So... are we going to talk about Harry Potter 7, or what?

I'm really interested to hear what other members of this group thought of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows! I know many may not have had a chance to read it yet, but for those who have and are interested in discussing. . . what did you think?

(For those who haven't read it yet. . . SPOILERS GALORE. . . you probably don't want to go any further on this thread!)

I think that this series lives on forever. There were many different wishes that readers gave for how they thought it best to end, but you know what there is only one author and she ended it the way she wanted, so Bravo to her!

Best part for me: Harry and his friends because that is what kept me wanting more, to see them pull through together. Then there is the theme of family and the many ways a person can have one.

Biggest surprise would be that some beloved minor characters stayed that way until the end, no one else rose to be added to the family. No one else qualified that is the only part missing for me.

I do love the Malfoy family , such a good looking bunch...

And well until someone says anything else: death is a part of life, right?

As far as the book goes, where 1 was certainly a children's book, 6 and 7 are definitely YA books. 7 especially I have found dark and quite disturbing. I have not read it all yet, so I can't speak for the end, but the beginning and middle of the book bear witness to what is essentially the French resistance of WWII transposed into the wizarding world. People are dying and disappearing all over, the MoM falls, and Voldemort and the Death Eaters seize complete control. The reader is basically given a window into a dying society, and watches as our heroes make a desperate attempt to save it. I've said this in other threads, and I'll say it here, I think that if parents let their preteen or younger children read this book, they should be ready for some serious talks, and some even more serious nightmares, because the bright, sunny world we've come to know and love comes crashing down around your ears in number six, and it certainly isn't pretty.

I agree with Child_of_Light though I did not realize the French resistance of WWII. I'll have to think that through. I assumed Voldemort was going to gain control for the grand finale. And as for nightmares I think there have been earlier books that have crossed age barriers. Even in the movies, the giant spiders gave kids and grown-ups nightmares! I understand that you are pointing out something more complex with the dying society, but younger children are more concrete and really focus on who lives and who dies more. And heroes, good guys, are supposed to live,right? Oh well

I also agree with Child_of_Light. I would almost recommend allowing kids to start the series around fourth or fifth grade -- and then reading one per year so that they grow along with Harry.

Did anyone else love the metamorphosis of Neville Longbottom into a true Gryffindor?

Yeah, Neville {and Luna, I thought} were amazing! I love how, despite how bad Hogwarts had gotten, they still fought to have the DA. I had kinda wanted Neville to kill Bella, but him destroying the snake horcrux with Gryffindor's sword was really good too.

I don't think I could have wished for a better ending of HP#7. I have been so worried the JKR would kill Harry and was crying during the whole scene when Harry was walking to his death, but also understood at that point that it was necessary and very glad that Harry was doing it. Then I was ecstatic that he didn't die!

I loved Neville's growth over the whole series and believe that both Neville and Luna's characters were better developed in this book and the last two, before that they were minor characters IMO. I did like how JKR brought in some of HP's classmates in very minor ways, so we didn't forget them.

This book I believe could not be read and liked if you hadn't read the whole series. I think there are so many things that I even had forgotten and wondered about because I haven't read the other books in a couple of years. I agree that this is definitely a YA book versus Children's/Juvenile.

As I read this book I also imagined how they would pull this off in a movie. Do you think they will be able to do it justice? or will everyone be disappointed?

I think this was the best harry potter book ever!

#7 -- I agree that this book could definitely not stand on its own. There's so much setup in the earlier books! And I think that the movie is going to be excellent. . . there are certain scenes that will be great:

(remember, SPOILERS!)
such as the scene where Harry dives through the fire to get the diadem. I also think that Snape's death scene will be incredible -- so glad they cast Rickman for that role, he'll be spectacular in the later movies.

Speaking of which. . . vindication! Having been in the "Snape is good" camp throughout the series, I can't help but do a little happy dance every time I think of how that plot line turned out. :-) Yeah, he's not perfect, and he's not even necessarily nice, but he was on the right side, darn it! ;-)

*Nods in excited agreement* Definitely one of, if not THE, best in the series. And I agree with a lot of the previous comments about it being much more YA than grade school oriented - which is good in that original readers have grown up with the characters but negative in the sense of how many young kids are reading the later books. That's what parents are for though...

I noticed though that in lots of reviews people hated the epilogue. Personally I thought it was a good way to come full circle from the first book and Harry sharing his first Hogwarts experiences with his son. I'm a sucker for a happy ending though.

Any other thoughts on loving or hating the 19 years later part?

Oh, I loved the 19 years later part. I was so afraid that JKR wasn't going to include anything about life after Hogwarts and I knew I would want to know! I have heard some people say that it is corny or whatever, but I loved it and I would change a thing, except maybe a little more information about other characters--Neville, Luna, Teddy, etc.

