Review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

 Review of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling

I finally made it through to the last Harry Potter book, and it has been an incredible journey, reading these books for the first time. I'll give my thoughts on all of the books at the end of this review. So, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" picks up reasonably shortly after the end of the last book. I liked the opening because even though the Dursleys have mistreated Harry, he still tries to protect them from Lord Voldemort. There's a great moment where Dudley shows gratitude to Harry, and even aunt Petunia almost has a moment. At the end of the book, we'll find out why Petunia hated Harry's mom. Jealousy. I like to think that she would tell Harry to kill Voldemort to avenge her sister's death. 

It's hard to portray a chase on broomsticks in the air, incredibly if you are not familiar with the English landscape, so I found it confusing to follow along. Much of what happens in this chase is revealed later in the book. 

After Harry reaches Ron's house, he is in a hurry to start looking for the Horcruxes. However, Hermione and Ron convince him to wait until after Bill and Fleur's wedding. I enjoyed Harry being disguised as a Weasley cousin. We get to meet Ron's Aunt Muriel, who's been mentioned before, as well as a friend of Dumbledore's. Harry learns more about Dumbledore's past, and this is the first time we are introduced to the symbol of the deathly hallows. 

After the wedding, the trio spends a lot of time in the forest, not accomplishing much. This, to me, is where the book starts to have pacing issues. Every time Harry, Ron, and Hermione are in hiding, and the book grinds to a halt for me. Even the scene of them infiltrating the Ministry of Magic takes too long. I enjoy it when the trio is at Grimmauld Place, and Harry feels like it could be home. This book also pays off Hermione's crusade about free house elves through the change in Creature. Harry treats Creature with more respect than his previous masters, and in return, earns Creature's loyalty. While Creature is not a free elf, this shift in how house-elves are treated removes their cruelty. It's been a subtle plot since Doby was introduced. Speaking of Doby, his death is sad but fitting because of his loyalty to Harry, even before he was set free.

One of my main problems with this book is traveling to too many locations. For a first-time reader listening to the audiobooks, it got confusing sometimes trying to figure out where they were. I often got Grimmauld Place confused with Godric's Hollow, and it took me a while to figure out that it was a village, not just a single house. Jumping from place to place, gathering bits of information slowed the story's pace, at least for me. Obviously, we can't make it too easy for Harry to obtain the Horcruxes, and we want to feel a sense of danger wherever he goes, but I feel some scenes could have been combined.

While the middle of the book dragged on a bit, the ending is non-stop action. I love the reveal of Snape's past and his love for Harry's mother Lilly, as well as Dumbledore's planned death. The back and forth battling at Hogwarts happens so fast that some deaths are barely mentioned, which adds to the chaos and urgency of the fight. Harry is losing his friends, and he needs to figure out how to stop Voldemort all at once. I love that Harry is resigned to dying and faces Voldemort. As explained by astral Dumbledore, why Harry doesn't die doesn't make any sense because they've never really explained how Lilly's spell protects Harry; and how it relates to Voldemort. But somehow, Harry lives again, and I love how Harry taunts Tom Riddle about the elder wand belonging to Harry. In the end, Harry can defeat Voldemort for good. I like that everyone gets something to do in the battle. Ron and Hermione retrieve the Basilisk fang to destroy the Horcrux, Neville receives the sword of Godric Gryffindor from killing Nagini, and Molly Weasley beats Bellatrix Lestrange. It's also a bit comedic to have the Malfoy's running around looking for Draco, which shows that they were never really true believers of the dark lord. 

The book ends with an epilogue nineteen years later, when Harry sees his second son, Albus, off to Hogwarts at platform nine and ¾. This gives us a glimpse into how Harry, Ron, and Hermione's lives ended. Harry and Ginny were married (I never understood that pairing), Ron and Hermione are married, and while not friends with Draco, they weren't enemies anymore. It's a great way to end the story. I know there is the Cursed Child story, but I haven't read it since it was written as a play and not a novel.

Now that I've read all seven of the Harry Potter books, I can say that I understand why it is so beloved. These books are exceptional works of fantasy that deal with destiny, death, bravery, and friendship. These books succeed because of the fantastic characters we get to know throughout the series. 

