GravityGirl's Full Review: J. K. Rowling - Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azk...
When I first heard about beckytcy's 3rd Anniversary Loyalty WO, I knew I wanted to join up. I originally intended to write a Harry Potter editorial (this category does exist-no OTs for me). Unfortunately, plans have changed and I am now writing about Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
I am a big fan of Harry Potter. This is not a surprise for people who regularly read my reviews since I recently wrote about the Harry Potter Chamber of Secrets book, movie and video game in three separate editorials. I first became interested in Harry Potter in November 1999. I wandered into the Harvard Coop and saw a Harry Potter display. The first book had recently been released in paperback and it was on sale and since I really wanted to know what the hype was all about, I purchased the book. I think I finished it that night and I waited anxiously for the rest of the week until I had time to go back and purchase books 2 and 3. I have been a big fan of Harry Potter ever since. For those of you who do not share my Potter-mania, the Harry Potter books are about a boy wizard who is rescued from his abusive aunt and uncle and sent off to wizard boarding school where he makes friends and has adventures, etc. Each book is devoted to one year at school.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (PoA) is the third book in the series and Harry is thirteen years old in this installment. As the story opens, Harry is forced to spend another summer with his odious relatives the Dursleys. Things go from bad to worse when his uncle's sister arrives for a visit and insults the memory of Harry's mother so badly that the young wizard runs away and seeks refuge in Diagon Alley, which is the center of the wizarding world when it comes to shopping and culture. Harry finds it very strange that he is not punished by the school for breaking various rules and his instincts are right-there is definitely something afoot. Harry eventually meets up with his good friends Ron and Hermione and they return to Hogwarts.
However, all is not well at Hogwarts. Recently, a prisoner named Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban, which is the wizarding prison. Sirius is believed to have been the one who betrayed Harry's parents and this betrayal led to their death. Before his escape, he was heard muttering in his sleep "He's at Hogwarts." Everyone believes that Sirius is after Harry, so the school goes on a heightened security alert which includes bringing in dementors, which are horrible creatures who (quite literally) suck the fun out of the room.
As the year progresses, strange things begin to happen. Harry receives a mysterious gift, his Divination professors keeps predicting his death and Sirius actually breaks into the school, but attacks the wrong bed (he does not hurt the student). Also, Hermione's new cat is out to get Ron's rat and while the new teacher at Hogwarts is much cooler than his predecessors, he is also a little strange- is it possible that he is hiding something?
Once again, it is up to Harry Ron and Hermione to get to the bottom of the mystery and track down Sirius on their own. By the end of the book, Harry will have learned a lot about his parents, his past and about who he is. There are plot twists a plenty and you will not be disappointed.
As I have mentioned before, PoA is my favorite book. I think that it offers even more mystery than Chamber of Secrets and it is not bogged down with so much information like the fourth book, Goblet of Fire. On a side note, Chris Columbus (the director, not the explorer) was criticized for changing the ending of the second movie. I'm not going to ruin the ending, but I really think that the exuberance at the end of the second book is the last time that everyone is truly happy. This sense of uneasiness builds throughout book three and carries over into book 4, which ends at quite a cliffhanger. So, throughout this third novel, a sense of fear is building. It is more apparent at some points than at others, but it is always there.
I think that one of the reasons I enjoy the Harry Potter series so much is because it features the same characters in all four novels. At the beginning of the first novel, Harry has just turned 11 and he is very unsure of himself because he has grown up in an abusive home where he was always put down. At Hogwarts, he begins to blossom. By the time we get to the third book, Harry has faced two different versions of the same enemy, but he is still unsure of himself because he is a thirteen year old boy. However, most of my favorite characters appear in PoA. In addition to Harry's two best friends Ron and Hermione, the book also features Neville Longbottom, Harry's classmate who tries hard but is not always successful in his endeavors, Draco Malfoy. Harry's arch-rival and many others. I think that JK Rowling does a really wonderful job with character development. In addition to changing a little every book because they are growing up, the Harry Potter books are not just about Harry and his immediate friends- the reader learns secrets about Harry's friends and those around him. As it turns out, everyone is connected in the wizarding world.
The Harry Potter books are written so that theoretically, one could read them in any order but I really recommend reading them in order. I think that you will appreciate them more that way-and you can enjoy the plot twists and spoilers without having them ruined by reading the books out of order.
Prisoner of Azkaban is available in several formats. There are both hardcover and paperback editions or you could listen to the book on both CD and cassette. I have read Prisoner of Azkaban several times and I have also listened to it on cassette since my husband is interested in Harry Potter but does not have much time for reading. The long drive to New Jersey and back goes by much more quickly with Harry on tape, read by Jim Dale, who does all sorts of funny voices for the various characters.
I highly recommend Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. I have enjoyed Harry Potter for exactly three years and I look forward to many more years of Harry Potter books and movies. Prisoner of Azkaban has something for everyone- mystery, adventure and much much more.
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