Yeah, I was in love with the ending too. I've got quite a few friends who though the ending was too "soft" after all that happened in the book. I thought it a wonderful way to end because I'm a huge fan of happy endings too, though I would have like to find out about more of the chacters. I thought the kids names were cute (am I the only one who like Albus Severus?), but I wonder where Rose & Hugo came from.

12 -- I love the name Albus Severus. People keep telling me that they don't like it, but I find it beautiful and fitting, and got a little choked up the first time I read it. (Of course, with my pro-Snape bias, I can only be expected to say as much. Still, Harry named his second son after my two favorite characters. *happy sigh*)

And I thought the epilogue was all right, but I would have liked a whole lot more detail. Fortunately, Rowling is now being generous with details, and hopefully the Harry Potter Encyclopedia will be forthcoming (yes, she deserves a break. . . but hopefully she'll want to be working on something)!

Has anyone else read the transcript from J K Rowling on her views after the book? No great surprises and since I like the epilogue, liked this too.

foggidawn:
And I thought the epilogue was all right, but I would have liked a whole lot more detail. Fortunately, Rowling is now being generous with details, and hopefully the Harry Potter Encyclopedia will be forthcoming (yes, she deserves a break. . . but hopefully she'll want to be working on something)!

There was something here {http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19959323/} about that.

****spoilers****

I don't think it would be too bad for younger readers to read the whole series, because there's such a strong emphasis on the fact that good ultimately triumphs over evil. I don't mean just that Harry wins in the end, but that Voldemort is constantly defeated by love, etc., because he doesn't understand it and because it's just more powerful than evil.

I knew at least one nine-year-old who had read and loved books 1-6. I don't think it would be possible to make anyone wait a year between each one. I actually think this series is a good way to get younger readers reading longer books.

I also like the name Albus Severus, but I was glad that he was called Al. Seeing the names James and Lily, I was just thinking that she could never write more books now, because it would be too strange to have different characters with the same names. Not that I personally want more books about the future--I was very satisfied with the ending--but I really like it when people get so excited about books. I do wish she would write a book about Snape's childhood, since he's the most interesting character and I thought the chapter about him was the best in the book. I find that I'm not very enthused by the prospect of reading an encyclopedia.

The only thing I didn't like about the epilogue was the writing style It seemed like it was written in the earlier days and not updated to match the more sophisticated tone and style that JKR had developed through the years as the kids grew up.

Another criticism I have is that she glossed over the deaths of a few major characters. It seemed like there should have been more to honor the lives that they led and the cause for which they died. One friend said, "But Harry didn't have time to stop and grieve - he still had to fight the big bad." Well, yes, but the series wasn't written in first person! Just because Harry doesn't have time to stop doesn't mean that the narration can't...

I was disappointed with the last book because the way J K Rowling wrote it, it seemed that she was prepping it to be a movie script, and not really writing a book. And that long part in the forest? Why did she make it so long? (I found it very boring.)

And why did she have to kill off just about everybody? Okay, I get it, war is bad. But still, did she have to kill Snape? And I agree with angeljkay, JKR did gloss over so many deaths.

With the 7th book it was almost like JK just sat down at her computer and went 'How many people can I kill off in one book?" and then went at it.

Some of the deaths didn't even have a point like Tonks and Lupins, know Andromedia is left without a husband and has her own grandson to raise, which is sort of wrong.

Fred's death did hurt, I cried over that one (or was it George? sorry it's been awhile since I read the book)

I think she also beat the readers over the fact that 'yes there is something going on in Dumbledore's background' and by the 100th time of telling the readers this, I was getting sick of reading his name.

But I did love Neville after all his failings in the first couple of books he turned out to be a true Gryffindor

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I am rereading the series now and I'm up to book 5. I think 7 books was too many but I also think the series took on a life of its own. It certainly looked like she was committed to writing more and more in time for deadlines and knowing how succesful the movies were. I also agree that there were some unnecessary deaths and every character had to have a solid ending, no one could just be left, so they had to die?

Hmmm...I didn't feel like there were unnecessary deaths. There were deaths I didn't want to happen, but were they unnecessary...I don't think so. This book as someone alluded to above is not at children's book--definitely YA which to me allows for it to be edgier and more adult. I think by using death of some of the major characters JKR shows readers that just because it is fantasy doesn't mean it doesn't have to be realistic. To think that the Order is at war with Voldemort and the Death Eaters and no one important is going to die is unrealistic in my opinion.

I am disappointed that the series ended, but I think it is great that JKR stuck to the seven book limit. As for that being too many, I don't know. There are a lot of fantasy series with more volumes. And what about the other wildly popular juvenile series--A Series of Unfortunate Events for example.

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I don't know if this was an answer to me, but I'll put my foot in my mouth and say it was. While I am rereading it all together I was hoping to have some different feelings about events. I think it will make a difference for me. Yes, the stories did evolve to be for an older age group, but the characters were getting older and it seemed to fit for me.

