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The Inevitable Deathly Hallows Post

As much as I was anticipating this book, I was also dreading it. How could one book live up to all the expectations, manage to tie up so many ends and answer so many questions? No pressure, JK. But while there are inevitably things not to love, I think she did beautifully.

Some of the things I loved (not by any means all inclusive):

The house elves. Dobby’s death made me cry, and I’m not a crier. I loved what she did with Kreacher—it bore out the idea that kindness and understanding (even to those who seem not to deserve it) can do amazing things. I love that he made Harry treacle tart. And the scene where Kreacher leads the house elves into battle is sheer GLEE.
The battle at Hogwarts. It had to happen there—missing the school was one of the things that was like an uneasy ache through most of the book. I love that that all the characters who should have been there were and everyone got at least a moment. Everyone from Oliver Wood to Grawp. And more GLEE over Professor Trelawney.
Molly Weasley being made of awesome
That saying ~~Voldemort's~~ You Know Who's name became not a good thing to do.
The giant spiders fighting for the bad guy, and not just because I hate spiders. I liked, that as much as there’s this idea that compassion and kindness can pay off (first bullet), it’s not a one-to-one ratio. Hagrid may have cared for their mother (and for them), but the spiders could care less.
Having Narcissa Malfoy save Harry and lie to Voldemort for her son.
Hermione's handbag. And just how smart that girl is.
Dudley, who has been fun to hate and mock, getting to be more than a one-note character.
Neville and his vulture-hat wearing grandmother.
That Volemort can (could) fly. I love this image.
Ron. Ron finally overcoming his inferiority complexes, and standing on his own feet.
That Harry came to lose all the trappings of boyhood/school. Poor Hedwig, his broom and even his wand.
Dumbledore. I liked his back-story. Not just the benevolent, purely saintly, twinkly eyed figure, but not just a manipulative, cold-blooded calculator either. A man with flaws.
All the references back, tie-ins and small rewards for readers who've been paying attention (having not paid huge attention, I'm sure I've missed some of these). From Dumbledore's lie about the socks to "Are you a witch/wizard or what?" to the tent from the Quidditch World Cup--to name only a very few.

A few other things:

I find I’m rather opinion-less about how she handled Harry’s fate. She didn’t kill him, but he had his underworld/train station moment. I didn’t mind, but I didn’t love. I did like the tie back of his “death” acting like his mother’s to provide protection, but he didn’t really die, so it almost seemed like a cheat. His willingness to die was shown to be the key, so I guess JK got to have both ways, although I'm not really sure of the logic of it. I didn’t really believe she’d actually kill Harry off.
One thing I’m kind of disappointed about not bearing fruit is the veil in the Department of Mysteries and Sirius’s “death” by falling through the veil. I wasn’t really expecting her to bring Sirius back—it would undermine the central concept of dead is dead and don’t try to mess with it—but I had hoped it would go somewhere.
The twins. I was unprepared for Fred’s death. I was anticipating that the twins’ recklessness would have some consequences—but that didn’t happen at all the way I was thinking. I found Fred’s death shocking—just as it should have been. It was written well, I thought, especially timing it for just after the moment of reconciliation with Percy. But because she did well with this one, it made me dislike Lupin and Tonks’ death even more (see below).
The Hallows. I nearly put this in the next category, but I don’t hate it. I do wish there had been the barest hint (but perhaps I missed it) about the Hallows in any of the previous books. It feels like she might have readjusted her story at some point (maybe she was going to kill Harry, but then didn't have the guts and so had to come up with away out?). And I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure the invisibility cloak didn’t protect against spells before this book (doesn’t Draco stun Harry when he’s wearing it?).

And, finally, some things I didn’t like.

The Epilogue. The more I think about it, the less I like it. I can understand why she included it, I think. I helps her avoid being pressured for more books. It shows that the story is really over. It illustrates that life goes full circle. But I really didn’t like it and the reasons are many.
- It read more like bad fanfic to me than anything else. O, look, everyone’s married each other, they’ve named their numerous offspring after dearly departed friends and relatives, and we’re all happily domestic now.
  
