Book Review: Harry Potter Series

WARNING: Spoilers!

While camping I finished the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I was just going to do a review of it but decided rather to discuss the series as a whole.

The Harry Potter phenomenon is a touchstone for a generation, much like the Star Wars trilogy and Matrix trilogy. How could a book series, one aimed primarily at children at that, become such a cultural force? I'm sure there are many essays and articles discussing it, but I think it came down to three crucial points:
1) Reading for fun amoungst children has been degrading in the age of cable TV, DVDs, game consoles, and internet activities. Harry Potter grabbed headlines by making kids want to read for a change.
2) The story was age-appropriate for kids but also gripped the imagination of adults who picked it up.
3) The story is well written and interesting.

As people raved about it and the media ate up the hubbub, the sales rose and momentum rolled the series into history. There may have been better books written at the same time or since, but Harry Potter hit the perfect storm of being at the right place at the right time with the right stuff.

Now, what do I think about the series itself? Well, I already said it was well written and interesting but let me expand on that. Rowling's style is brisk and airy without sacrificing detail, something that appeals to today's sound-bite culture and makes the book easy to read. The setting is very unique and humourous at times, and the characters are well defined. Sometimes the characters are a bit one-dimensional, but I allow that a pass since it is a children's fantasy book. The action scenes, especially in the later books, are also well done and not glossed over but rather described in enough detail to picture what is going on nicely without getting bogged down in details.

I do have some complaints though. I was often annoyed at students and alumni of the Slytherin house at Hogwarts were almost always portrayed as cowardly, conniving, and leaning towards evil and brutality. Some alumni get redemption such as Regulus Black and Severus Snape, but the current students during the seven books are never redeemed. It frustrated me. It seemed to simplistic, black and white: the students of Gryfinndor were good, those of Slytherin bad. I would have liked a bit more nuance, something to demonstrate the good qualities of a Slytherin student. Ah well.

Overall the series is enjoyable. In order of most favourite to least, I rank them:
1. Chamber of Secrets (II)
2. Goblet of Fire (IV)
3. Order of the Phoenix (V)
4. Deathly Hallows (VII)
5. Prisoner of Azkhaban (III)
6. Halfblood Prince (VI)
1. Philospher's Stone (I)

And the series I give 5 out of 5 stars. Definitely recommended to anyone with a bit of imagination.