Have finished reading the book this morning and decided to read the review on the BBC website, which was quite critical. I thought it was wonderful - so much better than the last book (which really was lacklustre). What did anybody else think of it?

OMG you've finsished it! :o

Have you not been to bed for two nights then?

Have only just finished the first chapter.

Originally posted by banesmabes
Have finished reading the book this morning .............

So you won't be needing it any more, then?

Just pop it in the post!:D

Eldest son finished it at 9.30 on Saturday evening. He says he would have finished it sooner if I hadn't interrupted him for meals.

Originally posted by ladyacademic
Eldest son finished it at 9.30 on Saturday evening. He says he would have finished it sooner if I hadn't interrupted him for meals.

And here he is doing it: CJ reading Harry Potter, 16th June (http://www.cybertheology.net/photos/CJ_HP.jpg)

Originally posted by Mo
OMG you've finsished it! :o

Have you not been to bed for two nights then?

Have only just finished the first chapter.

I bought it yesterday morning at about 9:30, was home for 10 and started reading a couple of chapters at a time. My eyes can't cope with constant reading so I kept having breaks. Had a kip in the afternoon and then read in stints til about 1230 this morning when I stopped at Chapter 24. Then read the rest in one sitting this morning (it get's very exciting from chapter 24 on - couldn't put it down, so glad I left it there last night as I really WOULDN'T have got any sleep!).

Thoroughly enjoyed it :D It was much better than the last one (and one of the minor characters had my (fairly unusual) surname, which for some reason got me all excited :lol: ).

Took me just over five hours, but I speed read. I'll be reading it to my son, though, so I'll have to slow down for that. ;)

My son aged 11 finished at 6pm, just before we had team.

At first he said it was 'okay' but quickly revised his opinion and declared it the 'best' Harry Poeetr book.

Bought it at midnight on Friday, and finished it this morning. I thought it was very good - not sure if it was as good as the last one. Lots of looking back at things, and a very sad twist at the end!

Originally posted by clogginchris
Bought it at midnight on Friday, and finished it this morning. I thought it was very good - not sure if it was as good as the last one. Lots of looking back at things, and a very sad twist at the end!

I didn't enjoy Order of the Phoenix at all - I thought it was 700 pages of nothing, so I was relieved more than anything that Half Blood Prince was back to similar form as Goblet of Fire.

I found buying it yesterday morning quite funny. I went into town for 9am (couldn't do midnight as I don't drive and it would have involved a taxi home!!), thinking I would be surrounded by kids in the shop - but there wasn't ONE single child in the queue for the pre-ordered books. Everyone was buying the adult edition! I wonder if more adults read HP now than children?

Originally posted by ladyacademic
And here he is doing it: CJ reading Harry Potter, 16th June (http://www.cybertheology.net/photos/CJ_HP.jpg)
....Younger son looks like he is waiting patiently for older son to finish so that he can read it :D

Originally posted by banesmabes
I didn't enjoy Order of the Phoenix at all - I thought it was 700 pages of nothing

I read all the previous books, but Order of the Phoenix was so slow, I never got past page 100 (ish)

More encouraged to read the new one from the feedback here, though:)

Originally posted by Draggletail
....Younger so looks like he is waiting patiently for older son to finish so that he can read it :D

Bang on :)

I'll just wait for the film.

Can anyone tell me the difference between the adult and childrens version of the book?

Originally posted by Draggletail
I read all the previous books, but Order of the Phoenix was so slow, I never got past page 100 (ish)

More encouraged to read the new one from the feedback here, though:)

Order of the Phoenix in summary:

Sirius dies very mysteriously in the Ministry of Magic, by falling behind a veil (still don't quite understand that), while they are trying to stop Voldemort getting hold of the prophecy made by Professor Trelawny about Harry and Voldy - which says both cannot live while the other survives - i.e. one will kill the other in the end.

That's about it really.

New one is MUCH better - bit of a slow start, but stick with it, the ending is great, and very sad.

Originally posted by owdlad
Can anyone tell me the difference between the adult and childrens version of the book?

Nothing, other than it has a different cover - so that adults can read something that doesn't look like a children's book (even thought everyone knows it is!). The contents are exactly the same. It used to be that the adult version cost slightly more as well, but I'm not sure if the new one does as I was given the choice of either for the same price.

From someone who hasn't read the half blood prince yet, can people stop hinting about the very sad and twisty end please?

x

Originally posted by BruciesBabe
From someone who hasn't read the half blood prince yet, can people stop hinting about the very sad and twisty end please?

x

But this was common knowledge before the book even came out wasn't it? I certainly heard it had a sad ending months ago from an interview with JK Rowling.

As somneone who just enjoys the books (and hasn't even got a copy yet) I hadn't heard this before. I guess big fans of the books may have known this yes.

