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Musings #12: My HBP Blog
by Matthew Vines
July 24, 2005 (originally written on July 16)
Author's Note: As I read through Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince last Saturday, I popped on the computer for a few minutes in between chapters to log my thoughts and theories. This is a completely unedited version of my "HBP blog" and was written all throughout the wee hours of the morning, so please pardon any and all grammar atrocities. Here it is, in all its glory. If you haven't yet read the book, though, STOP HERE. This page is riddled with MAJOR PLOT SPOILERS from the book. You have been warned....
Chapters 1 - 3
Spellbound! 2005 tonight was a blast, though admittedly exhausting. I'm still planning to stay up until I finish the book, but I don't know how long I'll last (if this was during the school year I wouldn't have any problems whatsoever pulling an all-nighter, but now that it's summer and I'm used to racking up a good ten hours of sleep per day, it's shockingly harder.) I was in the first group of twenty-two to pick up my copy of the book at Borders, but it still took about 20 minutes to reach the front of the line. I asked a few employees to pose for a picture, which they kindly consented to do, and then - surprise, surprise - my digital camera refused to snap the photo. But I did get an action shot a bit later.
I suppose I was expressing my excitement more fervently than most, as the employee passing out books taunted me by extending it toward me and then snatching it away (he did this several times). My eyes immediately darted to Harry's wand hand on the front cover to see if he was wearing a ring, as shown in a Getty photo, but no, he wasn't. The cashier took a painstakingly long time to fulfill my order (about four minutes for just one copy!), but I almost fainted when I finally had the book in my hands. It was surreal.
I was quite proud of managing to avoid any major spoilers before the book's release ... until 7 PM tonight, that is. Jeff from HPANA (an amazingly cool guy) was moderating his forums and some jerk posted the name of the Half-Blood Prince in all caps. Jeff covered it up right away, but unfortunately, I'd already seen it. A bit upsetting, yes, but life goes on. I would have been much more distressed had I seen the name of the character who dies (please, don't let it be Dumbledore!). Though I must say it came as a slight surprise, even though I listed that character as a possible HBP in yesterday's column.
I just completed the third chapter of the book and am completely wowed by Jo's writing style. I've always enjoyed it, but it is so much richer this time around. The first chapter was, in a word, amazing. Truly amazing. I can't believe Amelia Bones was murdered! I gasped aloud when I read that bit - she was supposed to be the new Minister of Magic!
I was also disappointed to find that our HBP excerpt was from the first twelve pages of the book (I was quite fond of my Godric Gryffindor-seen-through-Slytherin's-pensieve theory). Let's see...what else happened in chapter one. Ah yes - Trelawney's prediction in book three rings true. As I figured.
Sirius Black is indeed dead. I was convinced of that before, but Fudge's and Dumbledore's statements about it in the opening chapters leave no doubt. In fact, Fudge said that he was "murdered," which makes me believe that the veil is a sort of execution device.
Rufus Scrimgeour. Hmm. Well, he does have quite the presence, but I don't completely trust him yet. Who's to say he's not already under the Imperius Curse either? Doubtful, true, but we must be wary of these things! Kingsley Shacklebolt securing a job at the Prime Minister's office was great fun to read about - hopefully we'll be hearing some reports from him later on.
The first chapter was brilliant - I agree with Rowling in that it fits best in this book, rather than one, three, or five.
As for Chapter Two? WOW! Bellatrix, Narcissa, Snape, and Wormtail all under the same roof! I really do trust Snape and I always have. He lies well in this situation, but he doesn't make eye contact with Bellatrix while telling some of his larger lies. I'm very intrigued by all of this talk of Draco's mission for Voldemort and am confident that we will find out more by Chapter Six - Draco's Detour.
So the Unbreakable Vow is what is depicted on the full book jacket of the UK children's edition of the book! We don't know much about how it functions, but I'm certain that with Dumbledore's assistance, Snape will be able to at least partially undo its binding effects. Is it the Vow between Snape and Narcissa that is shown on the cover, or another Vow between two other characters later on in the book? We shall see!
