Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Author: J.K. Rowling
Pages: 636
Published: 2000
Challenges: 2012 Harry Potter Reading Challenge
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Edition: Hardcover and audiobook
Source: Library

Description: It is the summer holidays, and one night Harry Potter wakes up with his scar burning. He has had a strange dream, one that he can't help worrying about...until a timely invitation from Ron Weasley arrives: to nothing less than the Quidditch World Cup!

Soon Harry is reunited with Ron and Hermione and gasping at the thrills of an international Quidditch match. But then something horrible happens which casts a shadow over everybody, and Harry in particular... (via Goodreads)

Thoughts:  Even though I really enjoyed the book as much as I did the last time I read it about 6 months ago, I had a little bit of an issue reading it and had some problems getting around to reading it.  I suppose a lot had to do with the fact that I was feeling overwhelmed by the amount I needed to read.  But considering I spent about 10 hours on Tuesday reading it, I would think that I enjoyed it and was gripped by the story, even though it has been about 12 years since the book was published.

Bottom line:  Really enjoyed the book and it was a nice bridge between lighter fair that I didn't enjoy and something that I am really enjoying at the moment.  The writing is more mature in nature and not as light and childlike as the first three books in the Harry Potter series and there is a notable shift in the tone, in that it becomes clearly darker and the shift to what happens at the end of the series is quite easily noted.

Rating: 5/5

Pages for 2012: 10440

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Discussion Questions

The Reading Fever is hosting a year-long readalong of the Harry Potter series.  Here are the discussion questions for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

1) Do you have a favourite scene or line in Goblet?
If I had to choose a favourite scene or line in Goblet, it would have to be the scene at the end of the book when Hermoine was able to get her revenge on Rita Skeeter, with Rita in a glass jar.

2) Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire opens in Tom Riddle, Sr.'s parents' home, unlike the previous three books which opened in the Durseleys' home.  This chapter is most unusual in the Harry POtter canon, in that it is not told from Harry's viewpoint.  How does the change of setting for the beginning of this book affect the tone of the book? Why do you think Rowling departed from the expected setting for the beginning?
It affects the tone of the book in that you find out that Voldemort is a half-blood, not the pure-blood wizard that he so clearly admires.  I also think that affects the book in that we see that Voldemort is ruthless and nothing will stop him from murdering somebody that is perceived to be a threat to him.  I think the reason that Rowling departed from the expected setting for the beginning because she wanted to introduce something more sinister and that Voldemort and his supporters were starting to gain traction.

3) At the World Cup, mask-wearing wizards torment the muggles:"A crowd of wizards, tightly packed moving together with wands wands pointing straight upward, was marching slowly across the field.  Harry squinted at them...They didn't seem to have faces...Then he realized that their heads were hooded and their faces masked".  Compare this moment of torment to other times when groups of people have worn hoods and masks to cover their identities.  What does the masking of a face tell us about the nature of evil?
It basically tells me that those who are masked up and perform such acts are basically cowards and without the mask, they would never consider performing such acts.  It also tells me that they wish the acts to be impersonal as much as possible and that a mob mentality is very powerful.

4) How does young Crouch manage to trick everyone into thinking he is the real Moody?
Through a curse and the use of Polyjuice Potion.

5) After Harry hangs around with the mermaid people to make sure all the hostages are rescued, he is awarded points for his "moral fiber."  Do you agree with this prize? How much moral fiber does Harry show?
Personally I do agree with this prize.  I think he does show quite a bit, in that he puts his own personal gain aside and just get Fleur's younger sister, knowing that he may not win the second task.

6) When Harry faces death from Voldemort, he refuses to cower before him and refuses to answer his questions.  At one point, Voldemort tries to get Harry to bend to his will by answering a question.  Instead of succumbing to the Imperio demand, Harry's will takes over: "I will not, said a stronger voice, in the back of his head, I won't answer..." Then when Voldemort moves to kill him, Harry "knew one thing only, and it was beyond fear or reason: He was not going to die kneeling at Voldemort's feet...he was going to die upright like his father, and he was going to die trying to defend himself, even if no defense was possible..."  Did Harry have this much will power and courage in the first book? What significant events helped him develop the courage he now has?
No. The significant events that helped him develop the courage that he now has was the killing of the Basalik in the second book, the ability to stand up to a professor and Lupin's belief in him that he could defeat Voldemort.

7) A lot of elements that come into play in later books are introduced in Goblet.  Can you think of some examples?
One example would be the nature of Voldemort's true parentage and how he became an orphan.  Another would be the battle between Harry and Voldemort that will take place in the end. 