Originally posted by Draggletail
I read all the previous books, but Order of the Phoenix was so slow, I never got past page 100 (ish)

More encouraged to read the new one from the feedback here, though:)


Im so gald it was not me that notice this as well. i love the other books in the harry potter pack we got.and i read all of them within a week,but soon as i got the order of the phoenix this is the only one i not read to the end i only got to the 4th chapter,i could not get into this one like the others.so i wil be buying the new one for my daughter, but i do hope its not as slow as the phoenix.

Originally posted by 1Man&hisBMW
I'll just wait for the film.

And I'll just wait for the hype to die down.

I still haven't read any of the books, or seen any of the films.

Originally posted by Abdul
And I'll just wait for the hype to die down.

I still haven't read any of the books, or seen any of the films.

Thank goodness I am not the only one Abdul, I was starting to think I was on my own being Harry less :rolleyes:

Can I just say:

Sad, Sad, Sad!!

Its a blooming Kids book! IMO they are no better than the comics adults read. I refuse to call them graphic novels!

You might as well go whole hog and buy a "Fighting Fantasy" book or "The BFG". :loopy:

I bet you get all excited wanting to know what the caterpillar is going to eat next in "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" :D

Try a real fantasy book like "Lord of the rings" or something like that.

Hogwarts .... PISH!!! :P

Originally posted by serapis
Can I just say:

Sad, Sad, Sad!!

Its a blooming Kids book! IMO they are no better than the comics adults read. I refuse to call them graphic novels!

You might as well go whole hog and buy a "Fighting Fantasy" book or "The BFG". :loopy:

I bet you get all excited wanting to know what the caterpillar is going to eat next in "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" :D

Try a real fantasy book like "Lord of the rings" or something like that.

Hogwarts .... PISH!!! :P

Yes it is a kids book - so what! Just because other people don't agree with you doesn't make them sad! We all have different tastes it would be a very boring world if we were all the same. On the subject of boring - that is how I would describe Lord of the rings (in fact I fell asleep in all 3 films - too long and too many battle scenes) but no way would I critcise you for prefering that - that is your choice.

Originally posted by wendy
Yes it is a kids book - so what! Just because other people don't agree with you doesn't make them sad! We all have different tastes it would be a very boring world if we were all the same. On the subject of boring - that is how I would describe Lord of the rings (in fact I fell asleep in all 3 films - too long and too many battle scenes) but no way would I critcise you for prefering that - that is your choice.

wendy,

I see what you mean and I fully support people’s right to choose what they read. Im just commenting that Adults readying what is considered a childrens book just seems a bit sad to me, thats all.

If you felt Lord of the Rings was boring that is your opinion, I can safely say there are more people out there who would disagree with you then me. But I did say read Lord of the Rings, not watch the movie :D

Originally posted by owdlad
Can anyone tell me the difference between the adult and childrens version of the book?

Yes, the picture on the cover. The text is exactly the same.

Originally posted by serapis
[B]wendy,

I see what you mean and I fully support people’s right to choose what they read. Im just commenting that Adults readying what is considered a childrens book just seems a bit sad to me, thats all.


I don't really see what's so sad about it. :D I've got copies of most of Tolkien's works, and I enjoy reading them tremendously, I have done since I was thirteen. But I also read a lot of what may be considered 'children's' books. (and I'm not even mentioning the amount of Tolkien's books that were aimed at the younger market ;) )

A good book is a good book, whatever age it's aimed at. Some books maybe not to everyone's taste, but life would be boring if we all liked the same things. :)





(I also read comics :hihi: )

Originally posted by serapis
wendy,

I see what you mean and I fully support people’s right to choose what they read. Im just commenting that Adults readying what is considered a childrens book just seems a bit sad to me, thats all.

If you felt Lord of the Rings was boring that is your opinion, I can safely say there are more people out there who would disagree with you then me. But I did say read Lord of the Rings, not watch the movie :D

Actually I have read all (apart from the new one - not had chance yet) of the Harry Potter books I think they are very funny. Personally I don't think that the later books should really come under the children's book heading because of their length (although it would be impossible to put them under another really because the teens don't really have a heading and it probably wouldn't be considered "cool" anyway) - after all how many kids do you know that would read a book of over 500 pages! Yes I do agree they aren't really adults books but if you just want something light and fairly silly they are good - plus you don't have to worry about any of the content not being suitable if the kids pick it up, if you get my meaning. ;)

As for Lord of the rings I am well aware that you said read it and I have attempted too but to be honest I found the style of writing far too slow and dry for my taste and to be honest I find that this was translated pretty well in the films - don't get me wrong I do think they are good but they are just not my taste. Equally Harry Potter wouldn't normally be my taste but they are just light heartened and funny IMO.:D

Originally posted by Eleri
I don't really see what's so sad about it. :D I've got copies of most of Tolkien's works, and I enjoy reading them tremendously, I have done since I was thirteen. But I also read a lot of what may be considered 'children's' books. (and I'm not even mentioning the amount of Tolkien's books that were aimed at the younger market ;) )

A good book is a good book, whatever age it's aimed at. Some books maybe not to everyone's taste, but life would be boring if we all liked the same things. :)



:clap: Very well said - that's just what I was saying earlier!:thumbsup: :D

Originally posted by serapis
Can I just say:

Sad, Sad, Sad!!