And Chapter Three: three cheers for Dumbledore making such an early and welcome (at least, to us readers) appearance! Most of us were right in guessing that Harry would inherit Grimmauld Place from Sirius - kudos to us all on that one. I must say Dumbledore's "simple test" doesn't seem entirely foolproof; Kreacher could simply obey whatever orders Harry throws at him right now to make it seem as though Harry is in control of him, even if he isn't.
Enough journaling for now - Harry and Dumbledore are about to embark on an adventure! Here we gooooo!
Chapter Four
So I've decided to update as I read Chapter Four. Horace Slughorn sure is overweight - just take a look at that belly! Anyway, I like how Dumbledore doesn't elaborate upon which post is in lack of a professor, leaving Harry to assume that it is the Defense Against the Dark Arts post. As I believe that Snape will finally secure it this time around, my guess is that Dumbledore wants Horace Slughorn to teach potions. Oh, and I forgot to say - Harry Apparated! Tubular! It's got to be fun for Rowling to write about a completely new sensation like that.
What did happen to Dumbledore's hand? I'm so interested, but will gladly wait until we can hear the full version of this "thrilling tale" from Dumbledore.
Jam preferences! Goodness, I love Jo's sense of humor more than I can relate. This passage cracks me up!
Ooh, complete shift of tone - the Inferi sound vaguely like the army of the dead from Lord of the Rings, actually. Perhaps an army of Inferi is the cause for the fright on Dumbledore's face on the UK children's edition cover, and the ring of fire around Harry and Dumbledore is to fend them off? We shall see, we shall see...
Another mention of dragon blood, though still no detailed list of its twelve uses. Dragon blood has got to come in handy somewhere, it really does. I hate all of these mentions about how Dumbledore's reflexes aren't up to snuff; they're likely horrid, not-so-subtle clues of his death! Then again, maybe I'm just overly paranoid in that sense.
THE RING! If I didn't already know it's not Dumbledore, I would say "wow, I bet the HBP is Dumbledore" at this point. But instead I'll just be awed at the fact that Dumbledore is wearing it right now.
YES! Harry has matured (pg. 77)! This is exhilarating.
YES!!! Private lessons with Dumbledore!! What more could you ask for in life? Ah, here's the answer: O.W.L. results later today. My last-minute prediction: Harry did quite well overall, and passed his Potions O.W.L; Hermione performed brilliantly on each exam; and Ron's results are alright, but he didn't pass his Potions O.W.L. (he's not Auror material, after all). But we'll see how close I am in just a few pages! On another note, my apologies for such short comments throughout this chapter - this book is gripping! I'm loving every word of it!
Chapters 5 - 6
Kudos to Mr. Weasley for his promotion! That's fabulous! Okay, now I like the new Minister of Magic quite a bit more.
Wow, one of the VTM theories is spot on - well, with the exception of the timing: "It's possible that Harry leaves the Dursley's early to attend the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour. It was implied that the two were dating ("He's been giving her a lot of private lessons"), and if this relationship continued over the course of the year, marriage is a distinct possibility. -Submitted by: Notabene." Of course, they haven't gotten married just yet - things could still fall through beforehand, though I doubt they will.
I didn't expect Harry to tell Hermione and Ron about the prophecy this soon, but it's good of him to get it off his shoulders right away. I love their responses; they're that of true friends.
O.W.L. results are pretty much as expected. Ron performed better than I thought he had - always a plus - and Hermione's pre-result jitters are a hoot.
All of these Diagon Alley disappearances are very strange...very strange indeed. In particular Ollivander, because Harry's never really been fond of him and he's done nothing to prove himself good. It's possible that he's under the Imperius Curse, I suppose - that could bring about some interesting events.
Wow, Harry as the Quidditch Captain! That's quite the shocker, especially since Dumbledore's reasoning for not making Harry a prefect in Order of the Phoenix was because Harry "had enough responsibility to be getting on with." Surely being the Quidditch Captain is just as demanding? Regardless, it looks like Harry finally gets to play Quidditch again! Yes! Years four and five could've used a couple more Quidditch matches, in my opinion.