8) Harry tells Sirius and Dumbledore what happened in the graveyard. When Harry told of Wormtail piercing his arm with the dagger, … Sirius let out a vehement exclamation and Dumbledore stood up so quickly that Harry started. Dumbledore walked around the desk and told Harry to stretch out his arm. Harry showed them both the place where his robes were torn and the cut beneath them. “He said my blood would make him stronger than if he’d used someone else’s,” Harry told Dumbledore. “He said the protection my – my mother left in me – he’d have it too. And he was right – he could touch me without hurting himself, he touched my face.” For a fleeting instant, Harry thought he saw a gleam of something like triumph in Dumbledore’s eyes. But next second, Harry was sure he had imagined it, for when Dumbledore had returned to his seat behind the desk, he looked as old and weary as Harry had ever seen him. So what’s up with that “gleam of triumph” in Dumbledore’s eyes?
I think the gleam of triumph in Dumbledore's eyes is knowing that Voldemort will probably succumb to his own evil desires and also to the fact that he knows that Harry has the capability to defeat Voldemort.

9) In the hospital wing after Harry’s ordeal, this exchange takes place: “Severus,” said Dumbledore, turning to Snape, “you know what I must ask you to do. If you are ready…if you are prepared…” “I am,” said Snape. He looked slightly paler than usual, and his cold, black eyes glittered strangely. “Then good luck,” said  Dumbledore, and he watched, with a trace of apprehension on his face, as Snape swept wordlessly after Sirius. Where did Snape go? What was Dumbledore asking him to do?  
I think what Dumbledore had Snape do was to round up the Order of the Phoenix and to get Sirius out of hiding and into Sirius' former home.

10) After the ordeal Harry has been through in the graveyard, Professor McGonagall wants to take Harry to the hospital wing. Dumbledore stops her, saying “He will stay, Minerva, because he needs to understand. Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery. He needs to know who has put him through the ordeal he has suffered tonight, and why.” What do you think is the significance of this? Is Dumbledore right?   
The significance of this is that Dumbledore recognizes that Harry is finally understanding what he has to do and that Voldemort has to be defeated and that Harry is the only one that can defeat him.  And he, Dumbledore, has to let Harry learn on his own and be allowed to take risks without Dumbledore being there every time.  I think he is right.

11) Later on, Dumbledore says to Fudge, “You place too much importance, and always have done, on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be!” Who are some of the people Dumbledore might be thinking of when he says this?  
I think he is referring to people like Harry and Hermoine, who aren't pure-bloods, and possibly even Neville, who despite the fact that he isn't the brightest bulb in some subjects, is able to surprise people with how much he does know. 

 

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Discussion questions

The Reading Fever is hosting a year-long readalong of the Harry Potter series.   Here are the discussion questions for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

1.  What is your favourite line from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban?  I didn't really have one.

2. If the Knight Bus hadn't been summoned when it was, what might have happened? Would Harry have believed Sirius if he had introduced himself?   I think Harry's uncle would have come after him and he may have been dragged back to the Dursely's or maybe Harry would have been introduced to Sirius.
I don't know; knowing Harry, he would have run off trying to get away from Sirius or he would have yelled at him for killing Harry's parents.

3. In this book, Voldemort doesn't play a major part. What do you think the purpose of this was? Do you think it was for the better, or worse?I think the reason that J.K. Rowling did this was to introduce the forces that were working for Voldemort and also to introduce the Dementors, which end up playing a larger role in the fifth book.  I think this was for the better because it introduced the readers an element that is going to be important in later books.

4. Why do you think Professor McGonagall gave Hermione the time-turner? Was it to allow her to learn a lesson, or do you believe she thought Hermione could handle taking so many classes?  I think she gave it to Hermione because she thought that she could handle it better than others, but I think it was to also teach her lesson as well as thinking that Hermione could handle so many classes.

5. What do you think Hermione learned from trying to do too many things at once? What did YOU learn about her character after learning about all the classes she was taking?  That she really can't do everything and that sometimes her judgement isn't the best.  I don't think I really learned anything from Hermione.

6. What is one emotion you felt strongly, while reading this book?  I felt a feeling of fun and enjoyment.

7. Is there something that bothered you about this book? Why?  I wasn't really bothered with anything with the book.

8. What important relationships did Harry form in this book, and why are they important?  The important relationships that Harry form in this book were those with Lupin and Pettigrew.  They are important because they established which one was going to support and guide Harry.

9. Just for fun: What part of the book made you laugh the most? If you've read it before, does it still make you laugh?  I don't know if there was just one moment in the book; it just felt like a fun book and there were many moments that made me smile.  It doesn't make me laugh as much as it did the first time, but I still enjoyed it.

Harry Potter Books 1 and 2 Discussion Questions

The Reading Fever is hosting a year-long readalong of the Harry Potter series.  After a rocky start, she finally posted the link-ups and discussion questions.

