Hermione acting out-of-character

[Jim Ferer]

No: HPFGUIDX 111261

Brandy:"I just want to know if I'm the only one who got really, really
annoyed when Hermione came totally out of character and did something
as stupid as saying to the centaurs tha she wanted them to get rid of
Umbridge for her."

Why can't it just be Hermione's mistake?  She's been brilliant the
whole book long, thinking of the DA, Rita Skeeter's article, Marietta
Edgecombe's decorations, and even a way to fool Umbridge. (Hermione's
learning to think on her feet.  She used to be much more deliberate.)
She's under just a little stress when the centaurs show up.

Hermione isn't perfect, although she seems like it sometimes. Babe
Ruth's lifetime batting average was .342; that means his "mistake"
average was .658. Let's give Her-my-oh-ninny a break here.

JKR *does* want to advance the Grawp plot, even telling us Grawp will
matter. (If Grawp is troll royalty, then his part-human half brother
would be....) The troll subplot is important to Dumbledore, too, who
told Fudge back in GoF that the wizard world should send emissaries to
the Giants.

Jim Ferer, who'd like to be a fly on the wall when Dumbledore and JKR
sit down for a story conference.