The last Harry Potter universe book post will go up on Monday, "Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists." Reading these books and immersing myself in this world has been so fun. I'll post my rankings for favorite books and characters separately. Look out for that.

Read my review of "Quidditch Through the Ages."

Read my review of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."

Read my review of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Read my review of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"

Check out some of my spooky/thriller-inspired stories on Wattpad.

"Grave Little Witches"

"Through the Blackout"

Review of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

 Review of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” by J.K. Rowling

Even though I didn't see “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” in theaters, I made sure to see the sixth movie on the big screen. While I didn't like the Order of the Phoenix (when I did see it on DVD), I came out of the theaters loving the Half-Blood Prince. Now that I've read the books, I can see why I didn't like the fifth movie. However, after reading “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, I found that I loved that book and the movie took out the things that I loved. The movie “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” is more in line with the book with the exception that the movie cut out the beginning with Durselys and every thing with the new Minister of Magic.

One of the things that I loved about this book, is that we get a better sense of feeling that Harry, Ron and Hermione are growing into young adults. Which includes showing their romantic feelings and relationships. The last two books sort of dealt with that, by having Harry crush on Cho, but in this book, the trio's love lives, plus Ginny's, are on full display. I still think Harry's crush on Ginny comes out of nowhere, but I really like how Rowling handled Hermione's jealousy over Ron dating Lavender. I've never been a fan of Ron and Hermione in the movies, but the books do a slightly better job at building their relationship as more than friends. While it's very obvious to have Harry and Hermione become a couple, I love that they are platonic friends who love each other, but not in a romantic way.

The other focus in the book is learning more about Lord Voldemort. Even though Voldemort is not an active antagonist in this book, his presence remains constant through learning about his family history and his upbringing. While none of this excuses Tom Riddle's actions, it gives the reader an insight into his psychology and how he grew up with nothing but feelings of hatred. It allows the reader as well as the characters to understand Voldemort and hopefully use that information to defeat him. The introduction of the Horcuxes is a great device that ties into the other books, and sets up the final book.

There are only a few new characters introduced in this book, the best one being professor Slughorn. A goofy man obsessed with collecting extraordinary students as a part of boosting his pride and social status. It was a great change of pace to have the new teacher not teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. The sort of love interest for Hermione this book is Cormac Mclaggan, a brash young man eager to replace Ron on the quidditch team and date Hermione. The movie version of Cormac is better, but still not a likable character. Another new character is the new Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour. The book provides a bit more information about how the Minister of Magic works with the Prime Minister of the muggle world. Scrimgeour is very different from his predecessor Cornelius Fudge, but we don't get enough of him and he has no impact on the main plot of the story

While the title's of each of the Harry Potter books have a direct relevance to the plot of each book; the half-blood prince is really a book about Harry learning about Lord Voldemort. The potions book belonging to the half-blood prince is sort of a side story for the trio in between Harry's lessons with Dumbledore. It's not until the end of the book that we get the reveal of who the half-blood prince is, and why that's important to the plot. This is not something that the previous books did, the title of the books always came into play or were alluded to early on in the previous books. It's a clever yet sort of obvious twist to have Snape be the half-blood prince. I did like seeing Harry succeed in potions class as a result of using Snape's own recipes. Especially since Snape isn't teaching this potions class. It's a nice bit of irony for Harry and Snape.

I like the opening of this book with Dumbledore meeting the Dursleys because we learn that aunt Petunia made a promise to Dumbledore to let Harry stay. Dumbledore put a protection on the Dursley house that will keep Harry hidden and safe from Lord Voldemort. This scene feels a continuation from the beginning of the last book when Dumbledore sent aunt Petunia a letter.

I really enjoyed this book, but not as much as the previous one. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince does a great job setting up the stakes for the final installment in the series, while doing a good job focusing on the main trio transitioning from teenagers to young adults. I've enjoyed all of the books thus far, so I'm looking forward to reading the last book.

Thank you for reading, and be sure to check back every week as I continue to dive into the wizarding world. Next is “Short Stories from Hogwarts Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists.” So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Be sure to leave a comment or feedback to help improve the blog. Thanks for reading, and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.

Read my review of "Quidditch Through the Ages"

Read my review of “FantasticBeasts and Where to Find Them.”