  (I do appreciate her not telling us what the characters had done with their lives (except marriage and children) with the exception of Neville. This, I did like. Neville was made of awesome in the book, but he was a changed Neville—not necessarily OOC, but hardened by what he was experiencing off screen. If she had to do the epilogue, I liked that JK threw in that he was the herbology professor at Hogwarts—it shows that however he changed, he still remained Neville.)
- It was completely, utterly unnecessary. I would have been happy if she’d just ended it with the chapter before. It ended on a perfect note, we’d seen pretty much everything we’d needed to see, and what happened next was up to us to imagine. How much better the book would have been if she just ended with Harry thinking of bed and maybe a sandwich.
- It—and this is one of the things I’ve been crossing my fingers against—was literally a happily ever after. I hate that. I do understand the full circle thing—seeing the children off to school so they can live their own lives in turn—but this wasn’t really the full circle I was envisioning. One of the themes I thought I had picked up from the books is the idea that evil is never entirely defeated, and I’m not talking about Voldemort refusing to die. I’d always liked what seemed like the throw away reference (up until this book anyway) to Dumbledore’s duel with a pre-Voldemort evil wizard. It seemed to reinforce the idea that each generation, or each cycle or age or whatever, has to face up to their own challenges, evils and choices. (Constant vigilance!). The cloying last line of the book therefore did not please me.
- Although I admire JK’s ability to pick such great names, Scorpius Malfoy really just had to be meant for a laugh, doesn’t it?
- And the thing that I actually disliked the most about the epilogue is the Snape reference. HATED. Overall, I liked how JK handled Snape. I liked that we found out more about what drove him (it was pretty obvious, but I thought the scenes of his memories were well done). I liked that, although Snape was ultimately shown to be working for the good, he was not necessarily a good guy. He’s literally and metaphorically the middle example. Of the three who JK points out made Hogwarts their home, Voldemort went bad and died bad, on one end, and Harry didn’t go bad, on the other. And then there’s Snape. Snape went bad but then regretted it. Or, more accurately, it doesn’t seem to be going bad that he regrets, but one particular consequence of his actions—Lily’s death. That, to my mind, doesn’t make him good. It doesn’t change that it’s all about Lily—something that doesn’t alter from the time he’s in school and willing to join the Death Eaters and make her an exception, to the time that he’s willing to protect Harry only because he’s her son—not because, for example, he’s an innocent kid and protecting him would be the right thing to do. His regret doesn’t change his essential nature—he’s still cruel to the children he teaches (think back to how he treats eleven-year-old Neville and Hermione in the first book). Nor does he grow up past his hatred of James to see Harry as a separate person. His regret does result in his attempt to make it up by protecting Lily’s son and helping Dumbledore—and so ultimately, you can say, he got the redemption he was seeking—but that doesn’t make him a nice, cuddly or even particularly decent guy. And although he’s arguably redeemed, he doesn’t actually overcome any of his flaws. (Compare, i.e., with Dumbledore, who’s seemed to have recognized his flaws and tried to overcome them with varying success—and at least seems to have learned something from his past regrets.) You could argue, in fact, that all Snape's actions are purely selfish, since it all comes down to Lily—there doesn’t seem to be any real compassion or empathy at work. Of course, it’s all up for debate. So, revel in his flawed complexity! I was actually rather dreading that JK might diminish his character (a saccharine reconciliation between him and Harry was one of my worst fears), but I thought she handled it well. But then the epilogue. Harry giving his kid Severus as a middle name and then calling Snape one of the bravest men he ever knew is actually kind of sickening. Maybe I’m making too much out of it, and it’s purely Harry’s retcon perspective, true, but still, it rather negates everything I liked about how I thought JK was handling Snape.
And related to the last point—the more I think about it the more I dislike Dumbledore’s comment to Snape about sorting too early. I don’t like that it suggests that Slytherins will inevitably go bad, something I had thought the books were resisting as being more complex than that, and I also don’t like that it undermines the central idea of individual choice.
Lupin and Tonks' death. I’m guessing that there are fangirls out there moaning about this one—but I’m not moaning. I’m just not really sure it worked. Why did she do it? Was it to show that death can be senseless? I think we got that message already. Is it to give Harry that extra push to go out and die—thinking that Teddy has been orphaned just as he was? I think so, but I didn’t find it particularly effective, because does Harry legitimately need an extra push at this point? Was it to show that the decision for them to get married despite Lupin’s reluctance was the right one, because life is uncertain and at least they had some time together? Maybe, but if so, not really set up to make this point well. Is it to enable JK to show that orphaned children don’t have to have miserable lives, as Harry and Tom Riddle do—and thus the epilogue? Not really convinced. I’m not sure what she was aiming for here. It certainly didn’t have any emotional impact on me. It was off screen, and coming across their bodies as Harry does was really just a WTF moment. Even Moody’s death, which was also off screen, had a lot more resonance. I almost think that she felt she needed a higher death toll among the known characters and picked them by default.