Fred and George's shop rocks! The sign on the front kills me - what fabulous comic relief! They truly are remarkable wizards; even Hermione concedes that the magic is extraordinary.
Aha, Draco's Detour! We've all been aching to read this chapter since last Halloween, when its title was released. It's quite interesting. I bet that what Malfoy showed Borgin was the Dark Mark on his arm, which would definitely be intimidating. What he doesn't want Borgin to sell remains a mystery for the time being. Hermione's quick, and, as Harry puts it, "lame" action is surprisingly uncharacteristic of her. Still a nice idea, though.
Chapters 7 - 16
I've just finished Chapter Sixteen - "A Very Frosty Christmas" - and must say that I am absolutely loving this book. At this rate, it just may knock off Goblet of Fire as my favorite Harry Potter book. First off, I'm so glad that Harry has matured since Order of the Phoenix. JKR hinted that he would, but his newfound ability to control his emotions is really fantastic. One of my favorite parts so far (of many) is one that I just finished - Harry's talk with Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour. Though Scrimgeour's comments understandably irk Harry, he remains composed throughout their entire conversation and sticks to his guns. He manages to be blunt and straightforward without being rude and has some great quotage: "You might have noticed [Fudge]'s not Minister anymore, but Dumbledore's still headmaster. I'd leave Dumbledore alone, if I were you." This is a Harry we haven't seen before (his loyalty hasn't wavered since standing up for Dumbledore in Chamber of Secrets, but he's much more experienced now), and I love him.
Once again, for the umpteenth time in a row, the reader is supposed to suspect Snape (remind anyone of Sorcerer's Stone, in particular?). But I'm with Dumbledore on this one - Snape is on the Order's side. The Unbreakable Vow seems fishy, and it is, but Voldemort's the one who should be worrying. Snape may bit a git, yes, but Harry shouldn't waste his time or energy suspecting him of Death Eaterly activity. I was pleased to see that my prediction was right - Snape did indeed secure the Defense Against the Dark Arts post this year!
The murder of Hannah Abbott's mom was a big shock, even though she's not a central character. It's another grim reminder of how real the threat of Voldemort is and how it is only intensifying with time. Another surprise was the arrest of Stan Shunpike, though that's likely just a wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time situation. The Katie Bell/necklace ordeal is very intriguing, especially now that we know that Harry was right to suspect Malfoy of being the perpetrator behind the attack, yet McGonagall claims that Malfoy was doing her detention the entire time.
Professor Slughorn reminds me quite a bit of Ludo Bagman. In the case of Bagman, we assumed that he was up to something shifty during the entire book and then found out near the end that he wasn't evil, just had a bad gambling addiction. Slughorn is written suspectively, but I doubt he'll turn out to be under the Imperius Curse, a Death Eater using the Polyjuice Potion, or just plain evil.
Romance! Another thing I simply adore about this book is the heightened level of romance, which, seeing as they are constantly aging and maturing, is to be expected. Ginny and Seamus caught snogging behind the tapestry, and then Harry's internal longing to be with her instead of Dean; Ron's outrage at Ginny's romantic behavior followed by his ridiculous and very physical relationship with Lavender Brown, who I doubt he actually likes; Hermione's indignation at Ron and Lavender temporarily hooking up, her setting the birds on Ron following the Quidditch match, and then her well-concocted ploys to get back at Ron. I'm still pushing for Ron/Hermione and Harry/Ginny hook-ups by the end of the book.
I'd forgotten what it felt like to experience a Quidditch match not knowing who would win - it's really quite nerve-racking! I, like Hermione and Ron, was fooled into thinking that Harry did pour Felix Felicis into Ron's drink and was ever so delighted to discover that my suspicions were wrong. I laughed aloud when we found out that Felix Felicis is a potion, as it put an extremely abrupt end to all "Felix Felicis is the Half-Blood Prince" theories.
