Full review
Hey everyone!
I finally finished the book and I LOVED IT. The book exceeded all of my expectations. In my opinion the story is a textbook example of how a great story is told. There are multiple themes in the book which creates more than one story arc making it a more layered expierence. A few examples are Buckbeak and what happens to him, Harry finding out what happened to Peter Pettigrew and what Sirius' intentions are.
The book really made a big impression on my emotions like I already expected. The feeling of friendship and love is so present in this book but also the feeling of fear plays a big role in the story. The scene that touched me the most was at the end when Harry reads the letter from Sirius. In the letter Sirius said that he was the one who send him the Firebolt broomstick. This touched me because when Harry got the broomstick he thought Sirius tried to kill him but it was exactly the opposite. Sirius loved Harry unconditionally and showed it from a distance.
Like I said earlier I think JK Rowling did a great job sewing multiple story arcs together to let them come together at the end to make a grand finale. This is in my opinion the big asset in in the whole story. You follow a certain path in the story and the transition to another is really subtle. This method of telling a story is smart because in that way it makes it hard to put down the book. You want to know how the moment ends but when you approach the end another thing happens.
The symbolism in the story is also a fun thing to think about. In my eyes the dementors are a depiction of depression. Every time a dementor is around everything turns dark, cold and grim. Ron also said when the dementor passed through the Hogwarts Express that he got a feeling that he would never be happy again. The dementor sucks up all the joy and good feelings from it's victims until nothing is left just like a depression does to a person. You can also speculate about some of the symbolism in the book. I like to think that Pettigrew lost a finger as a reference of the Jakuza. When you betray the organisation or if you don't keep your promise they cut off a finger to show that you're a betrayer. Pettigrew betrayed James and Lily Potter and let Sirius take all of the blame. It might be a bit of a stretch but I think is't fun to think a bit futher than the author intended.
Harry Potter checks all the boxes of being a fantasy story. Everything in that world is magical so there is no realism whatsoever. All of the creatures come from different mythologies, urban legends or are totally made up. Harry Potter to me is an origanal story because I have never read a series like this ever in life. That's why it's such an icon and giant in the literary world. Even as an adult you try to imagine the different beast and animals but also the buildings. JK Rowling really tries to stimulate your fantasy. I sometimes caught myself smiling while I was trying to imagine how a scene looked and how I almost forgot I was just lying in bed reading a book.
There are a lot of themes processed in the story but the one that caught my attention the most was the theme of 'justice'. Harry comes into contact with a few dilemma's of what's right or wrong. Buckbeak getting executed for attacking Malfoy and Sirius getting his freedom after being falsely accused. I got a feeling of disgust when I thought about all the years Sirius wasted in Azkaban because of a coward like Pettigrew and he still got away with it.
Overall I loved reading The Prisoner of Azkaban so much that I'm going to read the whole series for sure now. It is an amazing story that takes on an emotional and fantastic rollercoaster. In my opion this is the story that focused the most on the moral compass of Harry and his friends. Anyways this was my review of the third book of Harry Potter and hopefully we'll blog again about the next one!
Lots of love
Yannick
Hey Yannick,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you as far as the writing is concerned. It is a wonderful story indeed. It intregues me every time, over and over again. J. K. Rowling has a very special way to make her readers feel involved with the characters. Like how she arouses pity for Harry when he finds out what really happened with his parents, and what Sirius’s role was.
I really liked that scene too, but for me it was the scene where Harry discovers the truth about Sirius and Peter. The fact that Harry does have family, that he’s not completely alone. But that Peter, was the one to betray Harry’s parents, his friends. I can’t imagine how he must have felt. Lukely we all know that Ron and Hermoine would never do such thing.
The writing of this book, is the real magic in the story in my opinion. The story gets to you because in a certain way she makes you relate Harry’s feelings to your own. The transistions are indeed very subtile, that’s one of Rowling’s stronger skills.
I like the way you think about the Dementors, Yannick. Personaly I thought of them as the feeling you get when fear, pain or grieve takes control over you. So kind of like a depression, but not really as you described it. When fear, or any bad feeling, takes over; you can’t think about happy things. You only focus on the bad, unintentionally but you do. It’s a mind-game your spirit likes to play. That’s how I thought about the Dementors.
The author can write and describe the magic and fantasy as much as she likes. If you’re not willing to open up your mind and heart to it, there’s no magic at all. The magic of stories, is what YOU make of it. Although I must say, J. K. Rowling is a queen in what she’s doing. She knows exactly where she wants our minds to take us. When she describes Ron’s feelings about the Dementors, I’d bet everyone got a chill over his/her spine. And to be able to create such reactions through words, is magical.
Refering to what you said about justice being a big theme throughout the story; I agree with you about the part that Buckbeak and Sirius concerns. But, I thought about the justice for Lily and James as well. Knowing that it was Peter that betrayed them, and show Harry he has some family left that wants to take care of him. It makes me feel like their sacrifice wasn’t for nothing. Harry isn’t alone anymore. He has his closest friends who would do anything for him, and he has his Godfather who absolutely adores him.
It was lovely to read the story again and be able to discuss our opinions with eachother. I liked it very much. I’m going to read the other books again, when I have some time left. So, hopefully you guys enjoyed the book as much as I did. See you next time!
