Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
****SPOILER ALERT**** I've warned you people and gave you a week's notice so here it goes!
I started reading Harry Potter in 2001. My dear friend Annie was having a party for the first movie and you couldn't come to the party unless you had read the book. About 5 pages in I was hooked and I've been desperately in love with J.K. Rowling's wizarding wonderland ever since. I literally love everything about the books. The characters, the settings, the themes of choice and courage. I just love it. I've been pushed to tears by her books. I've laughed out loud. And at the end of Goblet of Fire, I sat in my room in broad daylight scared out of my freaking mind.
So, it was incredibly bittersweet to reach the end of the series. But, oh wow, what an ending it was.
Not surprisingly, I absolutely adored Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Again, I went through the whole spectrum of emotions. I laughed out loud ("Pathetic! With the whole wide world of ear-related humor before you, you go for holey?"). I cried...ok, let's be honest, I wept. (DOBBY!) And, for a majority of the book, I was on the edge-of-my -seat, scared out of my mind!
What I didn't expect was to be surprised. I thought Rowling would spend this final book answering our questions and tying everything up. And she did, but in ways I never expected. I think the tying in of Dumbledore's past was nothing short of genius. Like Harry, a part of me just assumed Dumbledore sprung forth full-formed. I never thought about why he was so powerful, although a part of me always wondered why he couldn't defeat Voldemort. The way his past became such an integral part of Harry and Voldemort's story was amazing to me and probably my favorite part of this book. While I had never questioned it before, it makes so much sense that the three most powerful wizards in the book, Harry, Voldemort, and Dumbledore, would be intertwined and that for Harry to fully come into his own power before he defeats Voldemort, he would need to understand why he was uniquely suited for the role (beyond the mere accident of birth) and Dumbledore wasn't. What struck me even more by the end of the book, I believed that Harry was a more powerful wizard by the end - which in some ways I wasn't expecting.
Of course the road there wasn't easy and the deaths in the book were also surprising. There was a part of me that fully expected for one of the three friends to die. I heard an interview with Rowling where she expressed pride that people really felt no one was off the table and I guess she's right. The book felt more real and intense because I truly expected Harry, Ron or Hermoine to die, especially after Hedwig died in the first 50 pages of the book. I felt like she was telling me very clearly that no one was off limits. Now, the fact that the main three were spared did not make any of the other deaths any easier. I was particularly devastated by Hedwig and Dobby. These two creatures were caught up in a war they had no part in creating and their unconditional devotion to Harry made their deaths that much harder. Of course, as a big sister to twin brothers, Fred's death was almost unbearable. It truly makes me wonder if Rowling is close to any twins in her life because part of me thinks if she was then she would have known one without the other is completely unimaginable.
Now, there were some deaths that were significantly less upsetting. Like, I don't know...Bellatrix the Bitch. The killing of Bellatrix, the ultimate representation of murder and complete lack of empathy, by Molly Weasley, the ultimate representation of life and compassion, was awesome! Again, not what I saw coming but the only conceivable option once it happened. Of course there were a thousand other brilliant moments where some of my favorite characters got their moment to shine - almost all at the Battle of Hogwarts (which is the sole reason I am counting until the days the 7th movie) - Neville pulling the sword from the sorting hat to slay Nagini, Minerva ordering the armor to do their duty and defend the school, Trelawny throwing crystal balls at Deatheaters, the list goes on and on.
Of course the ultimate shining moment was the ending - Harry faces death courageously and comes out on the other side. I thought the ending was inspiring and perfect. I thought the ultimate battle between Harry and Voldemort being fought in the Great Hall of Hogwarts for all eyes to witness was brilliant and I felt completely fulfilled with not the slightest dash of disappointment. My absolute only complaint was that the epilogue featuring Harry and his family 19 years later did not reveal his career. However, Rowling has recently revealed he is an auror, so my only remaining question was answered. And otherwise I really loved the ending with him sending his beloved children off to his first loving home and the beginning of his journey - Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
I'm so sad it's over, but I can at least look forward to the next two movies...that and introducing my own children to the enchanting and endearing world of Harry Potter. :)
