This is the SPOILERS discussion thread for the GWC Harry Potter Book Club installment #3: HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN.
For those who have NOT READ THE BOOK OR THE SERIES BEFORE: This thread may contain spoilers for later books. There is a spoiler-free (discussion limited to books 1-3) thread here; at some point in the future both threads will be merged.
ETA: Threads merged
Alright, now we are getting to the part of the series that I love! This was the first book of the series that made me worried for the three main characters.
This was the one that got me so hooked on the series that I worried about ME! Love this book, it’s one of my favorites. I in the middle of the chapter Flight of the Fat Lady now.
I found this book very imaginative. The first book was a great introduction and welcomed you to an incredible world. The second book just built on the first, sort of Philosopher’s Stone: Part 2. But Book 3 really showed J.K.'s creative prowess.
We are introduced to the new DADA (Defense Against the Dark Arts) teacher Remus Lupin, who is a werewolf. J.K. captures the lonely life and kindness of the werewolf that I remember from watching Lon Chaney Jr’s portrayal in the 1941 film ‘The Wolf Man’. I love the adventure and mystery surrounding Sirius Black and how once again the Three (Hermione, Ron, and Harry) fall into the midst of it.
So many aspects of this book were intriguing, the Dementors, Animagi, Patronus charm, and Time Turner. It was a very enjoyable read and leaves you begging for more.
Sorry if I’m a bit late. Inter-library loan took it’s sweet time. Even though there were a half dozen copies in the next town over, mine came from Brookline or something.
I haven’t read this one in a while, so it was nice to read it again. I’m particularly impressed by Rowlings skill at introducing something before she needs it (Cho and Cedric in this book, animagi in class). Over all it was fun. It builds out the relationships that surround Harry. I get the sense that the series is really about a community of friends and families and how they deal with Voldemort.
That said, the big reveal scene was a bit of annoying because she seemed to be trying too hard to not show her cards for too long. She had a lot of exposition and she wanted to get it out first. The result was it went on rather long.
One more thing. Anyone else starting to think the twins take after their mother in the trouble making department? In this one she was telling Ginny and Hermione about a love potion she concocted when she was young and in some future book she tells Bill about getting in trouble for being out late cause she was taking a walk with his father.
finished re-reading yesterday morning… I still love the book. In all of them as we re-read them I am seeing the structure more clearly - very little is ever introduced and never returned to in one way or the other, which is fun.
A detail I noticed this time around - when they are on the Hogwarts Express and the dementors come in, though Harry has the most severe reaction to them, Ginny’s paler and more shaky than everyone else - who wants to bet she’s remembering the Tom Riddle diary disaster?
Reading POA is like having a hot cup of soup on a rainy day - comforting. I love it, and in many ways it’s my favorite because of the focus on the relationships between the characters. I really like that Voldemort is very much just in the background here, as it changes up the pattern from the earlier books (and the later ones, at that). Plus, who doesn’t like Hermione smacking Malfoy in the face? hehe