Read my review of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Check out some of my spooky/thriller-inspired stories on Wattpad.

"Grave Little Witches"

"Through the Blackout"

Twitter @BelleArboreus

Instagram @Fantastic_literature

Review of Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies

Review of “Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies”

by J.K. Rowling

This book is a collection of stories based on characters from the books. If you were curious about some of the backstory and past of certain characters, this is a good read. It expands the Harry Potter wizarding world by providing more details about growing up in the wizarding world. The book focuses on Minerva McGonagall, Remus Lupin, Sybill Trelawney, and Silvanus Kettleburn.

Professor McGonagall is one of my favorite teachers at Hogwarts, and I had always wondered what her life story was. How did she end up at Hogwarts? Was she ever married? These questions are answered in this book. Minerva's mother was a witch, but her father was a muggle. When she fell in love with a muggle, like her mother, Minerva made the tough decision not to get married and leave her love behind. She pursued a career at the Ministry of Magic, where she caught the attention of an older man. Always gifted in transfiguration, Minerva took the position of professor at Hogwarts to teach transfiguration. There she married the man that had been in love with her; however, their marriage was short-lived. Knowing her tragic love story gives me more empathy for the character in the Harry Potter books and explains her strong friendship with Dumbledore.

Remus Lupin was one of my favorite characters in the books, so I was interested in learning his history. Remus' father worked at the Ministry of Magic and insulted some werewolves, including the notorious Fenrir Greyback. To get revenge on Remus' father, Lyall, Fenrir bites a four-year-old Remus. The book shows that Remus's parents go to great lengths to hide his condition from the wizarding community. It's not until Dumbledore ensures Remus' protection that his parents allow him to attend Hogwarts. We learn how the wolfsbane potion helps the werewolf condition. While the books hint at Remus's tragic life because of his condition, this backstory fills in the gaps and highlights how lonely he was until he met James and Sirius at Hogwarts, and then later Harry and Tonks.

Another character this book explores is the Divination Professor, Sybill Trelawney. I wish that we got more of the other professors like Sprout and Flitwick, so it was nice to learn more about professor Trelawney. She was born to a wizard father and muggle mother and had a sibling. Eventually, she and her father separated from their non-magical family members. Trelawney did marry once, but it didn't work out, and she refused to change her last name. Sybill is a descendant of the great seer Cassandra Trelawney. While most of professor Trelawney's predictions and “sight” are fake, she has genuine moments of prophecy that she cannot control or remember. It's revealed in the fifth book that she is the one that gave the prophecy about Harry and Voldemort.

The last character this book talks about is Silvanus Kettleburn, who was the Care of Magical Creatures teacher before Hagrid. Kettleburn was passionate and enthusiastic about magical creatures, especially dragons. He lost several of his limbs and prosthetic limbs due to his passion and recklessness near dangerous beasts. This book reveals that Kettleburn lives in Hogsmeade, and during the Battle of Hogwarts, he helped the fight by throwing flobberworms out his window onto Death Eaters. The character is barely mentioned in the books when Hagrid takes over the class in book three, so it was fun to learn more about this daring character.

One of the things that I liked about this book is that it expands on the lore and magic in the wizarding world. We learn how wizards become an anamagus. It's a long and precise process that takes months to create a potion to transform into an animal. If any steps are skipped or messed up, the process has to start. The book also explains werewolves in more detail, how the bites work and how the effects affect the person. There is also a practice known as seer naming, where wizards would go to a seer to predict their child's future before they name them. A tradition that is fading away in the culture. This is a fun book if you want to learn more about some of the supporting characters from the Harry Potter series. It gives more backstory and sympathy for McGonnagal, Remus, and Trelawney. If you are a massive fan of the franchise and world, give this a quick read.

Thank you for reading, and be sure to check back every week as I continue to dive into the wizarding world. Next is “Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship, and Dangerous Hobbies.” So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Be sure to leave a comment or feedback to help improve the blog. Thanks for reading, and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.

Read my review of "Quidditch Through the Ages"

Read my review of “FantasticBeasts and Where to Find Them.”

Read my review of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Check out some of my spooky/thriller-inspired stories on Wattpad.