Dumbledore's meetings with Harry, though fewer than expected, are very interesting and are definitely helping Harry in the long run.
Another note before I begin Chapter 17 - I thought it strange that Rowling interspersed song lyrics into that scene, simply because she doesn't usually go into that much detail about songs. Perhaps it's more significant than the average jingle?
Chapters 17 - 23
I've just finished Chapter 23, "Horcruxes," arguably the most insightful chapter out of the entire Harry Potter series. What a fabulously penned twist! There was much speculation about the steps that Voldemort took to become immortal following Goblet of Fire, but I never dreamed of getting such a thorough and intriguing explanation and analysis by the sixth book. Who would have guessed that a completely non-action scene could be so gripping?
A more playful title for this book might have been "Harry Potter and the Horcruxes of Doom," which, funnily enough, sounds somewhat similar to the "Harry Potter and the Toenail of Icklibõgg" non-rumor from last summer.
Felix Felicis seems a dangerous thing to bring into the world, from a literary aspect, as it opens up innumerable possibilities - why not just drink some Felix Felicis and then go pick a fight with Voldemort? It did give Harry quite the boost in his quest to retrieve Slughorn's memory, though. He was smart not to drink all of it; he should drink the rest just before his encounter with Voldemort later on in the book (which will undoubtedly happen within the next 150 pages).
We've learned a startlingly amount of information about the circumstances of Voldemort's birth, his shift to evil, and his rise to power so far, all of which will surely come in handy during the rest of this book and book seven.
How is Katie Bell going to be able to graduate from Hogwarts? It's now March, meaning she's been at St. Mungo's since October! But then again, Colin Creevey was petrified for most of his first year at Hogwarts and still managed to move on up (partly owing to the cancellation of end-of-year exams, no doubt).
McLaggen is not exactly what I expected. First, his surname is spelled differently than in the Edinburgh Book Festival transcript on JKRowling.com (where it's written as McClaggan), and secondly, I was expecting him to be an adult. But no matter, he's a jerk nonetheless. I don't see how Gryffindor will manage to win the Quidditch Cup after that absolutely nauseating loss to Hufflepuff, but the unexpected always seems to happen in Harry Potter.
I'm still a bit iffy on Slughorn. He's definitely not one of Voldemort's cronies, but I don't think that he's entirely good either. I find it funny that the trio talk about him just as they spoke of Ludo Bagman in book four, which either means that we're supposed to make that connection and expect Slughorn's mystery to be similar to Bagman's, or that we aren't supposed to make that connection and it actually is.
Why hasn't Harry told Dumbledore about the Half-Blood Prince yet? He's been much more open with him in this book, which is refreshing, so I don't see how it can always slip his mind during their meetings. Ah, well, I suppose we aren't supposed to know his indentity until near the end of the book.
Draco Malfoy is likely behind Katie Bell's necklace attack and Ron's poisoning, but who was he really attempting to attack? I remember I referred to Draco as a "budding death eater" in a happy birthday post to him several months back, which turned out to be accurate, but he sure is a lousy one. It will be interesting to discover just what he's doing in the Room of Requirement, though.
Enough analysis for now - time to read about Sectumsempra, whatever that is!
Chapter 24
Harry just kissed Ginny! They are now officially an item! I knew it! Oh, this is fantastic. I literally jumped out of my chair when I read that bit - due to elation, not surprise. Arthur Levine was not kidding when he said there was more romance in this one! Brilliant! Now how soon until Harry walks in on Ron and Hermione snogging, hmm?
As for Harry's encounter with Malfoy? Wow. So many exciting things happened in such a short period of time! Malfoy acted like the ultimate wimp, then attempted to use an Unforgivable Curse on Harry; Harry accidentally used the Dark Arts for the first time (for a moment I was hopeful enough to believe that Malfoy was actually dead, and then I wouldn't have to worry about Dumbledore's fate any longer, but most unfortunately, Snape came to his aid ... Unbreakable Vow at work, I guess); and Snape was hardly upset about the attack itself. He seemed much more interested in where Harry learnt the spell rather than Malfoy's well-being.
