Harry Potter Film Wizardry

2010, HarperCollins first edition
Harry Potter Film Wizardry: From the Creative Team Behind the Celebrated Movie Series
Written (mostly) by Brian Sibley
Designed by Minalima Design
Bought new for $39.99
Hardcover in good condition
B+

Like the pop-up books, this is a lot of eye candy, even more so of course, since it runs to 160 pages.  There are no pop-ups, but there are lots of "paper ephemera," such as Harry's Hogwarts letter, booklets like Advanced Potion-Making, Honeydukes packages, and best of all, the Marauder's Map!  The book is arranged roughly in chronological order, although there will be focus on a person, place, or thing if particularly prominent in one film.  Understandably, given the timing of the release, there are only fourteen pages on DH1, and only two on DH2.  Still, it's a great way to relive the movie series.  If I have any quibble, it's that the writing by Sibley could've been stronger, but it doesn't get in the way too much, and I especially liked the pages by production designer Stuart Craig and producer David Heyman.  I also like that, while it's mostly about the film series, the book series is discussed where pertinent. 

Highly recommended for moderate to obsessive fans.  Appropriate for, say, ten years old and up, although Helena Bonham Carter does get a bit naughty at times.

Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Book Based on the Film Phenomenon

2010, Insight first edition
Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Book Based on the Film Phenomenon
Paper Engineering by Bruce Foster
Art by Andrew Williamson
Text by Lucy Kee
Bought new for $34.95
Hardcover in good condition
B

Although there's more to this than to 2008's Magical Scenes from the Sixth Film in the Harry Potter Series, it does promise more, so I can't give it a higher rating.

• Dumbledore's Office, this time with a packet from the Ministry and for some reason a Howler.
• Diagon Alley, with pop-up buildings and smaller pop-ups of Hedwig and the Weasley-twin joke-shop statue.
• Hogwarts pop-up, with a smaller pop-up of both the Beauxbatons carriage and the Durmstrang ship.
• Magical Creatures, including the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid's Hut, and smaller pop-ups of Fluffy and a Mandrake.
• "Magical Games and Sports," with Harry and the dragon in the First Task, smaller pop-ups showing the giant chess game and Ron as Quidditch Keeper.
• The Dark Arts, showing Voldemort torturing Harry in GoF, and this time three smaller pop-ups: Nagini, the Inferi, and Dementors.

There's more text than in Magical Scenes, although understandably still not very much.  I think rather than themes, I'd prefer a scene from each film to that point.  (Deathly Hallows, Part I was released that November, but they could've gone up to HBP.)  Or maybe they could've focused on a character, or group of characters, each spread.  The pop-ups are more detailed than before, including backs, but they seem to tilt more than necessary.  The book is probably less spoilery than Magical Scenes, although anyone willing to spend 35 bucks probably had seen all the released movies more than once by then.

HPHBP: Magical Scenes from the Sixth Film in the Harry Potter Series

2008, Penguin first edition
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Magical Scenes from the Sixth Film in the Harry Potter Series
Copyright by Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.
Original price £9.99, bought newish for $7.95
Hardcover in good condition
B

Ironically, I find this more entertaining than the book or the movie, for what it is.  Not that it isn't odd to see a book with "pull-tabs, pop-ups and flaps" that involves romance and violence, but such is the oddness of a fandom that spans many ages and interests.  Each two-page spread has a different theme, not necessarily in order.  In fact, there are even spoilers for Deathly Hallows!  

• Hogwarts Express, with a ticket and four house badges
• Quidditch theme, with a flying Ron and a small poster
• "Severus Snape (TM) is the Half-Blood Prince (TM)."  You didn't know he trademarked it, did you?
• Quibbler salute, with awesome Spectrespecs
• Love and Friendship, with Harry/Ginny pop-up, although he's not even looking at her.  (Couldn't they have done the kiss, or at least hand-holding?)
• Death Eaters theme, with a big flap that reveals some of the D.E.s.
• Tom Riddle, with one flap revealing 1930s Dumbledore and another Voldemort's face hidden behind young Tom's.  Eek!
• Horcruxes, with a dial to see what they are, very spoilery.
• Room of Requirement, with pull-tab to see explanation, and a tab hiding Bellatrix in the Vanishing Cabinet.  Eek!
• Dumbledore, with pop-up Fawkes and a portrait flap I can't pull loose.

