not because he wanted a teaching position, but because the school gave him strength. Even his Horcruxes came from the legendary founders of the school and with Dumbledore gone, the school is wide open to him. Yet, Harry also feels tied to Hogwart's, bound by Dumbledore & his parents' & Sirius's memories. So it will be interesting to see how it all plays out, though I'm not sure how I believe things will end for Harry. It's going to be a long few years waiting to find out.

 

[Grog]

Almost falling asleep at my desk here, as I couldn't put the book down once it got about 3/4 of the way through. Subscribing to this thread so I can find it tomorrow and read it in it's entirety.

 

[Maleficent13]

Just to add my $0.02...I was on page 551 and I flipped to the last page to see how many pages I had left to read...because I was wondering when anything was actually going to happen in this book. I actually skipped a 50 page section (which I will go back and read tomorrow) because I was bored.

I know I'm in the VAST minority, but I was never enamored with Dumbledore, not even from the beginning. I never had the connection with him that I did with others...even more minor characters (Lupin, Neville). I was never that enamored with Sirius, either, now that I think about it.

I do think Snape was acting with Dumbledore's knowledge; I agree with whomever said they had previously discussed it, and DD's pleading was really for Snape to kill DD, not save him.

All I can say is, I hope # 7 has a bit more movement in it...this one really dragged for me. And I'm usually one who prefers character development over dynamic plots...

 

[Diamond_Girls]

who y'all think RAB is (the one who got the real thing, not the fake that Harry retried from DD). I'm sorry but I can't get through all the pages to this thread very quickly and this is killing me so my apologies if it has already been addressed somewhere in the 11 pages...

I loved the book by the way and agree that Snape is still on the good side. I have been hoping that he becomes a surrgate father for Harry since Sirius died...

 

[wdwpluto]

In the OotP, DD tells Harry that he set up a special "safe harbor" (my words) where Voldy's folks couldn't get him. It was the place where his mother's blood resides (Aunt Petunia) and he must stay there at least one night a year to keep the enchantment on Privet Drive. Remember (in OotP) when Uncle Vernon wants to throw Harry out and Aunt Petunia agrees but then she gets the Howler from DD and then says Harry has to stay....

Because Petunia is related by blood to Harry's mother. The same magic that protected Harry when Voldemort tried to kill him the first time continues to protect him as long as he spends some time at the Dursleys'. The magic runs out when he turns 17. But because he left before his birthday the summer he turned 16 (remember he had only been at Privet Drive for two weeks when Dumbledore came to get him), he must return one last time so that he has the protection until his 17th birthday.

I'm assuming that the magic is only good for one calendar year since Dumbledore made a big deal about him returning one last time.

As an aside, how happy was I when Dumbledore took the Dursleys to task for not doing right by Harry and came out and accused them of being horrible parents to Dudley at the same time!

But didn't Dumbledore tell te woman at the orphanage the same thing re: Tom Riddle? That he had to return to the orphanage during the summers? (Perhaps I'm assuming it was for the same reason when it's just that he'd have to go somewhere because the school closes in the summer) That sticks in my mind because I remember thinking it was an interesting parallel between him and Harry.

 

[teacherforhi]

But didn't Dumbledore tell te woman at the orphanage the same thing re: Tom Riddle? That he had to return to the orphanage during the summers? (Perhaps I'm assuming it was for the same reason when it's just that he'd have to go somewhere because the school closes in the summer) That sticks in my mind because I remember thinking it was an interesting parallel between him and Harry.

He just has to have a place to go for the summer. In CoS, doesn't Voldemort ask the headmaster to stay at school over the summer in one of the memories Harry witnesses? And since we've never seen a sign-up sheet for summer, I would assume that although they can stay over Christmas, they have to leave during the summer.

Even though they both had to return, it was for different reasons. It is just one more way that Voldemort and Harry are similar though.

 

[Aneille]

I believe a relative of the HBP used the book before him......it is mentioned in the book.....

since the spoiler before me tells the HBP name....I will add his Mother used the book first...
Hermione was on track when she found the article about the woman....

So it makes perfect sense......

The book was orginally Snapes mothers potions book. When Hermione comes up with a womans name Harry and Ron don't believe her. She does some more digging at the end and finds out that women married a muggle named Snape and had a son.

There is also a part in the book where someone says something like "you could even be a death eater" and someones reply is something like "yeah if Voldemort only took full-bloods he wouldn't have anyone left, I bet most of the death eaters are half-bloods pretending to pure bloods". Does anyone remember where that was and who said what? I know Ron, Harry and Hermione are in the conversation but I can't remember if they were the only ones.

Another point that I find interesting is that all the "bad guys" so far are loners. Voldemort doesn't have friends but surrounds himself with people and now Snape who when young and even now is probably hard pressed to call anyone a friend. I was talking about the book to my husband and I said that Dumbledore told Harry he could tell Hermione and Ron anything that he trusts them and have proved themselves before. My husband thought that was a little foolish, but I think its to make sure Harry stays on the right path. He needs his friends because if he starts to feel alone, he is too much like Voldemort. And then I started to remember back to OOTP when Harry did feel very much alone for the most of the book and Harry was definetly not the same person and had more dark thoughts than any other book.

I really liked this book and I can't wait until the next one comes out. I didn't think it moved too slow and I liked the character developments. Harry grew the most in this book out of all the others. I just hope that before Harry leaves off to take on Voldemort in the next book he studies hard. I got to agree with Snape that Harry at times is pretty lazy! Its again just like Star Wars when Yoda keeps telling Luke he needs to try harder. Harry needs to hone his natural abilities even more. And even when Snape is taking off with Draco he is teaching Harry a valuable lesson. He needs to get better at Occulmency and at non-verbal spells.

 

[bananiem]

I'm sorry if this has already been covered...
DD and I were just discussing that we thought you had to be full-blood to be placed in Slytherin, yet both Tom Riddle and Snape were half-bloods. Are we incorrect in what we remember?

 

[MrsKreamer]

I don't think it ever specifially said that you had to be pure-blood to be in Slytherin. I think it has more to do with ambition. Like having ambition to be powerful, not caring what you do to get there.

 

[Dancind]

I just hope that before Harry leaves off to take on Voldemort in the next book he studies hard. I got to agree with Snape that Harry at times is pretty lazy! Its again just like Star Wars when Yoda keeps telling Luke he needs to try harder. Harry needs to hone his natural abilities even more. And even when Snape is taking off with Draco he is teaching Harry a valuable lesson. He needs to get better at Occulmency and at non-verbal spells.

Very good points, Aneille. And just what I was thinking, about Harry at least. Someone or something is going to convince Harry that he needs to return to Hogwarts for his final year, that he needs the additional schooling and practice. After all, he was pretty ineffective when trying to stop Snape, he's not ready to take on Lord Voldemort!

 

[Aneille]

I don't think it ever specifially said that you had to be pure-blood to be in Slytherin. I think it has more to do with ambition. Like having ambition to be powerful, not caring what you do to get there.

The sorting hat tells you dring the 4th year "...By Gryffindor, the bravest were Prized far beyond the rest; For Ranvenclaw, the cleverest Would always be the best; For Hufflepuff, hard workers were Most worthy of admission; And power-hungry Slytherin Loved those of great ambition..."

You don't need to be pure-blood to be in Slytherin, just have great ambition.