The Ghosts of Hogwarts

I have finished my PhD, woohoo! As I am currently looking for a job, I don't have much to occupy my days and so I thought it was high time I return to the blog.

Let's dive straight back in where we left off so long ago!

I'm quite looking forward to this chapter, because it features one of my favourite scenes from the book - the Deathday Party.

Quidditch and Detention

I got all excited, thinking this is the chapter when we meet Moaning Myrtle, but then I realized there is another 'meh' chapter before then.

Let's just get right down to it, shall we...

The Ineptitude of Gilderoy Lockhart

At times like these, when the world just seems like such an cruel and scary place, I like to escape inside a book. I haven't had a chance to do that today, as I had experiments to run during the day, but I'm happy now to flick through Chamber of Secrets and find comfort in the old and familiar.

The Recklessness of Harry and Ron

Chapter 5 is tricky - reading it as a child I remember really liking it and thinking it was very brave of Harry and Ron to fly all the way to Hogwarts, but as an adult I just think it's super reckless and I disapprove of their behaviour.

As Corrie said when she reviewed this chapter a few days ago, this post will be full of criticisms.

The Arrogance of Lucius Malfoy

It is full steam ahead here on Read All the Things these days, as both Corrie and I endeavor to blog every day. I am glad to see we are doing so well - it's only been a week and already we've managed 13 posts!

With that in mind, here are my thoughts on Harry's misadventures in Knockturn and Diagon Alley.

The Kindness of the Weasleys

Looks like Corrie and I are neck-and-neck in our review of Chamber of Secrets, but I am sure that we will pick up on different things and discuss different topics - which is what makes this whole challenge so great!

The Cruelty of the Dursleys

Right, enough about audiobooks, it's time to go back to the original challenge - reviewing the Harry Potter series.

And so, without further ado, let's see what J.K. Rowling had to say about Harry's summer holiday.

Audiobook Adventures, Part 1

A very good friend of mine swears by audiobooks and has been recommending them to me for years. 

While I am no stranger to the idea of audiobooks, the only ones I have listened to and enjoyed have, unsurprisingly, been the Harry Potter books as narrated by Stephen Fry. Having thoroughly enjoyed reading A Short History of Nearly Everything and At Home I have, in the past, tried listening to Bill Bryson's Made in America but gave up after only half an hour as I wasn't enjoying the subject matter. After finishing A Game of Thrones, and because I like the HBO adaptation, I also tried listening to A Clash of Kings but found the narrator's voice highly annoying and so stopped that as well after only a few chapters.

But, following a late-night conversation over an excellent (if I do say so myself) glass of vodka martini during which I was yet again urged to subscribe to Audible, I acquiesced and downloaded a book I have been wanting to read for a while.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

It's finally here - with only a three month delay, no less. Oh well, better late than never, right? Without further ado, let us finally venture into the pages of Book 2 of our challenge.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - A Retrospective

While not my favorite book of the series, Philosopher's Stone has a special place in my heart for obvious reasons - it is the story that first introduced us to the characters we all know and love. I read the book for the first time 15 years ago (where has the time gone?) and was very happy to see that it has stood the test of time.

How forbidden is the Forbidden Forest? and other problems with the end of Book 1

It's been almost two months since I actually finished reading this book and I have since then finished Chamber of Secrets also, but I would like to return to Book 1 and give my review of the last couple of chapters before reviewing the book as a whole.

Subjects, Rules and House Points

Now that we have been introduced to all of the Hogwarts Houses, I would like to look at how the students are rewarded and punished for their behavior and how gaining points leads to winning the revered House Cup.

The Four Houses - Slytherin

It's time to shine the light on everyone's least favorite house!

The Four Houses - Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw

Let's continue with our exploration of the workings of Hogwarts, this time focusing on the two under-represented (in this book at least) houses - Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw.

The Four Houses - Gryffindor

So, I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and concede that I will not manage to review Philosopher's Stone chapter-by-chapter by the end of the month. I will try, instead, to focus on over-arching themes for the remainder of the book, so there will be some skipping around between chapters.

On that note, let's have a look at the very best school of witchcraft there is.

The Journey from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters

Oh, it looks like Corrie caught up to me in the book! Her previous post was also about chapter 6, so I will try to keep this one short. I'm still aiming to finish reviewing this book chapter-by-chapter by the end of the month, so need to get cracking!

Religion and Canon, Part 2

This post carries on directly from my previous post about what constitutes Harry Potter Canon. I tried to explain there why I was discussing the subject in the first place and I hope my reasoning was clear, but if it wasn't, then I hope this post will do better!

Diagon Alley

I had originally set out to make this post not simply be a re-counting of what happens in the chapter, however it sort of got away from me and so in an effort to not have it be too long, I have decided to make my next blog post tackle the more serious issues I wanted to discuss.

And so, let's see what Hagrid and Harry have been up to...

The Keeper of the Keys

I am writing this blog post on the Eurostar train to Brussels, on my way to visit my lovely boyfriend for the weekend. I’m not sure if I’ve ever written anything on a train before – I usually either read or snooze. I must admit: it is much easier to focus on writing when one has no internet connection. There are absolutely no distractions (except for the scenery outside, but the majority of this journey is through a tunnel, so even that’s missing!).

The Letters from No One

I am just flying through this book. Oh Harry, I've missed you in my life! So glad to be back in this world. On Wednesday I spent about 2 hours sitting in the park and reading in the sun. I literally cannot remember the last time I did that. The weather today has also been amazing, but my conscience has gotten the better of me and so I've resisted the temptation to just forget about work and enjoy rediscovering JK Rowling's magical universe...barely.