The design of the book is generally impressive, although it could've been better.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

2007, Canadian hardcover Bloomsbury first edition, American hardcover Scholastic first edition
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Canadian edition bought new for $45.00, American bought new for $34.99
Former in good condition, latter sounds like spine will break soon
B+

I still believe this is the best book in the series, although it's not at all "a British school story with magic in it."  Yes, Harry goes back to Hogwarts, but only to lead the final battle against Voldemort and the Death Eaters.  Over one-fourth of the story is set in the pivotal 24-ish hours when Harry, Ron, and Hermione break into Gringotts and then head to their school to wrap things up.  

The whole book of course is tying up loose ends, quite the opposite of Snicket's "End."  I loved all the little shout-outs to previous moments in the series, and that Rowling really did resolve a lot of earlier mysteries.  It's not a perfect book, not quite at the level of L. Frank Baum's best, so I will talk about the flaws I found.  

The biggest flaw is that Harry starts casting Unforgivable Curses (although not Avada Kedavra), and there are no real consequences to this.  (Hermione doesn't even scold him.)  Is Rowling saying that they're forgivable in wartime?  If so, that's a non-Snicket slippery slope.  Also, while there are moments when Harry and Ron's chivalry is sweet (like when Ron says he'll pretend Hermione is his cousin, to protect her), I don't like that Harry tries to shelter Ginny during the final battle, when she's only a few months shy of being of age.  (She of course fights anyway.)  And thirdly, while there are a lot of great callbacks to earlier, there are also things like not only the Hallows themselves but Fiendfyre, that Rowling never thought to mention before.

All that said, I think this is Rowling at the top of her game.  There are no weak chapter, or parts that seem too detailed.  (I joke about the Never Ending Camping Trip, but I actually love the dynamic of the trio, and for awhile Harry and Hermione, on their own.)  There are genuinely moving moments, although it's not always the same ones that touch me each time I read the book or watch the films.  (This was I believe the first fantasy book of recent years to get the split into halves, or in The Hobbit's case thirds, ironic in light of Horcruxes of course.)  So much of the book, including the humour, comes from having a history with these characters of being, as Rowling puts in her dedication, someone who has "stuck with Harry until the very end."  I used to think that maybe I had over-rated this book because it was last, but, no, it really is the best.  

Even Grandpre has stepped up a bit.  Yes, some of the illustrations are still somewhat forgettable, but I'm fond of the ones that feature Harry, particularly the one for the chapter "Shell Cottage," where Harry sits on a cliff and reflects.

This is not the end for Harry Potter in my book collection, as I've got a few movie tie-in books coming up for '08 and '10....

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

2005, British hardcover Bloomsbury first edition, American hardcover Scholastic first edition
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
British edition bought new for 16.99, American bought new for $29.99
Both in good condition
B-

OK, I still think this is the weakest book in the series.  It starts out with two chapters that, while not as unnecessary as "Hagrid's Tale" in the previous book, really don't work.  The worse chapter is first, "The Other Minister," where we see the Muggle British Prime Minister (John Major in the real summer of 1996, except that this one has a male predecessor) meeting with Fudge and his successor, the almost unpronounceable Scrimgeour.  There's little information here that isn't conveyed elsewhere, and more efficiently, and I don't find the chapter nearly as funny as Rowling seems to.  (The funniest thing is actually what one of my friends noticed at the time, that the American edition uses "site" for "sight.")  I think it's perfectly fine that this chapter was left out of the movie.  It does show the political parallels between the Muggle and magical worlds, but I think the later list of "simple security guidelines," including the impossible "You are advised not to leave the house alone," is much sharper satire, especially in light of Code Orange and all.

As for the second chapter, it's better, but it has bad-fanfic overtones, as when Narcissa Malfoy falls on her knees in front of Snape.  (To plead for Snape's help for Draco.  This isn't actually fanfic.)

Fandom uses an abbreviation OOC for "out of character," and that's the main issue I have with this book, particularly in the characterisation of the female characters, a shame after the triumphs of Order.  I've read this book enough times now that it doesn't bother me as much as it used to, but I still don't like Hermione attacking Ron with magic birds, or Ginny being Fred-and-George cruel to Ron.  Yes, they're both provoked, but I felt like they went beyond what was necessary, or what was true to their earlier characterisation.  And we have usually lively, joking Tonks moping around over Lupin.  Only Luna seems like her previous self, and I think that's partly due to the amazing Evanna Lynch, whom Rowling has admitted is the only actor or actress whose portrayal has affected her mind's eye view of her characters.

