OOP: Thoughts....

[Diana]

I just finished it.  It took me longer than usual as I was 
constantly interrupted throughout the day by my children.  And my 
daughter upended a Coke on my open book half-way through reading 
it....   Sigh.
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  It was very difficult getting into the book -I was suprised by how 
upset I was at the emotional undercurrents running throughout the 
book.  Harry being angry and yelling at Ron and Hermione - I was 
amazed, but not entirely surprised.  I got the overwhelming 
impression that all the adults so eager to impress Harry would end 
up driving into to the path of danger because he didn't really know 
what was going on.  His anger at Dumbledore was surprising, as I 
know that Harry has always regarded Dumdledore as a comforting 
presence.  Poor Harry - he got the shortest straw, didn't he?  Not 
only destined to be murdered or commit murder himself, he is treated 
like a child through most of the book by most of the adults.
   As for Umbridge, I was, quite frankly, apalled at how horrible 
this character was. My god, when Voldemort finally makes an 
appearance, he seems like a charming, gracious fellow compared to 
her, didn't he?  Using the Cruciatus Curse on Harry to torture him 
for info?  Yikes!  Looks like Barty Crouch Sr. missed marrying his 
perfect match.  (shudder)   I was so upset by Umbridge's treatment 
of Harry, and everyone else at Hogwarts, that I kept itching to skim 
the last several chapters so I could make she got some kind of 
comeuppance.  I resisted the urge, but it was VERY, VERY difficult.  
She is one character I never want to see again in the Potterverse.   
When I re-read the book, at least I know that she will be gone by 
end. 
   Draco Malfoy.  There's a name that won't inspire terror in Harry 
ever again.  There was a great reduction in his nasty taunts of 
Harry in this book, for which I was grateful.  His character, to be 
truthful, has gotten tiring.  And how are his fortunes going to end 
up when dear old dad is discredited and ends up in prison for being 
a Death Eater?  Hmmm.  My mind reels at the scenes we may see in 
Book 6.  I'm looking forward to the end of Draco's 'reign of terror' 
at Hogwarts.
   Ginny & Neville & Cho Chang.  Huge shifts in character for these 
two.  Ginny finally showed her mettle - good for her!  Am I the only 
one who was slightly disappointed that Ginny had given up on Harry 
ever noticing her?   Oh well.... Harry has definitely noticed her 
now, though.  :)  Neville was much stronger than he had been - I see 
much hope for him in future books.  The fights between Harry and Cho 
were very much true to how a self-occupied teenager with no idea how 
teenage girl's mind works and a grief-stricken, self-occupied 
teenage girl could get their signals so crossed.  Harry is finally 
over Cho - and many on the list felt it was never going to work with 
the spectre of Cedric between them.  
   The prophecy was as I expected.  Harry and Voledmort are mortal 
enemies.  Knew that already.  And, has been discussed by many on the 
main list, Trelawny making the prediction was not a surprise.  Since 
I doubt JKR would write a seven book series where the bad guy wins 
in the end, I feel much better about Harry surviving through to (and 
beyond) book 7.   And what powers did Voldemort give to Harry, 
exactly?  Dumbledore is not specific - will he be more specific in 
the future?  I know parsel tongue was one 'gift', but other than 
reading Voldemort's moods, I would really like to know what else 
Voldemort transferred to Harry the night the curse failed.  What is 
going to be agonizing now is who will still be standing (and alive) 
beside Harry when the end comes.  I dread knowing at the same time 
I'm just dying to know. 
    Percy.  I am dismayed by this character's obvious path toward 
being a Death Eater, or at the very least a Barty Crouch Sr.!  
Whether or not the Weasleys accept in back in the family may 
influence what side he ends up on, I fear.  
    Sirius.  Sigh... I sort of knew that was coming, though not in 
the way it actually happened.  When Harry was reading the potions 
book and falling asleep at the fire, there was mention of a potion 
ingredient that helped to make a potion that caused 'recklessness' 
in the drinker.  I thought for sure that Kreacher, under orders from 
Sirius's screechy mom (or ??), was slipping some of that into 
Sirius' food so that Sirius would end up giving himself away 
carelessly and die at the hands of dementors or the Ministry 
itself.  While I'm not happy that Sirirus died, I can accept it.  I 
liked the character, but, to be honest, I'm more upset about what 
his death will mean for Harry.  Sirius was reckless occasionally and 
I always bristled when he complained that Harry wasn't like James 
and didn't enjoy or take enjoyment in taking risks.  
    Fred & George.  Excellent parting for Fred and George.  I liked 
how they revealed that their mayhem was actually 'carefully 
controlled' mayhem, in that they tried not to go too far over the 
line and actually get expelled.  And that they risked everything to 
give Umbridge (and Filch) hell up to end. 
    As for the new characters, I didn't get to know Tonk, Luna 
Lovegood and the other OotP members enough to decide how I felt 
about them.  Luna was odd, though, and I think she has definite 
purpose in later books.  James and rest of the MWPP I would classify 
as 'new' characters kind of - as we really didn't to know any of 
them much, with the possible exception of Lupin, in previous books.  
Sirius' family was a revelation - and a huge insight into his ornery 
and sometimes dangerously rebellious behavior.  James was a very 
obnoxious 15-year-old.  Unless Snape's memory was vastly skewed 
because it was *his* memory of the event.  Somehow, though, I think 
the pensieve reduces memories to mere 'tape recordings' of events 
that can't be so prejudiced, though I may be wrong.  I also feel 
Harry, at the very least should have apologized to Snape for 
snooping into his thoughts.  Harry is entitled to his hatred of 
Snape, but falling into a another's thoughts is just plain rude.  
Snape didn't help matters either.  Unfortunately, many times, both 
Snape and Sirius are guilty of only seeing Harry as an extension of 
his father, when it is plain that Harry is not like his father in 
many ways.  
  That's it for now, I've got to get some sleep.  

Diana L.