1.  What was your first very first impression of Harry Potter himself? Did your impression change at the end of the first book?
 I don't really remember what my first impression him was, due to the fact that I have read two more books in the series since reading the first one back in January and since I have read the first book at least four or five times and the first time I had read a book, it was after I had already watched at least the first three movies, so my impressions were probably vastly different than it probably should have been.  But that being said, my first impressions of Harry is that he's definitely a kid whose a loner due to the fact that he's just different than all the other kids and also Dudley probably scares him off as soon as he can.

2. At what point in either book did you decide that you did, or didn't, like the story?
Um, probably when I first saw the third movie in 2003.

3. Is there anything you dislike so far? Something you would change if you could?
Like I said earlier, I have read these first two books many, many times, but honestly I would have made sure that it had a little more depth to them; they seem a little shallow, but honestly they are very addicting.

4. What is it about J.K. Rowling's writing that makes her books so appealing to so many people? Is it the characters? The plot? Something else? What do you love most about her writing?
 I think it has to do with multiple things, but I think what I love about her writing is such that an adult, a young adult or a preteen can pick it up and find each find something different that makes it appeal to each of them.

5. In the first book, we are introduced to a very different world than the one we live in. What were some things that blew your mind when you first read about them?
What blew me away was that she makes it very realistic that you can think it can actually happen.

6. Despite being so different, what do you think makes the wizard world so believable? What makes it a place that people want to escape to?
 I think that there is enough of the "muggle" world involved that one thinks it actually is believable and the reason that people want to escape to it because it is a different place, etc.  Its probably the same reason that a lot people want to escape to the world of The Lord of the Rings.

7. In The Sorcerer's Stone, Professor Quirrel tells Harry, "There is no good and evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it." What does this statement tell us about Professor Quirrel? Do you agree or disagree with him?
What it tells me about Professor Quirrel is that he really wants power and will do anything to get any sort of power.  I disagree with him because power inevitably makes one hungry for more power and at some point the people who do that do something really, really stupid that you just wish them gone, for whatever the reason.

8. In The Chamber of Secrets, Dumbledore tells Harry, "It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." The sorting hat also suggested Harry could fine great fame and glory in Slytherin House. What choices does Harry make that lead him away from darkness? Could he have been the good wizard that he was if some of those choices were different?
He clearly understands the difference between good and evil and how to know what really is evil and I suppose somehow knowing what evil can do made him turn away from darkness and I also suppose it was the conversation he had with Hagrid in Diagon Alley that made him turn away from Slytherin House.  I don't think he could have, as he would have not had the influences of Ron and Hermoine and others.

9. If you're re-reading the series, what are some differences you've noticed this time? Are there things you didn't pick up on before? Or did you find you liked/disliked something differently this time?
 I am noticing the foreshadowing of things in the final books, especially in book two, things that play important roles in those books.

10. Just for fun: If you could make your own polyjuice potion, who would you disguise yourself as, and why?
I honestly don't know who I would disguise myself as.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Author: J.K. Rowling
Pages: 317
Published: 1999
Challenges: 2012 Harry Potter Reading Challenge
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Edition: Hardcover and Audio
Source: Purchased and Library


Description:  Harry Potter is a very unusual boy. He can't wait to get back to school after the Summer holidays! But that's not the only unusual thing about Harry; Harry's school is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Harry is a wizard! But when Harry, along with his best friends Ron and Hermione, go back for their third year at Hogwarts, the atmosphere is tense. There's an escaped mass murderer on the loose, and the sinister prison guards of Azkaban have been called in to guard the school ...(via Chapter.ca)

Thoughts:  Its definitely a quick read and took me a few days to listen to the audio as I read along with my copy of the book and I realize that it took me a number of months to get through this book last year, but when reading it with the audio, I was able to get it done in about 3 days (probably I could read it within a day, but honestly, it would have been a little much).


What I love about the book is that the book still has the innocence of the first two books, but has the element of darkness throughout the book and quite honestly, this is my favourite book of the series for the simple fact that most of the story is included in the movie of the same title, even though there are some slight differences between the book and the movie and when you compare it to the next three book/movies, there wasn't a lot that was omitted in the movie.  True there was things that were switched up in the movie, but the essential story and the various subplots that take place in the book are included in the movie as well (okay, the thing with the Firebolt being stripped down in the book isn't included in the movie, but its so minor that I think most fans will overlook it).


Bottom line:  This is probably the best one of the Harry Potter books because while the book is still fairly lighthearted like the first two, but still has is able to bring the darker side of the series and carry momentum throughout the book by giving the reader a bit more understanding to Harry's dad's life at Hogwarts and also introduces us to several new characters that are going to prominent throughout the last 3 books of the series.  Recommended for those that are a fan of the Harry Potter series.


