Book Review: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (J.K. Rowling)

By Nathan W.

As midnight neared on Friday July 20th, the tension mounted at bookstores all over the world. Why? Because at 12:01am on Saturday July 21st, the seventh and final book in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter saga, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was to be released. I picked up my deluxe edition with trepidation and excitement; the saga that has been a piece of my life would be over, yet we would know the climax in a few minutes.

I was torn between savoring the book and racing through it, but I finished it. Overall, I liked the book; however, there were several scenes that disappointed me.

I was happy with the pacing of the book, and the description of people, places, and things. The battle at Hogwarts was amazing! All of the characters that we’ve come to love took place, and it was similar to the battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi, where the ewoks used guerrilla warfare to defeat the enemy. My favorite line was near the end when Mrs. Weasley screams “NOT MYDAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!” at Bellatrix Lestrange, and when Neville told Voldemort that he would join him “when hell freezes over.”

What I disliked, however, was Harry and Ron’s argument which led to Ron falling out from his two best friends. I was also pissed at the lack of continuity from the previous books, especially the wandless, wordless magic that was expressed frequently in Half-Blood Prince, yet never mentioned in Deathly Hallows. I also got upset at Harry’s lack of action. He continued to use simple spells and Hermione to get him out of sticky situations. I wanted Harry to step-it-up; I wanted him to take charge, learn more advanced magic, and set traps for his nemesis, yet he didn’t. The epilogue also irritated me. It’s the part of the book that was written first- about 10 years ago- but it didn’t seem like Rowling’s writing. It was a crammed 4 page story about what happened to the survivors of the war with Voldemort ( although not all survivors were mentioned).

Since this book was a war, many of the characters that we’ve come to know and love have died before our eyes. I won’t mention any in case you haven’t read it yet; some characters’ deaths made me cry, while others were fine with me. Overall, I liked the book. I can’t wait to see it as a move- it’s very Indiana Jones-ish – which will make a great action movie. Though parts of the book disappointed me, the series is over and there’s no changing that. Harry Potter, however, will continue to live on in our hearts.