Whew. Well, despite my complaining at the last, I enjoyed the book and I’m not at all disappointed. I could pick plot holes but I don’t want to do that. I loved these books for the adventures they were, and while I’m sad it’s over, I’m glad to have seen it through to the end.

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Have not, as yet, read the book, my copy being ah, borrowed temporarily by someone's child (translation - I will never get it back) and Amazon not yet having delivered my replacement but -- somehow, I have the feeling I'm going to end up agreeing with you . . . and no, reading spoilers does not spoil it for me! Just tells me what to pay attention to . . .

I was determined to stay spoiler free, and did manage it. Normally, I don't care as much, but for this one I wanted to reach the ending on my own. It was doubly hard, because I've a bad childhood habit of reading books from back to front. ;)

Hope you like it when you do get one of your copies!

I'm supposed to be on a self-imposed LJ boycott since I am on holiday, but I needed to say I agree with you on the epilogue being completely gratuitous and shite!

I'd be happier if there was some type of internal monologue with Harry -- something, anything -- to at least salvage the Snape-ing of his son. Clearly, she meant to convey that Harry was inevitably touched that Snape's ignoble actions were the consequence of his undying love for Lily, but that rings hollow, or at least incomplete. Harry seems to have come to terms with Dumbledore and failings, so to almost deify Snape in the end just boggles the mind.

Agree about Remus and Tonks. Not enough build up to have it resonate. I know she's going for the symbolism here, but it didn't happen.

The last line seemed not of Harry's voice. He's always seemed to have an undercurrent of bitterness and unease running through him, despite his victories. I'd have preferred for that to have been consistent

Oh god, I'm still not over Fred dying. Really, poor Molly, and poor, poor George. Sigh. The one thing I would've liked to hear about in the epilogue is how George is coping without his twin. *sniff*

Alright, we'll talk about this some other day. I think we both could go on on and on for a bit. I did like it very much overall, and have been re-reading it. Let's recap over coffee one of these days.

That last line was just horrible writing on top of everything else.

And I'm trying not to think too hard about Fred. I originally thought I'd have liked a bit more about George, but then decided it was better that she didn't. I'm not sure how I would have wanted to her handle it. Would he have gone on with the joke shop? Would he have lost that spark? I don't think I want to know, because I'm afraid of the answers.

Coffee and book chat it is. Maybe sometime this weekend, if work doesn't slap me up side the head?

Hah -- you've iconized the Kwik-E Mart!!! Genius! You've made my day. ;p

Having lost a brother who used to finish my sentences, and with whom I had a million and one hair-brained business schemes, I can just imagine what that would be like for George. Would he have that constant voice-of-reason in his head finishing his thoughts, and giving a running color-commentary of everything?

I have to go back to work for a breath today. *grumble* I accidentally left with MZ's office keys (one of the corporate people borrowed it from him and returned it to me without saying they were his; I thought they were a spare set). As I had left Ash's presents at the guard post, it's all well since I want to see if they're still there before I re-shop.

Talk to you this weekend, if you're around. Having another couple of ISM reunions the next two weeks. I've just realized that all who will be attending are either South- or East-Asian, or of mixed descent.

I had to iconize it--how could I resist? It's rather lamely made, since I'm illiterate at graphics, but if you'd like it, feel free to take.

Ewww. Going into work during vacation is just gross, even if you have a secondary purpose. Too bad you can't make them send a minion to pick the keys up from your house or something. ;)

Was Fred the voice of reason?--I didn't think they had one between the two of them. Color commentary I can believe, though. I'd like to think George carried on with the joke shop and caused twice as much laughter as ever in Fred's honor, but I'm not sure.

I should be around this weekend--we'll see how busy I am. It'll all depend on Procrastinating!MiC and his primary characteristic. Woot.