Rating: 5/5


Pages for 2012: 3909

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Author: J.K. Rowling
Pages: 366
Published: 2004 (originally published in 1998)
Challenges: 2012 Harry Potter Reading Challenge
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Edition: Paperback and audiobook
Source: Purchased and library
Rating: 5/5

Ever since Harry Potter had come home for the summer, the Dursleys were so mean and hideous that all Harry wanted was to get back to the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. But just as he's packing his bags, Harry receives a warning from a strange, impish creature named Dobby who says that if Harry Potter returns to Hogwarts, disaster will strike. 

And strike it does. For in Harry's second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor and a spirit who haunts the girls' bathroom. But then the real trouble begins--someone is turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects...Harry Potter himself! (via Goodreads)

Thoughts: Felt that this story was a little more developed than the previous story, especially since there are allusions to the story of Tom Riddle In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (I suppose reading it basically a month ago doesn't hurt and therefore allows one to understand how each of the first six books aid in the final book and its final plot).  I felt that the story did have its element of light-heartedness in the form of Gilderoy Lockhart and the fact that he really wasn't what he said he was.

Bottom line: An excellent continuation of the first book and one gets to understand why Hagrid is the gameskeeper at Hogwarts.  I also liked the developing relationship between Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and some of the other students at the school.  Its still on the light-hearted stuff and isn't as scary as the latter books and is good for those who are probably in grades 4 and above.  Language is still on the simplistic, but you can see that darker themes are being introduced.

Pages for 2012: 1632

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K. Rowling

Title: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Author: J.K. Rowling
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Pages: 332
Published: 2004 (originally published in 1997)
Challenges: 2012 Harry Potter Reading Challenge
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Edition: Paperback and audiobook
Source: Purchased and library
Rating: 5/5

When a letter arrives for unhappy but ordinary Harry Potter, a decade-old secret is revealed to him. His parents were wizards, killed by a Dark Lord's curse when Harry was just a baby, and which he somehow survived. Escaping from his unbearable Muggle guardians to Hogwarts, a wizarding school brimming with ghosts and enchantments, Harry stumbles into a sinister adventure when he finds a three-headed dog guarding a room on the third floor. Then he hears of a missing stone with astonishing powers which could be valuable, dangerous, or both. (via blurb on book)

Thoughts: I read this book while listening to the audio at the same time and I while I had thought I had read the book, I really hadn't, as I found passages in the book that I had basically glanced over the first four or five times that I have read this book.  I can't exactly recall what I missed, but there were quite a few portions of the book that I clearly had missed as I listened to the book.  As to the book, what can't I say?  I really enjoyed it and thought the book there was a sense of the magical and the fantastical throughout the book.  I read this book as a part of the 2012 Harry Potter Reading Challenge.

Bottom line: Very enjoyable and definitely something that I think that most people will enjoy reading; its definitely something that can quickly be read by most readers.

Page total for 2012: 1266

Harry Potter Reading Challenge 2012

This challenge is hosted by The Reading Fever

The challenge:

Read all seven books in the Harry Potter series during 2012.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

• The challenge will run from January 1st, 2012, to  December 31st, 2012. Books read before or after this time frame do not count. You can join anytime until the challenge ends.
• Books can be in any format: Print, ebook, audiobook, etc..
• You do not have to review the books to participate, although you are more than welcome to. If you choose not to review, you can also do the following and still be eligible for prizes:
  • Answer the discussion questions each month
  • Create a post talking about each book after you finish (any topic)
  • Just update your kickoff post after each book
  • Those without blogs can leave a comment with their thoughts/review/review link.
  • Because this is open to those who have already read HP, old reviews will be accepted. Whether you have read the books within the challenge time frame is on the honor system, so please be honest!
• Be sure to leave the relevant links in each linky to be entered into the drawings for prizes.

Extra Credit:

• Read at least one book per month, starting in January. If you do this you will be done well before September, which is when you can join me at Potter Con 2012, the first online HP conference!
• Each month, I will have a new linky on my blog where you can come to post your reviews/discussions of each book you have read. These will correspond with that month's book (Jan. = Sorcerer's Stone, Feb. = Chamber of Secrets, and so on).
• In addition, I will post discussion questions about each book that you can answer on your blog, or in the comments of that post.
• Watch the corresponding movie at the end of each book, and experience them with a fresh new viewpoint.
• Tweet with me throughout the year! #2012HPRC

I am currently finishing up the series, but am more than glad to reread the series once again.  Just so you are aware, the first book in the series for Canadians and Brits is Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and my first review post will reflect that.