Rating: 
Summary: Good Read But Lost The Spark
Review: I have been a rabid reader of the Harry Potter series for a couple of years, and I was one of those crazed people waiting for the fifth book to finally be released. Frankly, I was a little disappointed. The most disappointing aspect was the character development. The main characters in the series all seemed to have changed their personalities, motives, and emotional make-up. Sure, everyone grows and changes, and it was thoughtful and clever of Ms. Rowling to incorporate that as the character's mature. However, the 180 degree of change that some of the characters experienced left me with a feeling that there should have been book 4.5 to discuss why all the characters are behaving the way they are.Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed reading this book. The plot was good and the story moved along. However, I felt that the book could have been edited. I had the feeling that Ms. Rowling was in a race with herself. Each book in the series got longer with each new installment. Book five was no exception. It seemed like chunks of the book were filler and unnecessary to the plot development. Many times you would be reading about a conversation between Harry and Ron in the great hall and then suddenly you were reading how Luna Lovegood walked out of the hall and the reasons behind it. Things like that could have been edited out and not have hampered the story development. As I said before, I enjoyed the book and it was nice going back to Hogwarts after the long time away. The story moved along, but slowly and I didn't devour this book like I did the previous four. If you are into the series, then read it and hope that Ms. Rowling had to use this novel to set us up for greater things in books 5 and 6.
Rating: 
Summary: For non-muggles only!
Review: What in the muggle world are all these bad reviewers talking about? Order of the Phoenix has got to be the best HP book ever. It seems that a lot of parents are claiming that the latter books in the series are not fit for children. I think these books are perfectly suitable to be read by children/teenagers who are of the same age as Harry at the time. A lot of people are also complaining that Harry is moody and sullen in these books. I hope these people are not parents of teenagers - If they are, they are clearly very naive and probably don't know their teenagers at all. Moodiness is NORMAL at this age. If readers would like everything in these books, and about Harry and his friends to be a bed of roses, I suggest they stick with Enid Blyton. (No offence to Enid Blyton, wonderful books for the right age group). As for complaints that there are too many questions unanswered, and too many unnecessary sub-plots - have these readers read the rest of the books? Have they not realised that JKR often slips in seemingly unimportant facts early on, then re-visits them later in the series? Isn't that part of what keeps us guessing? For example, Sirius is mentioned at the beginning of book 1, when he loans a motorcycle to Hagrid. It is not until much later in the series that we realise the significance of this character. Also, the Room of Requirement was first mentioned in book 4, and at the time did not seem significant. Lastly, referring to Harry's "career ideas" and his wish to become an auror, perhaps I am being optimistic, but do any other avid readers feel that JKR is leaving the door open for a series beyond book 7????? Let's hope so!
Rating: 
Summary: Irresponsible Harry
Review: I enjoyed this book like the others. I once read that in making movies, every scene should advance the plot. What I like about this books is that as elements are introduced, some of which seem unrelated or unimportant to the plot, they are always re-introduced into the plot later. This is true even with material from earlier books, and so, for instance, one of the teachers who seems worthless and pointless in the earlier books, ends up having a huge role in the history of Harry's life and an important reason for being at Hogwarts.
It's been sad that this is this generations Star Wars. I (and I'm 38) think it's better then Star Wars, because it has a consistant quality throughout the books that the Star Wars movies lost after the 2nd movie. On the negative side, people have said that Harry was angry in these books and didn't like it. I felt differently. What I didnn't like though was that he did seem increadibly irresponsible. A major character made a huge sacrafice for Harry in the middle or this book in order to get Harry to do something. Harry didn't do it and it resulted in the death of another character. Although there were some explanations for this, I found it hard to respect Harry for being so irresponsible. Towards the end, Dumbledor (don't know the spelling as I get the audio tapes!) takes responsibility for this, but I think Harry is mainly responsible and it influenced my enjoyment of the book and my respect for Harry. To continue the Star Wars comparision, this book is somewhat like Empire Strikes back in that way, with the main character not keeping his responsibilities and faultering. But in Empire, Luke did it to save his friends (over his larger responsibilities) , here Harry faulters in a way that betrays the sacrafice of a friend and results in the death of another.
Rating:
Summary: MY DEAR FRIEND CAME BACK WITH GREATEST STORY TO TELL!!!!
Review: How can I forget my greatest friend named Harry Potter!? No one can not forget him!
In year five,Harry must meet the first biggest,saddest,eventful part of his life.It's more frightful than year four,more unexpect than year three,more mysterious than year two,more fun than year one
He is teen now!(In my country 'Teen' means 'foot'!) and no innocent anymore.He is rather terrible ,noisy.angry and sad.
And Voldermort will come...... Read with Fun!
Rating:
Summary: Still satisfying
Review: This being the fifth installment of the Harry Potter series, I have come to notice many flaws in the overall writing of the story. It's length for one is unnessary. Most of the book is a jumble of redundentcies, which at times try to "fill in" the reader of the going ons in the book, however this intent was a comeplete failure. There is little room for thought about any of the main characters (especially Harry) because the reader is, constantly, informed of every inconsequential thought that happens to run through his mind. Despite these flaws, I felt that this book was worth reading, although I must say that the movies have certaintly ruined all the imaginative license I could have taken on this book, especially the appearance of the characters.
Rating:
Summary: Dark? Please. . .