"Grave Little Witches"

"Through the Blackout"

Twitter @BelleArboreus

Instagram @Fantastic_literature

Review of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

 

Review of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

While making my way through the Harry Potter books, I've been surprised by how much I've enjoyed them. Up until now, the third book was my favorite book. Unlike the first four books, I've only seen the movie version of The Order of the Phoenix a few times and don't remember what happened. So I was excited to find out how much I loved this book. Unfortunately, the movie had to cut out most of the book because it's so long. This book adds new and enjoyable characters, like Tonks and Luna. The fifth book delves into Harry's internal struggle and psychology more than the other books. It goes into Harry's mind through the introduction of occlumeny.

The book even goes into Snape's mind, and the reader gets a glimpse into how Snape was treated by Harry's dad James when they were in school together. It turns out Harry's dad was kind of a jerk, and when Harry confronts Sirius Black, all Sirius says is, 'oh well, we were teenagers, and Snape is weird,' which doesn't make Sirius look good. I love that Harry knows better and tells Sirius it was wrong. He even asks why his mom, Lily, would marry his dad. That's a valid question that doesn't get much of an answer. Basically, James wore her down until she agreed to go on a date with him. I wish somehow we could get more characterization of Harry's parents throughout the series.

Like the other books, this one opens with Harry and the Dursleys, but uncle Vernon wants to throw Harry out for good when a dementor attacks Dudley. I like this scene because aunt Petunia recognizes them as guards for Azkaban at the mention of dementors. It's the first time she acknowledges what she knows about the wizarding world, and after a letter from Dumbledore, she allows Harry to stay.

Even though Sirius is introduced in the third book, he gets more time with Harry in this book. While he claims to have survived Azkaban, it's clear that it took its toll on him. Molly Weasley calls him out by stating that he sees his best friend, James Potter, in Harry. While a tragic ending, it feels suitable for his character that he (like Harry's parents) dies protecting Harry.

This book is so long, it has so many subplots and side quests, but one of them is Harry, Ron, and Hermione running into Gilderoy Lockehart at the hospital. While it's a bit sad, I'm glad we learned what happened to him. We also find out what happened to Neville's parents at the hospital, another tragic moment.

I love that the books continue to build on the relationships between the main characters. The creation of Dumbledor's Army was a great way to have the main characters and side characters that we've come to love all interact with each other and learn magic. I also like that the book deals with the death of Cedric Diggory. However, I was not too fond of Cho crying all the time around Harry. I liked that the central trio is older now and thinking more about romantic partners and things that teenagers do. Even though Luna Lovegood comes off a bit weird and is made fun of by others, she's shown to be a skilled witch and brave enough to go to the ministry of magic to join the fight. Neville is a more prominent character in this book because there is a prophecy about Harry that could have been about Neville because their birthdays are close together. It's great to learn more about Neville, and he starts to show why he belongs in Gryffindor. 

Professor Dolores Umbridge is a perfect villain for this book and a foil to Harry and the whole school. I love her for being so terrible and unapologetic about it. However, I'm surprised that she gets away with torturing students by making them use a quill that carves into their hands. That was truly terrible. The whole subplot with Hagrid's half-brother, the giant named Grawp, didn't make sense in the movies. He just came out of nowhere. While it makes sense in the book Hagrid is sent to recruit the giants and finds his half-brother, it still feels like an unnecessary plot that doesn't have anything to do with the story being told. We get the return of the centaurs and Frienze. While this is not the end for Umbridge in the series, it's a great ending for her in this book.

I love Ron struggling on the quidditch team, Harry trying to ask out Cho, and Hermione getting swept up in Dumbledore's Army. This is the longest book of the series, but you never feel the length because the pacing is well done. The narrative plot flows well, and Rowling sprinkles just enough subplots throughout to keep the story flowing. There is no part of the book that drags on for too long. While I was skeptical going into this book, I think it might be my favorite book in the series so far. It might be the book that turned me into a true Potterhead.

Thank you for reading, and be sure to check back every week as I continue to dive into the wizarding world. Next up is “Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship, and Dangerous Hobbies.” So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Be sure to leave a comment or feedback to help improve the blog. Thanks for reading, and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.