Hope you're enjoying your time off despite the office detour. ;)

Hee -- this icon is even better! Hope this week isn't too harsh.

Er, Tor said he had an appointment, and therefore couldn't swing by Union Square. I realized that he was probably tailing Bruenor to the Top Chef open auditions at CraftBar in hopes of scarfing down some gourmet chow. I wonder if he noticed Percy -- he's been camped out since Friday.

As for the voice-of-reason, young people who die tend to make visitations as their -- though not in appearance -- (relatively more) adult selves. I'm sure George would still hear some cheeky backtalk in his head, as well as some words of wisdom/caution/contemplation from the beyond.

Hmm, Remus turned up when Harry turned the Resurrection Stone, but not Fred? That's a conversation for the weekend.

Been walking around a hell of a lot. Will try to get some cleaning done this week, with laundry looming again. It's Korean food tomorrow! Get to see two friends I haven't seen in years, one of whom was the school hottie and an all-around great guy to boot.

That Tor is such a little liar. You should punish him by making him do your cleaning. Gaheris would approve and could probably be made to supervise, if you put a word in with Gawain.

Left you a comment on your own journal re weekend--I'm posting this mostly so I can use my new spoiler icon. ;)

Hee -- I just made that post so I could use the Potterwatch icon! I wish someone did a mock-up of Neville's gran's hat.

Ugh, cleaning. I'm not leaving the flat this afternoon so I can get some of it done.

Just finished.

I will comment more on this when I get home from work, but suffice it to say I agree with you on your "loved" points.

More later.

*hugs*

Okay, more time, therefore more comments.

I (don't hate me) liked the epilogue. I thought it brought a nice close to the whole of the story, and while treacly sappy, yes, I still thought it was sweet. I liked that Harry named his kid after Albus and Snape. *shrug* But I'm not as literate as you are - and didn't really think it jarring or not fitting. However, having it end with just the "I need bed and a sandwich" would have been good too. I knew Ginny and Harry would be married, and I knew Hermione and Ron would be too. So it wasn't really necessary to flesh that out - but whatever.

I LOVED the Snape memories. I thought that it was really interesting how everything played out for the love of Lily - not his sense of wanting to do "right" or whatever. He did everything for her. And think about this. She and James were 21 years old when they died protecting Harry - and my sense is that both Lily and James weren't perfectly wonderful people. It's fascinating that they would have changed so much in such a short time (being that they were very young) and did what they did. Granted, if it was my kid I would have done the same thing. But...interesting to think about.

Poor Dobby. That made me cry too. Although, when Kreacher led the elves into the battle I sobbed, and when Professor McGonigal raced by with the desks shouting "charge!" I cried and Jesus! Fred! *sob* I really loved the battle. I thought it was described really well and my heart was racing the entire time I read that section.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with it. I've loved the books from the beginning and felt like this was a fitting ending.

Took me freaking long enough to read it. :p

You finished! Yeah, as I said, I really enjoyed it over all. But I don't think I'll be rereading it anytime soon, though, because I'm not really sure how well it will hold up under scrutiny, and I don't really want to start punching holes in it. It's one of the (many) reasons I keep away from the fandom.

Well, each to their own. ;) Certainly, JK liked the epilogue, since she included it, and it's her book. ; ) I've never been a huge Snape fan (which is odd, because I do like the nasty sarcasm thing usually), but it's probably the squeeing over him that generally turns my stomach. But I thought the memories were quite well done.

And Aberforth and the goats! I forgot to mention that under the love. :D

Hope you had a good weekend!

Yeah, I finished. Took me a fucking week. Ridiculous. I bought two more books when I was at that release party - the new Lindsay Davis, See Delphi and Die, and the new James Lee Burke, The Tin Roof Blowdown, which is part of his series that takes place in Louisiana. It's about the political and emotional aftereffects from Katrina - and as I love New Orleans like a second home, I really feel like I need to read that one. You should really check him out if you haven't. I aspire to write description like him.

At any rate - I love Snape. He's always been one of my favorites and I new I was right about him following Dumbledore's orders. Vindication! *laughs* I do want to reread it, but no time right now. I'll just have to rely on my mom for more depth.

How's your weekend? Did you get to see M?

I'm not much into the mystery/crime genre, but maybe someday. ;)

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The Inevitable Deathly Hallows Post

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