At the Close

I won't give away any spoilers, mind you. (I'm not like those jologs in the bookstores who scooped up the book and started reading the last chapter. Ni hindi man lang binili yung libro! Then they go around smugly, announcing they knew who died.) I am commenting on my own experience as a reader and fan of the series. So no need to fear while reading this post.

If you've been, more or less, saturated with the formula by now, there are few precious things that will surprise you about the telling of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. But still the journey was quite engaging, the destination a fantasy come true for all those fan fiction writers, and the resolution of all the Dark Magic and the prophecies and curses was very well done.

After being quite disappointed with book 6, I aimed to read book 7 just to get it over with. And yet, an I waited to get my copy on 21 July, I couldn't help but feel excited again. I was happy to see that things began differently. The beginning is more sinister, and I could hear kids all over the world saying "I knew it! I knew Snape was scum!" There was less restraint as well in the violence. JK went all out, and indeed made good on her promise about several beloved characters being killed off in the first few chapters of the book. I know reports said six, but man, I believe there were more. I've lost count in fact.

The middle of the book started to slow down as JK tried to set up the situations. She started referring to past books, and tied them in to the present events, magnifying small activities with long explanations that didn't seem important. Sometimes the looooong explanations were lost on me. What did this have to do with anything? There was so much to-do before any action happened again, and that bit of action did take place, I'd wonder, well, what was that all about? It turns out it would have a bearing on the final moments of the book. But some of the important details that could have helped move the "slow middle" faster were crammed right at the end, when everything was going awry and I was desperately trying to remember why that person was there, and why were they back in that place, and why on earth did they leave in the first place.

Many things could have been more elegantly explained and laid out in previous books so that readers could get a feeling of continuity, and not a sense of, hey where did that come from, and why only now? But I guess that's the Zen writer in JK. You get the information on a need-to-know-basis, when you need it. It's the way she created Dumbledore in the first place. And, in my opinion, this is why there were a lot simple things that could have been stated simply, many events that could have otherwise be played up.

Oh, the need to explain things so lengthily! There were so many events that needed clarification, and this had to be done in the form of litanies and monologues by many peripheral characters who could have been spotlighted in earlier books. Meanwhile, many other characters could have -- and should have -- been played up more: Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood (although I know she played a big part in Book 4 and 5), Seamus Finnegan, and I would have loved to know what happened to Cho Chang and the other pivotal names in the previous books. Most of the teachers were mentioned only as asides in this book: McGonagall, Professors Sprout and Flitwick and Trelawney, but I felt they deserved a big chunk in the final telling of the story. They were a valiant lot, and I wished JK had devoted at least a chapter to them, the way she did for Dumbledore and Snape.

I have to applaud JK though for the way she resolved the legend of Harry's and Voldemort's wands, the magic that Lily Evans bestowed on Harry, what the Deathly Hallows were and how it all connected to Harry, Dumbledore, and Voldemort. She needed to write a story to move another story forward. She needed to turn legendary concepts into "real ones" so that it would all be logical and plausible. And I daresay she succeeded. It made me want to go back and review the previous books! This is no easy feat, and I have to say, to write it in a way that will continue to engage children of this multi-media, multi-stimuli, highly-advanced generation is an achievement even Dumbledore would tear at. Very well done.

Most of all, I am glad that JK gave in to the volumes and volumes and gigabytes of fan fiction that accumulated over the web these past years. All these kids, writing about who would end up with whom, will finally see their ideas in print. I'm glad she took heed. The kids may recognize some of their handiwork at the end of the book. Recognizing the power that the Internet gave her, the wisdom from her readers, and her ability to see them to fruition is akin to the story's theme: know that you can, and then give back.

It's a good end to a long journey, and I'm glad things ended the way they did. This saga went out with a real bang, a fierce fight, nothing less than what the story's fans have been waiting for for a whole decade. I could almost see in my mind's eye how this would unfold on the big screen when the time comes. The ultimate, final battle between good and evil in this book is absolutely the most exciting of all. It'll make your heart swell, your hair stand and your eyes water.

I feel a lump in my throat knowing that travels with Harry are over now. But it was great fun growing with him, Ron, Hermione, and all the other characters. I'm happy these books exist so that younger generations of kids will be enticed to read, find out more about the genre and be inspired to discover other similar books: giants on whose shoulders the HP series stands. The events and hype that surrounded the series will not be easily forgotten either: forged by the power of multi-media, empowered users, and idealistic youngsters, the books are a fascinating peek into a generation's experience with literacy, learning and growing up. It's been phenomenal. With two more movies to go, we can expect a few more great things to happen.

And I'm sure, by Dumbledore's beard, they will!