Read my review of "Quidditch Through the Ages"

Read my review of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

Read my review of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Read my review for Neil Gaiman's fairy tale "Troll Bridge."

Read my review of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"

Check out some of my spooky/thriller-inspired stories on Wattpad.

"Grave Little Witches"

"Through the Blackout"

Twitter @BelleArboreus

Instagram @Fantastic_literature

Review of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

 Review of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” by J.K. Rowling

The movie version of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” might be my second most watched Harry Potter film. So, I thought I knew what I would be getting out of the book. However, I soon realized that the book has so much more to offer than the movie does, several plot points and side stories had to be cut out of the movie. Which made it exciting for me to discover all of these elements when I read the book.

One thing that I like about the progression of these books, is that it recaps a lot of what has previously happened in the other books. Which means I don't have to remember everything that has happened in order to understand the next book. A big change from the books to movies, is the Dursely family. Here we get an opening with them meeting Mr. Weasley before Harry goes to the Quidditch World Cup. While they are terrible people, I enjoy the time we get to spend with them. They represent the “normalcy” of people among a world secretly filled with wizards. I love anytime Ron is fascinated by mogul things, like not using a fireplace for traveling or telephones.

One surprising thing we get in this book, is a whole subplot of Harry writing letters to Sirius Black, and then meeting Sirius in Hogsmeade. Sirius is then there at the end of the book. I enjoy his character and further developing his relationship with Harry. It's also fun to see how he lives life in the shadows and takes the form of a dog around people. I like that Sirius tries to help Harry with each task of the tournament.

Another character we get more of in the book is Cedric Diggery (as well as the other two competitors Crumb and LeFleur). The story sets Cedric up as a good-looking, popular jock that is a rival to Harry. However, over the course of the book we learn that he is actually kind, loyal and brave. It is a tragedy when he dies at the end after he is willing to share the glory of winning the Tri-Wizard Cup with Harry. Viktor Krumb is another character that the book serves well, we understand his life and his relationship with Hermione much more so than we do in the movie. We learn more about his school Durmstrang and it's headmaster. I find it interesting that no one knows where the Durmstrang school is located and that Malfoy almost went there. These added details in the books add to the wonder and fun of the wizarding world.

Speaking of the Tri-Wizard tournament, this book highlights the activities that the wizarding world participates in. up until now, we've only read about quidditch being played at Hogwarts, but in this movie we learn that Quidditch is a huge sport with various teams, and the best compete in the Quidditch World Cup. A great way to start the book, following up with the competition of the Tri-Wizard tournament. The opening also sets up the return of the Deatheaters, and explains who they are. A perfect introduction before they show up at the end of the story. The book also focuses more on Voldemort's return through Harry's scar visions.

Another change from the book to movie is the villain of Barty Crouch, jr. I love learning about his backstory, how he was set to Azkaban but faked his death and had to live under his father's control. It gives him more motivation for what he does. While the reader is not supposed to like Barty Crouch, jr. knowing his upbringing makes him a more complex character. Even though the character is played by the great David Tennant (who is wasted in this movie), Barty Crouch, Jr's motivation is severely lacking.

One of the more enjoyable side plots was Hermione's crusade for liberating the house elves. It fits perfectly with her character while allowing us to see a new side of the wizarding world. It was great to see the return of Doby and how he has been living since he was freed at the end of the second book. We also meet a new house elf Winky and learn that the meals at Hogwarts are prepared by house elves. It was an interesting choice for author J.K. Rowling to have most of the house elves want to be enslaved and not freed. Doby seems to be a unique house elf in that he wanted to be freed, but that's not how he seemed when we first met him in the second book. The treatment of the house elves is treated as a joke, that Hermione is not aware of, when I think in reality she is in the right.

One thing that I have loved from reading this series is that each book adds something new to the history and mythology of the wizarding world. Learning about the history of the Tri-Wizard Tournament was a great way to bring the audience into the darker side of magic. Which leads perfectly into the return of Lord Voldermort. While I love the lighter and the young adventurous nature of the first two books, I'm looking forward to reading the last three books dealing with Lord Voldermort.

Thank you for reading, and be sure to check back every week as I continue to dive into the wizarding world. Next up is “Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship, and Dangerous Hobbies.” So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Be sure to leave a comment or feedback to help improve the blog. Thanks for reading, and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.

