I think I mentioned I’m taking a summer splurge and reading all the HP books again. Well..I got through the first three very happily. Then the fourth one loomed, so I got it on audio because I knew I’d never be able to make myself read it. It’s much better on audio, but there sure are a LOT of mistakes in that book. Not mistakes so much as just things that don’t make sense. Like the whole thing about the summoning charm in the beginning is so HUGE and he can do it, but then later when he drops his map on the stairs and is stuck in the trick step, he doesn’t even think of doing the summoning charm. But then he uses is later! And if you’re not allowed to have anything for the tasks except your wand, how can he have Gillyweed in his pocket and not be disqualified? And Cedric has a knife in his pocket for the second task which he uses. And…well, anyway. I don’t think any of the other books have any of these problems, just this one. Luckily, I was so hooked that I read it through really fast the first time and back then, I thought it was pretty good!
However, my “to read” stack from the library is piling up, and my friend has promised me “boxes of new ARCs very soon” so I’m taking a short break from HP and trying to put a dent in my library stack. What are y’all reading?
I’m reading the Harry Potter series with my almost-9-year-old right now and I agree — the first three are incredibly brilliant. The writing is so tight, everything works together so well.
I got bored halfway through book 4 when I was reading on my own. Reading it with my son was motivation enough to continue and now we’re about half way through book 5.
I can’t speak for 6 and 7, but I definitely feel like 4 and 5 are too wordy. There are so many places that could have been trimmed to make the story flow better and helped the books keep pace as well as the first three. Maybe there was just so much pressure to get the later books out, that not as much time was dedicated to editing?
Of course, this is coming from someone who hasn’t published a book yet. Everyone’s a critic, right?
The “All New Square Foot Gardening” by Mel Bartholomew, which I suddenly decided I needed to take a look at since the older version that I have is umpty-dozen years old. I’m glad I did; he has simplified the technique even more than before, and it was pretty simple then!
Also “The Adoration of Jenna Fox,” by Mary E. Pearson, a YA everybody seems to be wild about. It turned out I was able to read it in one long gulp because I had an unplanned quiet evening…and am I glad, because I would have had a hard time putting it down!