Its a blooming Kids book! IMO they are no better than the comics adults read. I refuse to call them graphic novels!

You might as well go whole hog and buy a "Fighting Fantasy" book or "The BFG". :loopy:

I bet you get all excited wanting to know what the caterpillar is going to eat next in "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" :D

Try a real fantasy book like "Lord of the rings" or something like that.

Hogwarts .... PISH!!! :P

It is not sad in the slightest - why shouldn't adults and children enjoy the same things at times? I think we spend too much time categorising forms of entertainment/arts as only appealing to certain groups. As someone else said, a good book is a good book. I think what adults like about the books is that it is pure escapism from everyday life, but it is also easy to read - which is a definate plus point for me as I spend all day at work trying to get my head around fairly complex policies and procedures! Plus JK Rowling doesn't talk down to her audience like many children's authors do, hence why adults like her writing as well as children do.

And personally I also still love Roald Dahl's novels. I have kept them all from when I was a child - because again they are excellent, and I hope to have children to read them with one day.

I'd have to agree with Wendy on the Lord of the Rings front as well - having tried to read them but failed to get past the first couple of hundred pages (and that took a LONG time). I found it far too dry for my liking and very difficult to get into - which is the last thing I want after a long day at work! And I think what people who prefer Harry Potter to LOTR like is that HP's reality is so much closer to our own - it provides an escape, but a familiar one. I personally am not a huge fan of fantasy novels - but I wouldn't call people who are fans of them "sad".

Originally posted by serapis
Can I just say:

Sad, Sad, Sad!!

Its a blooming Kids book! IMO they are no better than the comics adults read. I refuse to call them graphic novels!

You might as well go whole hog and buy a "Fighting Fantasy" book or "The BFG". :loopy:

I bet you get all excited wanting to know what the caterpillar is going to eat next in "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" :D

Try a real fantasy book like "Lord of the rings" or something like that.

Hogwarts .... PISH!!! :P

and what's wrong with reading Graphic Novels/Comics?

I sense a snob alert.

and what higher reading do you partake in ?

Well having begun on Saturday night and completed the book just now (Monday tea time) I've been thoroughly absorbed throughout my sessions with the book.
Most notably, I'm quite interested at the suggestion that the format of the next book might not follow all the previous ones. It bodes well although I am curious to know when the next one is expected.
Having seen all the films and read all the books, I couldn't help but feel that perhaps JKR was playing with things a little with the characters she's dispensed of and things she's changed. It just struck me as a tiny move of defiance to keep things her way.
I wonder if other readers know what I mean - I just don't want to create plot spoilers.
Following previous comments about children's books, tch! Some of the young peoples literature these days is better than the adult stuff available. My partner and I are half way through The Named, The Dark and The Key by Marianne Curley. I took a break from them for HP and the HBP but tonight I'll be back into the series.
Garth Nix, author of Lirael, Sabriel and Abhorson, these books are brilliant and the Mr Monday, Grim Tuesday and Drowned Wednesday series, it's good and possibly over the heads of younger readers.
Phillip Pullman didn't win awards for writing junk, His Dark Materials was a fine piece of work and in places I would say better than HP, just unfortunately shorter.
I'm quite happy to buy and read books for all ages - why discriminate against good literature just because some agent has determined a suitable reader age and printed it on the cover.
It would be a terrible thing to miss out on a fantastic book just bcause it says Women's Lit or Teen Novel on the spine.
I enjoyed all Tolkein's work myself but I don't believe a book has to be written for and marketed at my age group for me to enjoy it.

Originally posted by Zebra
Most notably, I'm quite interested at the suggestion that the format of the next book might not follow all the previous ones. It bodes well although I am curious to know when the next one is expected.

Phillip Pullman didn't win awards for writing junk, His Dark Materials was a fine piece of work and in places I would say better than HP, just unfortunately shorter.


Yes, I am intrigued that the final book will probably be significantly different from it's predeccessors. I watched the interview with JK Rowling on ITV last night and she said that although she has started on the final book she probably won't start working on it full time until at least the end of the year (she does have two very young children at home after all, together with her elder daughter). She has also said previously that it will probably be very long. So it may be some time before the final book is out. I'd imagine it would take some time to perfect as well, as I am sure she will want to tie up as many loose ends as possible - otherwise she will be hounded for the rest of her life!

I also enjoyed Phil Pulman's trilogy - and I think it is a perfect example of how children's and adult's literature can cross over to each other. There are parts of those books that are very complex and very difficult to understand - so they are suitable for adults as well as children, and children love them because they are not bein patronised.

Smashing read.

Me and my 15 year old lad have read it and the missus is just starting on it.

I think we've already worked out one or two clues for the next book - do we have to wait a couple of years for it?