Other signs of the movies affecting Rowling include not only the previously mentioned "punch" of Draco by Hermione (the slap was in character by the way), but the little shout-outs to Rupert Grint.  At the time this book was published, we were four months away from Movie Four.  Fandom was only strengthened by the movies of course, and I suspect that all the slashy lines, such as Harry being "obsessed" by Draco, and Snape saying he'll decide how hard to be on/with Draco, are deliberate teases by Rowling.

One thing that I think is much better in the book than the movie is the visit to the cave, which contains some of Rowling's best description.  I have mixed feelings about the Pensieve memories being cut back.  I don't think it's Rowling's best writing, but there is some important information there.  I also think the movie bungled the explanation of Horcruxes, but I'll go into that someday when I've got a movie blog.

I will note that Grandpre is finally drawing the characters as if they're older than twelve.  Her green-toned cover art is good, on the front showing Harry and Dumbledore looking at the basin with the locket, on the back picturing Ron, Hermione, and Ginny gazing up at the Dark Mark.  I haven't really mentioned the British cover art, partly because it always seems to be by a different artist, but this time it complements the American: Harry and Dumbledore surrounded by fire on the front, and on the back the basin in the middle of the lake.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

2003, British hardcover Bloomsbury first edition, American hardcover Scholastic first edition
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
British edition possibly bought later for 16.99, American bought new for $29.99
British edition in good shape except for torn dustjacket, American possibly water damaged
B

Although Snicket fluctuates from B+ down to B-, with occasional trips back to B, Rowling continues to earn B's.  This book is of course even longer, so that at the point that Stone was wrapping things up, Harry has just earned his first detention with the "sweet" but really malicious Dolores Umbridge.  She's one of several memorable new characters, mostly female, that are introduced surprisingly late in the series.  One is a villainess of a very different sort, Bellatrix Lestrange.  (Yes, Bellatrix appears in Goblet, but it's much briefer.)  Nymphadora Tonks and Luna Lovegood are both unconventional but brave and loyal.  And we see more of Cho Chang, which is a mixed blessing, as she spends most of her time crying over Cedric.

I'm keeping notes on Rowling's mathematical errors to a minimum here, since as I said, there are plenty of sites that track these.  But I must note that it's not just the movie version of this book that puts Cho into Harry's year, after it was very clear in Goblet-book that Cho was a year older.  Here she refers to a Quidditch match in "the third year," meaning hers as well as Harry's.  Rowling could've avoided this by saying, "a couple years ago."  Still, I thought she did a nice job of showing the awkwardness of a first date, where Harry can't think what to say, when to hold Cho's hand, or even how to move his own limbs.  (And, yes, Ron and Hermione continue their tension, without getting it at all resolved.)

Unfortunately, Grandpre is drawing the characters as if they're about three years younger than the 15 or 16 that they are.  I know Harry is small for his age (though getting taller), but even Ron doesn't look like he's too far into puberty.  I did like seeing what she did with Tonks, Sirius, and Lupin though, and I do think this is her best cover so far, not so overcrowded, and with the nice blue tones.

This book continues the "darkness," with more violence and death.  It also shows a distrust of government, in the form of the Ministry of Magic, that wasn't as strong in the pre-9/11 days (although the book is set '95 to '96).  The parallels to both British and American Muggle governments will be more obvious in the next book.

I mentioned in my Goblet review that this contains a weak chapter, one I think could've been omitted or at least quickly summarised (as it is in the movie, but then that's notoriously short as a whole).  "Hagrid's Tale" of befriending giants is inconclusive.  They may or may not help Dumbledore's side.  And it could count towards the building of Hagrid's romance with Madame Maxime, except that Rowling later said that that fizzled out.  Yes, the journey leads to Hagrid bringing home his full-giant half-brother, but even that's not really necessary to the saga.  I consider this the weakest chapter in the series.

On the other hand, I've long regarded the sixth book as the weakest overall, so we'll see if I revise that opinion when we get to 2005....

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

2000, British hardcover Bloomsbury edition that's not the first but at least pre-Order-of-the-Phoenix, American paperback Scholastic edition from 2002
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
British edition possibly bought for 14.99, American originally $8.99 but purchase price unknown
British edition in good shape except for torn dustjacket, American worn with broken spine
B

Before the release of Deathly Hallows, this was my favorite in the series, but I'm finding the books to be all roughly on a level, so far.  Yes, this moves us into YA territory (although I'd say more middle school than high school), and the Yule Ball stuff is still among my favorite sections-- the Skrewts made me laugh out loud, too-- but I'm not entirely sure it was a wise choice to make the books longer.  (It's not till Chapter Eleven that we're "Aboard the Hogwarts Express," 140 pages in, and we were almost up to Christmas at that point in the first book.)  It's not that there are any seriously weak spots (unlike a certain chapter in the next book), but I don't know that we need to go into so much detail on everything.  On the one hand, it's nice to spend extra time with the characters, especially anything with Percy (the "Weatherby" stuff is great), but on the other, you've got Voldemort doing a Villain Monologue, and there's probably too much of logistics overall, like exactly how to get to the World Cup.  That's right, too much is explained, or over-explained anyway.

