Harry Potter Readalong - PoA Part II
Thus ends the reading of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban! Like the others echoed in the readalong group, this book is that awesome point in the series where JKR skips the introductory stuff and goes straight into elevating the plot until she decides to throw a wrench in every once in a while. Chapter 12 is one of those wrenches. Kids, let's get along! This book really demonstrates the whole "three's a crowd" struggle, and poor Hermione is the one that suffers for it. OK, moving on:
Love love love the relationship Harry has with Lupin. Yes, can't stop gushing about his innovative method for 'anti-dementor training', heal-by-sweets treatments, and incredible patience with Harry, who wants to beat the dementors to win the quidditch cup (hahaha I keep forgetting that he's just 13 and to him, this is a totally 'legit' reason for him to beat these dementors). It was so gratifying to see Harry tackle the "dementors" on at the game!
I have my 'lovable nerd'-goggles on. The book clearly states that Lupin is pale, has worry lines, etc... but I processed it in my mind and my hand spat out this instead:
Fictional character crush syndrome strikes again
The Marauder's Map texting insults to Snape? Genius! But Snape went to school with them - those nicknames are ridiculously obvious! (Like Prongs, DUDE Snape, your patronus is a SPOILER: doe, how do you not deduce this???) I'm surprised that he didn't chuck the map straight into the fire right there and then.
Whomping Willow - JKR proves again that a tree is not just a tree, a rat is not just any rat. This is the part where you wonder if even the flippin' lake is some super magical lake too. (spoilers: uh, yeah. it is. read Book IV).
The Time-turner: I don't know what kind of butterbeer JKR was drinking when she wrote this, but let me have at it! Pure genius, aligning all of Harry2 and Hermione2's actions with what Harry1 and Hermione1 previously thought were odd incidences. I hate how Hermione uses the time-turner to take classes, and then it's never mentioned again, even later in the series where they could have really needed the extra time and help.
Expecto Patronum!: It's so inspiring how JKR takes Harry's weakness (his history with dementors), makes him break a sweat to overcome it, and then allowing him to triumph over it, even though he didn't initially realize it!
Expectoooooo Patronuuuuum!
JKR is a professional at bittersweet endings. Gives Harry such happiness and then tears it away. Ughhhhh Book V, I am so dreading to read you. *stocks up kleenex boxes*
Good thing there's Goblet of Fire in between it all! Onwards!
Dayum, drawn Lupin is a fox!
ReplyDeleteI don't know about the nicknames being obvious - Snape didn't know about them being an animagus, and I highly doubt they ever cast a patronus at school. So it's obvious if you know about all those things, but probably not if you simply went to school with them.
That last picture is phenomenal as well - such a neat interpretation of the patronus!
The nicknames are obvious, but doesn't Snape for sure know who made the map? Because as soon as he sees it, he gets Lupin and is like "You don't think it more likely he got this DIRECTLY FROM THE MANUFACTURERS?" *significant stare*
ReplyDeleteAlso, the Time-Turners -- I have something for this! I know the answer! They DO mention the Time-Turners again, in the fifth book, when the kids are in the Department of Mysteries. They break them all. Someone brings it up in the sixth book, how all the Time-Turners in the land have been destroyed.
Oh Harry and wanting to defeat the Dementors to win a trophy. 13 year olds have dumb priorities.
ReplyDeleteLove the Patronus drawing!
Man, that is one hot Lupin! Love it!
ReplyDeleteHermione does turn the time-turner in though, so they couldn't use it later, though I think there are a couple times in the series where Harry muses on how it would be useful to have. And I too love how the stuff they hear/do can be interpreted either way - JK very cleverly concealed what would happen. Love it.
Oo, love the patronus drawing!
ReplyDeleteThe chapters when Harry and Ron were shunning Hermione were BRUTAL. That sucked. I love how Hagrid tried to fix it, though.
I love your Lupin, too. Nicely done!
ReplyDeletePoor Hermione--too bad Dumbledore didn't give her points here like he gave Neville in book one, because it is MUCH harder to stand up to your friends than to your enemies.
Isn't he?!?! I think reading this book does things to you when you read it as an older person, hahahaha!
ReplyDeleteI guess that's true, Lupin did mention that the patronus is super complex and they probably had no need for it back then. Thanks for the kind comment!
AH - YOU'RE SO RIGHT, haha subtext-fail on my part, lol
ReplyDeleteDang girl, you know your stuff! Really wish someone pocketed just one last one though to save all the people we end up losing towards the end of the book :'(
Hahaha - I would have rolled my eyes at the kid and punted him out for wasting my time. But nope, Lupin gives him chocolate and listens to his life story instead. Good man.
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting!
Thanks, Jennifer! Fictional crushes are the best kind, seriously.
ReplyDeleteJK is super awesome with her written dialogues, so sneaky! You have to go back and re-read those last chapters to truly get a sense of it all!
Thanks Kayleigh!
ReplyDeleteYes, the shunning is beyond brutal, because it's not coming from Malfoy or Pansy, but from the two people that pretty much make up her Hogwarts life.
Thanks!
ReplyDeleteSuper deep observation and very true - it's so hard to take off those friend-blinders and do what you think is truly best for them. She's a bright girl, she probably knew in the back of her mind, that they were going to hate on her, but this extent of contempt was just too terrible to go through.
I already had a Lupin fixation, so I don't really know what I'm gonna do now that you've given him dreamboat hair and put him in a snappy outfit. I thank you most enthusiastically, all the same.
ReplyDeleteMmmmmm, I am down with your Lupin drawing. Because oh Lupin! *sighs*
ReplyDeleteYeah, Harry's wanting to stop Dementors for Quidditch does seem kind of stuuupid (to me, anyway) but hey, it sure turned out handy later on huh? That was lucky!
Hahaha dreamboat hair - very glad I could be of service to the fangirling community ;)
ReplyDeleteMy friend, that is a collective sigh ~ :)
ReplyDeleteGood thing that Lupin is so patient! If I had to stuff a boggart into a suitcase and pull overtime only to find out that the kid wanted to play quidditch better, I would have thrown a fit. But yes, I love how JKR will always bring up these little spells BIG TIME in the later books. (Like expelliarmus)