As for important characters dying, I never said no one important should die. I just didn't understand why so many did. Again, I want to hold judgement until I give it a more continuous reading. Maybe Harry had to witness these events to realize what he had and to figure out what was important to him. I'll see how I feel later.

I also don't really know how I feel about seven books, I may be more annoyed with the commercialization of the movies every year. Yes, I remember thinking 13, the unlucky number, was a good end for Series of Unfortunate Events. They read more like a soap opera to me though, I waited for the next installment.

Honestly, I didn't like it. I didn't HATE it, but I was sorely disappointed. In fact, I didn't pick up another book for the rest of the year.

This may sound morbid, but I think it was b.s. that Harry, Hermoine and Ron all managed to live throughout the entire series. She killed off just about everybody else. Seriously. I grew to know and love the people that loved and protected Harry. Sirius. Dumbledore. Dobby. The Weasley Twins. Remus. Tonks. Moody. Hedwig. Hagrid. Of course, as we find out at the end: Snape. I felt more affection for them than any of the main three. Rowling killed off just about all of them. The worst part is, minus Dumbledore and Sirius, we never got to really bid the characters farewell because one second they were there and the next they were forgotten. Meanwhile, with everything they had gone through, the threesome came out happy and healthy as a lark.

Don't get me started on the epilogue!

One positive: The Snape chapter. I thought it was brilliant.

I still think the main purpose of the epilogue was to prevent any Scarlett-type sequels from popping up. And I say good for her.

I think some of the deaths may have been meaningless, but that sort of gave them meaning itself, if that makes sense. The point is that not every death was directly related to what Harry suffered, and not every death was played up as a big event, because in wars and battles there will be a lot of random deaths. War causes meaningless things to happen, and sometimes good people die without a good reason. Some of the deaths weren't given a large amount of attention, but if they were then it would have become a story about good people dying too soon rather than a young boy who grows up to fight evil wizards, and although those two plots may intersect at points, but I think it's good she stayed focused on Harry throughout it all. (Despite her focus on Harry, I agree the Snape chapter was brilliant, probably the best part of it all!)

I also think 7 books made a good deal of sense because then there was one book for each year of his growing up (mostly at Hogwarts), as she intended.

>24 punkypower: punkypower, I completely agree! The book as a whole was bad, but the Snape chapter made it worthwhile.

I really thought Hermione should have died that time when they were torturing her. The details have faded, but I remember thinking that it made no sense for Harry to give in to the enemy--i.e., lose the war for his whole side--just so his friend wouldn't be killed. It was even more irritating when of course the house elf turned up just at the very last possible second and saved everyone. When things like that happen, any claims that the book was representing the reality of war and how people have to die lose a lot of their meaning.

I didn't feel that any of the deaths were unnecessary. On the other hand, I'm also glad that Harry, Ron, and Hermione all lived through it. (Not because I didn't want a "favorite" to die; as I've mentioned, both of my favorites did die.) As I see it, Rowling walked a fine line in the latter books of this series, between depicting the realities of war, and writing a book that would not feel like a betrayal of her audience. Frankly, people don't read fiction to hear about the realities of war -- they watch the news, or they read a history book. However, Rowling did a good job of making it seem true to life, in my opinion, by having people close to Harry die, and having those deaths be sudden and shocking and terrible.

I'm also a big fan of happy endings. (I even like the epilogue, though not for the quality of writing -- so sue me!) I would have been terribly sad if one of the big three had died (more sad than I already was), and I know that younger readers would have taken it even more to heart (as it is, I know a few that still have a hard time rereading the earlier books in the series, just knowing what happens to Fred). So, for the sake of young fans, I think that Rowling did the right thing. She may not have been considering that factor at all; some authors are firmly opposed to writing with an audience in mind, but whatever her reasons were, I think she struck the right note.

(Edited for clarity)

>28 foggidawn: I should clarify my view: it's not that I think the main characters should have died in principle. My problem is that she put them in a situation where the reasonable thing would have been for one of them to die. It's one thing to have them survive, but an entirely different thing to have them survive in stupid and unrealistic ways.

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and I know that younger readers would have taken it even more to heart (as it is, I know a few that still have a hard time rereading the earlier books in the series, just knowing what happens to Fred). So, for the sake of young fans, I think that Rowling did the right thing.

I was just reading about very old fairytales and one thing that remains true today is even very young readers don't mind violence or blood and gore as long as it happens to the bad guy. If something terrible happens to a good guy/gal, Harry, Ron, or Hermione in this case, then a young child would be very upset because it could happen to them, the reader. (Young children are very concrete)

I loved this book! I started reading the series when I was 4 and I love how in the Deathly Hallows the girls didn't just stand around and watch, they kicked butt too!

My dad read me this series starting when I was five and finished when I was 10 . Deathly hallows has one of my favorites. My favorite scene would have to be when there arguing about who should go find Voldermort and Ron is overprotective but hermione is just like"ya no"