As for that move to young-teen territory, there are the first serious hints of romantic tension between Ron and Hermione.  (He now 14, she now 15, although I don't remember if her birthday is ever explained in the books.)  Ron continues his crush on Madam Rosmerta and also falls for quarter-Veela Fleur, although she's eying his brother Bill later on.  (Grandpre's illustrations are again mostly forgettable, although the one of Ron and Fleur is funny.)  And Harry gets tangled in romantic triangles, real and imaginary.

Also, while there is violence and "darkness" in every book, the torture of Harry, and of course the killing of Cedric, are more intense than anything in the first three books.  Even Dumbledore's look of almost-triumph is disturbing.  (Not explained till late in the last book.)  When he says that Snape is no more a Death Eater than he is, I once had a theory that Dumbledore would turn out to be secretly evil.  (The truth about him, and Snape, would turn out to be more complex.)  As a symbol of this being the midpoint of the series, we don't have Gryffindor winning the House Cup-- Harry not only doesn't take finals, but he doesn't play Quidditch except at the Weasleys'-- and instead black banners hang for Cedric.

I was hooked by the series when I read this book in I guess mid-2001.  It would be another two years, very long it seemed then, before the fifth book came out.  Much would change in the interval, partly as a result of September 11th.  On a brighter note, we got the first two movies, and I could finally visualize Quidditch.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

1999, British hardcover Bloomsbury edition that's not the first but at least pre-Goblet-of-Fire, American paperback Scholastic edition from 2001
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
British edition possibly bought for 11.99, American originally $7.99 but purchase price 25 cents
British edition in good shape, American in surprisingly good condition especially considering the price
B

I found this equal to the second book (with probably Grandpre's weakest illustrations so far), although the characterisation is getting even more complex.  This is symbolised by the second title character going from "Black" to "Sirius" in the narration.  Harry changes from seeing Black as the man who betrayed Harry's parents to his kind, protective godfather.  Similarly, Ron's rat Scabbers turns out to be the real traitor.  And even Hermione has a secret that she hides all school year.  As for Harry, he contemplates murder!

The kids are growing up in other ways.  Not only fifteen-year-old Lee Jordan but thirteen-year-old Ron swears, although we're not told what specific words.  Ron has a crush on "curvy" Madam Rosmerta, and Harry has a funny feeling in his stomach when he meets pretty Cho Chang.  And Hermione actually mouths off to a teacher, several times, not to mention slapping Draco Malfoy.

This is a moment that became a punch in the movie version (probably the most popular moment in the film, the times I've seen it), affecting Rowling's own memory of the moment when she wrote of it again a few books later.  Even here, when the movies were not yet in production, she's remembering earlier events incorrectly, as when she says that Ron went to the Forbidden Forest twice before.  (In the first movie, Ron replaces Neville on that detention.)  And although I haven't commented on it before, but of course many have throughout the Internet, Rowling's maths and calendar skills are off in all her books, here notably with the dates for Buckbeak's criminal case.  On the other hand, I can't say I've really noticed a problem with her adverbs, notorious though she is for them, but that doesn't really bother me as such, especially in a children's book.

Is this a children's book, or have we hit Young Adult now?  I'd say it's on the border.  There are some innuendos (a fortune-telling book about "broken balls" and security trolls who compare the size of their clubs), but even with the swearing and violence and all, it's still a relatively innocent story.  And we get the usual pattern of Quidditch and classes and of course Gryffindor winning the House Cup again.  The next book of course will be a game-changer in many ways....