Hugs,
Maaike 😊
Hi Yannick and Maaike,
ReplyDeleteI couldn’t agree more with the both of you. Everything that needs to be said, has been said.
I didn’t reflect on the dementors as the both of you did, maybe my imagination has become a bit rusty over the years. Reading your visions now, I must agree on your thoughts. I have battled a big depression due to grieve before and thinking about that, it did make me feel cold, lonely, unloved, no will to live. If you take it back to the story, it could explain why they are the prison guards, they drain every bit of happiness out of their prisoners, until they go mad. And that’s what a depression does to you, you go mad because you need the warmth of loved ones around you.
About that warm family feeling, what a twist in this story!!! Harry has family after all, I never saw that one coming. You can feel the joy in his heart, and I am convinced that this knowledge is the reason he managed to cast a successful Patronus spell.
This book is everything what a good youth novel should be about. It is easy to read, you are sucked into the story and it puts your imagination at work.
While reading the book, I have felt different emotions. Happiness and excitement would be the main two. The way Rowling knows how to entwine these emotions in a perfect balance, shows real craftmanship.
I find it very remarkable how she knows how to plant seeds in the book and how it all comes together at the end. When school just started, the boys often make jokes about Hermione’s crazy schedule, that it’s impossible to follow all these subjects. Hermione on her turn almost slips her secrets of the tongue. At the end of the book, all these little details finally make sense, Hermione has a Time-Turner which allows her to go back in time.
I must agree with Yannick’s idea about the chopped finger, it is a symbol of betray. If it was intended that way, I have no idea, but I wouldn’t be too surprised if Rowling got her inspiration from the Yakuza indeed.
As expected, the book exceeded my expectations by far. It is only the third book in this fantasy series, but I find you can feel a growth in Rowling’s writing. What makes this series so refreshing is that the fantasy in this book is so extended that many other authors would make the concept fail. Rowling just makes every gear fit perfectly in every slightest detail.
I just love the way how she can write a fantasy novel in such realistic way. While I was reading it, I truly believed I was there, that it is possible to walk through station walls, to fly on broomsticks, to travel in time. All this craziness and yet she writes about fundamentals in our everyday life, friendship, compassion, faith, family.
It made me feel like reading the whole series again, I will try to do so over the following months. It felt good to the soul to read such an uplifting book!
Love,
Jenny
Hey guys!
ReplyDeleteWhat a rollercoaster! JK Rowling really outdid herself with the ending. I definitely didn't see that huge plottwist coming. Who would have thought that Sirius was the good guy all along? And who could have possibly guessed that Ron's rat Scabbers was actually Peter Pettigrew, one of the best friends of James Potter that faked his own death after betraying his dear friend?! If you would have told me this before I read this book I would have thought you were crazy!
It's no surprise that children and grown-ups all around the world love these books. Her writingstyle is simply art.
Normally I have a lot of trouble with letting my mind take over and really imagine what is happening, but with this book I had no trouble at all! Like I already said, JK Rowling has such a way with words that you don't have another option as to imagine the scenes. She really makes you feel as if you are seeing everything with your very own eyes. The magic in the pages really comes to life!
For me personally it was a really emotional book. We got to feel Harry hearing his mother's screams when a Dementor gets close to him. That always chilled me to the bones because it's so sad! It's so painful that Harry has to go through that again and again and again. He already has dealt with enough trauma in his life and now he has to relive it whenever a dementor gets near him. I feel so bad for him!
I love the the symbolism you saw in the fact that Peter Pettigrew has lot a finger. It really made me think! If you think about it, it's not that weird. The Harry Potter world isn't exactly rainbows and sunshine, so it's not that far fetched that maybe the Yakuza have a base in the Wizarding world. That's what I like about JK Rowling, you can interpret it the way you like. As for the Dementors, I completely agree with you. I have had depression myself so I know how it feels. It feels as if the light is sucked from your soul and you can't do anything against it. You can't move. You can't fight it. It slowly takes you down until nothing else remains but the empty shell that is supposed to be your body. It truly feels as though all the happiness is sucked out of you and you feel numb. You don't think you will ever feel happy again. That's also why I like the patronusses so much. I think they stand for that one beam of light that pulls you out of a dark situation and gives you hope again. It can be a person or a moment that is important to you.
I love that we read a fantasy book! It makes it easy to forget all the bad that happen in the world. You definitely know that this is a fantasy book. I don't know about you guys but I don't write with a quill, I don't have a potions class or any of their classes, I don't have a biting monsterbook and I could go on and on, but the thing that I loved more than anything was Buckbeak. I absolutely adored Buckbeak! Even though he is dangerous, he seems so cute! I wish he was real so I could pet him.
I also agree with you that justice is incredibly important in this book. Not only was Buckbeak falsily accused to death, also Sirius was sentenced to a faith even worse than death. It breaks my heart that they were falsily accused of something they didn't do. Sadly this is also reality. I think it was JK Rowling's intentions to raise awareness about this issue. Even though children won't understand this, I think it's good to make adults question the world they live in. This makes it so interesting for every age to read!
Just like you guys it really made me want to read the rest. I am also going to try to convince my brother to read the books. He absolutely hates it and I have no idea why! To bad for him. I am still going to try and convert him to the Harry Potter fandom.
Wish me luck!
Lots of love,
Charlotte