CoS Is The Least Favorite HP Book. Why?

[cynthiaanncoe at home.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 27379

Laura wrote:
> > According to the HP Grownups polls, CoS is unquestionably the 
least 
> > favorite of the four books among people on this list.
> [snip]
> What exactly is it that causes so many people 
> > not to like CoS?
> 
Joywitch wrote:

> Excellent question, Laura.  I, too, count CoS as my least favorite 
> but I'm not exactly sure why.  

I didn't care for CoS, either, and I had to be persuaded to read PoA 
to get back on track.  I think I had a couple of problems:

1.  Lockhart, Lockhart, and Lockhart.  Something just didn't work 
with him.  I can't put my finger on it, but he tried to 
straddle "amusing" and "annoying", but wound up firmly 
in "annoying".  In PoA and GoF, the DADA teacher is pivotal, and it 
is easy to like and appreciate Lupin and Moody, albeit for different 
reasons.  Maybe it's that Lockhart was one-dimensional compared to 
Lupin and Moody, and Lockhart never showed us a side of him that was 
even a little unexpected or pleasant.  Lupin, for instance, has a 
vulnerability (that werewolf problem) and so does Lockhart (ego and 
being a total fraud).  But Lockhart's vulnerability is entirely of 
his own making, so it is hard to muster any sympathy.  How could 
Lockhart be fixed?  Um, I'll have to get back to you on that.

2.  Climactic scene with Riddle.  "Phoenix tears ..." said Riddle 
quietly, staring at Harry's arm.  "Of course . . healing powers . . . 
I forgot . . . "  'Nuff said.

3.  Huge believability problem in Aragog.  Harry and Ron are at 
Hagrid's hut, having sneaked out under the Invisibility Cloak.  They 
decide to follow a trail of spiders into the forest.  So we get 
this:  "Harry left the Invisibility Cloak on Hagrid's table.  There 
would be no need for it in the pitch-dark forest."  Huh?  I think we 
need a better motivation for them not to just put the cloak in 
Harry's pocket.  Perhaps they bring it, but they aren't using it when 
they are captured, and then Harry doesn't want to risk making a 
sudden movement to retrieve it while he is negotiating with the giant 
spiders.  Perhaps the spiders can see through the cloak.  But we need 
something -- anything -- to make this work.

4.  Another believability problem in Aragog:  the Flying Ford Anglia 
rescue is not satisfying for me.  I'd have preferred that Harry and 
Ron had saved themselves somehow.  Too bad, because JKR really had me 
concerned for the welfare of our hero in that scene, and then that 
darn car happens to turn up.

5.  I didn't see a satisfactory explanation for why Riddle doesn't 
kill Harry with Harry's wand when he has so many chances to do so.  
Why is the giant basilisk the preferred means of Harry's death?  In 
GoF, the need to motivate the DEs was a plausible reason why 
Voldemort might prefer a duel rather than just killing Harry 
outright.  I didn't see any plausible explanation in CoS.  Maybe 
Harry ought to lose his wand in the explosion that caves in the 
tunnel, I don't know.

CoS did have its moments, though.  In fairness, I'll say that Dobby 
was entertaining, the scenes with the Dursleys were great, and the 
gnomes and scenes at the burrow were wonderful.  

Cindy (who must admit that, even with its shortcomings, CoS is still 
better than anything she could write)