I wonder if Dumbledore has ever been in the humongous room full of confiscated books that Harry just set foot in. Probably not, seeing as he's headmaster and has more efficient methods of concealment. But can you imagine the secrets stowed away inside that room? Hopefully we'll find some out soon!
Chapters 25 - 30
It is taking an incredible amount of restraint not to use caps lock at the moment. I cannot believe that Dumbledore is dead. Cedric's murder, I could handle. Even Sirius's. But this ... this is horrific. Why on earth did she have to kill him?! Couldn't he have simply gone on vacation at the end of the seventh book so that Harry could face Voldemort alone? And why, if it is her intention to make us hate Voldemort more by having him kill those we love, was Snape the murderer rather than Voldemort? What a grim ending to an otherwise exceptional book.
My favorite book is still Goblet of Fire; I simply do not find reading about the murder of one of my absolute favorite characters enjoyable. The rest of the book was ... well, I hardly even remember what the rest of the book was. In a bit, the shock will wear off and I'll be able to examine the story more objectively, but for now, I'm incredibly sleep deprived and emotionally shaken.
Throughout the entire book, I was waiting for explanations of Sirius's death, of the veil and its history, and of the mirror, but they never came. We also never really got the lowdown on just what Snape being the Half-Blood Prince means and if it really affects anything at all. I admit that I did not foresee Snape's betrayal of Dumbledore and, like Lupin, trusted him simply because Dumbledore did. How gravely mistaken we all were. And like McGonagall, I expected that Dumbledore knew much more than he did about Snape to grant him his trust. I was hoping for an explanation from Dumbledore of why, after more than a decade of refusal, he decided to give Snape the DADA post this year. I suppose this means that the curse will continue, alas. The curse going into effect after Dumbledore refused to give Voldemort the job was an interesting bit of back story, and it really makes you wonder if there's ancient Dark Magic behind it all.
I'm still reeling in shock about Snape. I've always disliked him as a person, but trusted in him nevertheless. In fact, my trust was so misplaced that I expected Dumbledore to pop up after Snape's Killing Curse and say "just kidding!;" for Snape to chuckle and explain to Harry that he had purposefully shot to the left of Dumbledore and Dumbledore had just fallen for kicks; and for Snape, Dumbledore, and Harry to then charge off after the Death Eaters, but it never happened. It took me a good nine months to finally convince myself that Sirius was dead - mostly because his death was completely unexplained and quite mysterious - but this time, I suppose, I will (very) grudgingly accept the fact that he is gone.
Dumbledore left Harry with a wealth of knowledge about Voldemort, and with a mission. The better part of the seventh book will likely consist of Harry's journeys to obtain and destroy the remaining Horcruxes, unfortunately. I was very disappointed to read that Harry does not plan on returning to Hogwarts - what's a Harry Potter book without a year of study at Hogwarts? He could always change his mind, I suppose; I dearly hope he does.
Other plotlines that were left open were Grawp, Pettigrew, and Slughorn (is there really no mystery about him other than the Horcruxes?), but there's always a seventh book for those. I was also disappointed that Harry and Ginny temporarily broke up at the book's close, but I suppose it was to be expected. And Hermione and Ron aren't officially an item ... yet.
Excluding page 596, I loved the book. Rowling's writing style seems to have matured along with her characters; it is growing ever richer and more sophisticated. I will write a real review of the book later, once everything has had enough time to sink in.
Concluding Note: Even as I just reread this tonight, I realized that I had already forgotten a good deal of my thoughts midway through the book, which is really the main reason that I pulled myself away from it to type for a few minutes here and there. I enjoyed the book a lot more than the last few paragraphs of this page make it seem - I was just considerably upset at the time, as I'm sure most of you were as well. I'll write a real review of the book in a few weeks ... once I've re-read it a few more times.
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