Review: Firstly, I'm tired of hearing people complain this book was too dark. In terms of violence, it was no worse than the 4th and 3rd book. It may have even been a bit better than the 4th book. . . considering what happened at the end of that book (but I won't spoil that for anyone who hasn't yet read that book). In terms of Harry's mood, yes, he was angrier. He is supposed to be portrayed as a 15 year old boy dealing with extremely stressful circumstances. I suppose those readers who complain about his anger have yet to meet a 15 year old boy or simply don't have memories that stretch back that far (heh, perhaps a memory charm was put in place? :) ), but I suggest you march straight to your nearest highschool and see just how happy most "normal" 15 year old boys are and then, after observing that, add the fact that Harry was being constantly harrassed and dealing with amazing stress to the mix. People misplace anger, people get angry to begin with, these are normal things. It would have been unrealistic and quite a terrible book had Rowling even attempted to make Harry happier. No person would have been chipper and content dealing with the things Harry was dealing with. In terms of the length, I certainly hope the books continue to grow in pages. 870 pages was not enough for me, and I am eagerly awaiting the next book (though who knows how many years that will be). I'm grateful she took the time to develop and explain things, rather than leaving gaping holes in the plot so that the story could fit neatly in a 2 hour movie time slot (as if the movies are ever as good as the books to begin with).
Rating:
Summary: Reread all books, more to love! *Spoilers*
Review: Wow. What a great storyteller. J K Rowling is a goddess.
After re reading all the books, you can really see how far she goes to keep true to the storyline. I was very afraid that we would see a commercialization of Harry Potter, but that is not the case. The Order of the Phoenix lives up to the reputation of the series. I can't say enough good things about it. The first time I read it I raced to the end because I could not put it down. The second time around I was able to get more from it. And I still enjoyed every word. (And cried at the end, again!) All I can say about the character that dies is: no body = no death. I guess we shall wait and see, I hope the wait is not too long, but I don't believe he is dead. He can't be! I highly recommend the Harry Potter series to everyone, whatever your age. This story shows that everyone has trouble, everyone grows up and everyone loses someone they love. We must grieve, but life must also go on. It's what maturing is all about. But please, don't let it be 3 years until the next book!
Rating:
Summary: An exciting read, J.K Rowling has done it again!
Review: The fifth enstallment in the multi-million dollar selling "Harry Potter" series is amazing,and after waiting 3 years, what else should it be? Harry finds alot of new obstacles at Hogwarts in his 5th year,such as, the brain-wracking wizarding tests, O.W.Ls, a annoying Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher, the mysteriously terrifying dreams he has, and...girls. The "Order" is darker, scarier and more understandable for us ever-growing teens that face the same things Harry does in his 5th year. Rowling makes her books fun for both children and adults, adding the remarkable, facinating creatures, but also putting in the small things that matter most in the real world. The "Order of the Phoenix" is a clean, crisp, exciting read, that is equipped with the usual, familiar saying, "I can't put this book down!"
Rating:
Summary: I laughed, I cried--need I say more?
Review: This book is definitely the best yet from Rowling. I cried so hard at the end, but I still enjoyed the book so much. I don't know how I'm going to be able to wait for the next book. I am glad, though, that the books are so long, because then I can't read them quite as quickly.
Rating:
Summary: Fun at times, but overall disappointing
Review: Based on the high ratings for this book, it's obvious JK Rowling can do no wrong. I suspect she could have published the phone book and she'd still get 4.5 stars! Perhaps she deserves this given the success of the previous 4 issues, but there is no way this book is perfect (i.e. 5 stars). In comparison to the previous 4 issues, this book is disappointing. The formula is getting tired. Here it is: a) Harry is trapped with the Dursley's
b) He finally gets out and returns to school
c) There's the dark cloud of Voldemort lingering on the horizons (only this time no one believes Harry or Dumbledore which is very simplistic since the audience - you and me - knows the truth so the suspense isn't there)
d) Harry has a splendid battle in the end and proves he's a fearless hero
e) Dumbledore explains in painstaking detail all of the mysteries that have so far been unclear, and then Harry returns home for the summer, leaving us all hanging until the next book. Been there, done that! One further comment about issue "E" above. A truly gifted writer leads the audience through the exploration as we discover new events or secrets. Sitting back in the penultimate chapter and explaining everything that was unclear during the previous 800 pages is simplistic at best, and if an undiscovered writer were to try that approach, they'd get laughed out of every publisher's office on the planet. The old axiom stands: Shows us, don't tell us. My specific complaints about this story(SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THIS): 1) The new creatures in this story were boring, except the Thestrals which are only in the story for a brief time. Okay, Grawp was somewhat cool, but he's barely in it. 2) Harry was given a secret "tool" to use by Sirius, only he forgets about it until the very end. Is Harry that stupid? When trouble begins and Harry needs to get in touch with Sirius, don't you think he would have remembered what he was given? 3) Dumbledore laying low while all around him crumbles and Harry lives in misery. Given their past history, the explanation that Dumbledore gives in the end is pathetic ("I'm an old man and was afraid of how Voldemort might use you to get to me"). Don't you think Dumbledore could have told another member of the Order to pass along the message to Harry as to why Dumbledore can't even look at him for 800 pages? 4) The failure to resolve the conflict between Harry and Snape, or at least to have some dialogue between them about Snape's anger towards Harry's deceased father. I realize there are more books to follow, but there should have been some attempt to hash this out. 5) The length of this story is ridiculous. It could have easily been told in 200-300 less pages. A very slow beginning and plodding detail about things that had no influence on the outcome made this a long-winded marathon, rather than an exhilirating sprint to the finish. Having said all of this, I look forward to the next issue! EBHP
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