Hiya,
Not even sure what page of the CB this thread was on as I found it in a search! I couldn't read it back when you all started it cos' Id not read the book... but I've just finished it and just finished all nine pages of this thread! What interesting comments!!!
Wanted to add mine, even if you've all got bored of the topic by now (yeah right LOL)...
* Firstly, lets get this straight: Ron and Hermione. Definitely!
* I don't think Sirius is really dead, or else at least he'll come back some how. I just don't think killing off the one person Harry really felt a proper 'family' link to is right! Didn't JK say she 'had' to kill the person she kills? What would be the point? Unless she had to kill him so he can come back from the dead and... and well... erm... not sure what but he's got a part to play!!
* I was sad at Sirius' death but in all honesty I thought the saddest parts of this book were Mrs Weasley and the Boggart (I really thought Ron was dead!!!) and in St Mungo's when Neville's Mum gave him that bubblegum wrapper and he kept it...
* Umbridge - I feel sorry for the actress who gets cast as her, not cos' everyone will hate her so much (what a great character she was to hate!) but because of all the unappealing references to her 'looking like a toad' (of which, IMO, there were a few too many but anyways...)
* Fred and George - What can I say? They have always been the only characters who have made me laugh out loud in these books (don't get me wrong I've loved all the other humour, but couldn't stop myself with these two!) and their leaving was classic. Brilliantly written piece.
* I feel that JK almost damaged Harry as a character with all the raw anger at the beginning and elsewhere in the book. I know it's indicative of his age and everything but he was such a spoilt little brat at times! The main thing about Harry has often been not how good he is at magic but that he loves his friends fiercely and this didn't always come out so much...
* Finally, and this is just my own humble opinion (so please no flames) but it really seemed like JK was either forced or felt that she *had* to make this an incredibly long book. So many things were repeated (Umbridge inspecting lessons, Harry's dreams of a corridor etc) she just seemed to be dragging it out for no apparent reason. I think that the same story could have been told, and better (IMO), with a shorter (around book 4 or maybe even 3 proportions) book.
That said, I really enjoyed it and looking forward to the next one but not in the way book 4 made me look forward to book 5 but in the just wanting to know what happens next kinda way (if that makes any sense whatsoever!)
Well there you go then! Sorry for the long post, I had much more I coulda said but guess I'll leave it at that!
Cya,
Gaspode