Read my review of "Quidditch Through the Ages"

Read my review of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

Read my review of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Read my review for Neil Gaiman's fairy tale "Troll Bridge."

Read my review of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" 

Check out some of my spooky/thriller-inspired stories on Wattpad.

"Grave Little Witches"

"Through the Blackout"

Twitter @BelleArboreus

Instagram @Fantastic_literature

Review of Quidditch Through the Ages

 Review of “Quidditch Through the Ages” by J.K. Rowling

Like “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” this book is written by a fictional character from the wizarding world, Kennilworthy Whisp. Whisp is an expert on quidditch and broomsticks. “Quidditch Through the Ages” is a history of how the sport was created and evolved over the centuries into the modern version of quidditch. When I went into reading “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” I thought it was going to be a book solely focused on descriptions of the beasts and was pleasantly surprised that there was more history to the study, regulation, and definitions of beasts.

So, I went into this book thinking that maybe it would be more than just a quidditch sports book. But unlike “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” “Quidditch Through the Ages” is purely about quidditch. I was hoping for more connection to the Harry Potter books, not just a history of quidditch. The book references the teams playing at the Quidditch World Cup in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” but it does not reference Viktor Krum. The book briefly mentions the Nimbus broomstick but not the Nimbus 2000 or the Firebolt. The companion novel also does not mention the sport being played at Hogwarts and whether or not the rules could be different for students.

These were just my expectations, but it's not the fault of the book for not including the Harry Potter movie references; because the book was designed only to be about the history of quidditch. My expectations set aside, this is still an exciting read for anyone that wants to read more about the wizarding world and how quidditch works. There were a few things that I did enjoy learning about. One is that quidditch is played on all continents, not just Europe. I think quidditch is the wizarding world's version of soccer or football (fútball). The book mentions that in the United States, there is another magical game, quodpot, that rivals quidditch. I think a reference to American Football is more popular than soccer in the U.S. and Canada.

Another thing that I liked was the history and introduction to the Golden Snitch. Originally the only balls in the game were the bludgers and the quaffle. A creature known as the golden snidgett that moved similar to the snitch was hunted for sport. During a quidditch game, a wealthy man offered money to the first person to catch a golden snidgett. It was an interesting idea, but instead of money, the team would receive 150 points for catching the golden snidgett. Over the years, the hunting of golden snidgett drew the species to the brink of extinction. A wizard then created the golden snitch to replicate the movements and speed of the snidgett but confined it to the quidditch pitch. It's an interesting piece of history to the most prominent quidditch ball in the Harry Potter series. We know the significance of the snitch in the books, so it was fun to learn that it was created and inspired by a real creature. Even though I just read “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” I don't remember reading about the Golden Snidgett. Maybe they did go extinct.

“Quidditch Through the Ages” also talks about how racing broomsticks became popular. The one thing I've always wanted to know is how wizard magic is imbued into objects. Because the book says that the type of wood, size, and details of the broom affects how it operates. My question can't magic just overcome that? Like why can't you use magic to just make every broomstick super fast and with excellent handling? If anyone has answers to my questions, I would love to know. The use of magic in any piece of literature comes with some problems. I think J.K. Rowling has done a great job of realizing the applications and rules of magic, but some things don't make sense every now and then.

So, if you're a Potter head and want to know more about the wizarding world of Harry Potter, then give this book a read. It's interesting enough but not necessary reading for casual fans. If given a choice, I would choose to read “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” because I think the creatures are more interesting than quidditch. If you love quidditch, then read this book.

Thank you for reading, and be sure to check back every week as I continue to dive into the wizarding world. Next up is “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” as well as “Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship, and Dangerous Hobbies.” So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Be sure to leave a comment or feedback to help improve the blog. Thanks for reading, and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.

Read my review of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

Read my review of "The Tales of Beedle the Bard."

Read my review for Neil Gaiman's fairy tale "Troll Bridge."

Read my review of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" 

Check out some of my spooky/thriller-inspired stories on Wattpad.

"Grave Little Witches"

"Through the Blackout"

Twitter @BelleArboreus

Instagram @Fantastic_literature