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

1998, British hardcover Bloomsbury edition from 1999, American paperback Scholastic edition from 2000
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
British edition possibly bought for 11.99, American originally $6.99 but purchase price $3.00
British edition in good shape, American with split spine and possible water damage
B

I think this is a shade better than the first book, if not quite at B+ level.  The plotting is better (even if I still don't get, after all this time, quite what Lucius Malfoy hoped to accomplish and if he knew about Horcruxes), and the characterisation of everyone except the Dursleys (who remain cartoonish and are featured less) has improved.  The Weasleys especially shine, all of them-- the parents, Percy, the twins, Ginny, and of course Ron.  Poor Hermione spends much of the time in hospital, so it's not her best book.  (Things will even out more in Azkaban.)  Lockhart is of course a more interesting, and funnier, character than Quirrell, and we even learn more about Hagrid.  The most remarkable thing about this book as compared to the first is that, although still definitely a kids' book, things are getting more complex.  Good guys have flaws, bad guys have redeeming moments, and some people (like Lockhart) don't clearly fall into either category.  Harry, now 12, even doubts himself, when he turns out to be a Parselmouth (snake-whisperer).

As with the first book, there are lots of moments that are "aha!" for those who've read the whole series, but they work fine just in the context of this book, like the Vanishing Cabinet that Peeves breaks as a distraction.  There's less world-building in the sense that not everything's brand-new, and on the surface the story does feel like a replay of the general outline of the first book, down to Gryffindor winning the House Cup.  To make up for that, the familiarity pays off, comedically and otherwise.  The second movie is weaker than the first (especially with the "No Hogwarts without you, Hagrid" ending), but that's definitely not the case with their respective books.  I will say, I liked Grandpre's illustrations less this time around, although the first Lockhart one is just right.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's [Sorcerer's] Stone

1997, British hardcover Bloomsbury edition from 2000, American paperback Scholastic edition from 1999
J. K. Rowling
American edition illustrated by Mary Grandpre
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's [Sorcerer's] Stone
Original and purchase prices unknown
Philosopher's in good shape although worn dustjacket, Sorcerer's falling apart
B

In some ways, this is one of the hardest books I've had to review, because I'm a huge Harry Potter fan, both books and movies.  I didn't start out that way.  In 2000, I decided I could no longer ignore the hype, so I read the first book.  I thought it was OK, but it was basically a British school story with magic in it.  Later, I decided to give the second book a shot, and it clicked with me more.  So I went on to read the other two that were out at that point.

And then I was in the lobby of a movie theater, some point in 2001 it must've been, and the monitor was showing trailers.  (That was a fairly new thing in itself, a way to pass time in the refreshments line.)  And I watched the trailer for the new Harry Potter movie transfixed.  Specifically, the nighttime shot of Hogwarts made me think "It's like Oz!"  I felt like suddenly, in my early 30s, I'd been given back the wonder of the Oz series.  And then when I saw the movie, I liked the books more than before.  It just built from there for the last dozen years.

But how to write about this book somewhat in isolation?  By definition, you can't be objective about your opinions.  Although as a fan, I get a kick out of lines about "young Sirius Black" and Snape's ability to read minds, they don't pay off in this book.  And to be honest, on its own terms, it really is a British school story with magic in it.  The best part of the book is actually roughly the first third, before Harry gets to Hogwarts, the stuff with the Dursleys and/or Hagrid.  It wasn't until my second or third reading that I realised the Roald Dahl meets Sinclair Lewis satiric tone of the first chapter, with Vernon having "a perfectly normal, owl-free morning."

Not that it's not nice to meet Ron, Hermione, Neville, etc., but we don't really get to know much about them in this book.  (For instance, some of Ron's funniest moments, like "She needs to sort out her priorities," are only in the movie.)  And I'm not entirely happy with Neville's arc here.  He learns to stand up for himself, including to his friends, but he gets frozen by Hermione for doing so!  And he's apparently forgotten by Hagrid and the others (including Rowling) in the Forbidden Forest.  But he wins ten points, and Gryffindor gets the House Cup, so we're not supposed to mind.

There are some other clumsy moments, like characters seeking information that they obviously know, like Mrs. Weasley asking which platform they're going to.  (She could've said, "Here we are, Platform Nine and Three-Quarters," for instance.)  Or what about Harry's dream that he forgets by the next morning?  I realise that the story isn't entirely from his perspective, but Rowling could've handled the inclusion of the dream better.  

It's very much a kids' book, with the characterisation kept simple.  When Dumbledore answers Harry's questions at the end, we're not supposed to think with hindsight, "You damn liar!  You're even lying about not lying!"  We're just supposed to take the answers on the level that Harry does.  

As a kids' book, it works well, flaws aside, because it taps into not just the fantasy of magic but fantasies of friendship, sweets, animals, silliness, and simple triumphs.  I can't say that Grandpre's illustrations are that memorable, except for how they carefully don't give away plot points.  They get the job done, and they're better than the post-Neill Oz illustrations.