Rating: 
Summary: "Greater and more terrible than before..."
Review: So... now that the tumult and the shouting have largely died, where is left to say about this book? Some readers who devoured the first four Potter books with delight had a problem with this one. It's... well... different. And some readers can't handle different. What's happened to Harry? Well, adolescence has happened, and in a big way. He's fifteen now, midway between childhood and manhood; it's a difficult age for anyone, and probably more so if you've had a homicidal wizard on your case for the last four years. Sure, Harry's moody, irritable, downright unbearable at times, who wouldn't be, if they were in his shoes? And so we find Harry at the opening of HP5 in his usual midsummer funk, desperate to get back to Hogwarts and away from the loathsome Dursleys. But this time, the dark forces after Harry are getting a tad impatient; they don't want to wait for him to return to Hogwarts before raising all kinds of cain; the dreaded Dementors attack Dudley right in his own backyard. Driven off by Harry in the nick of time (one wonders why Harry didn't just let the Dementors get Dudley -- and how did Aunt Petunia know what the Dementors were anyway??), Harry finds himself hauled before the Ministry of Magic charged with violating the laws against underage wizardry. But he's vindicated by Dumbledore's intervention in his behalf and spends the rest of the summer prior to his return to Hogwarts at the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, an intrepid group of wizards out to thwart the evil machinations of Voldemort and his demonic adherents, meeting in the home of Harry's godfather Sirius Black. We find out the fascinating tidbit that not only are most of the wizarding families related to each other by blood or marriage, but Black himself is related to -- of all people -- the evil Malfoy clan.We remember in Book Three that ditzy Professor of Divination Trelawney, in the middle of one of her interminable reading of the tea-leaves that looked like so much mush to Harry, Ron and Hermione (Divination wasn't one of their best subjects) all of a sudden went into a fit and made one of her few geniune predictions: that Voldemort would return "greater and more terrible than before". She wasn't kidding. He's back, all right, along with some of his most dangerous followers whom he's managed to spring from Azkaban, and they're all out for blood, Harry's especially. Some new faces are introduced in this volume; we meet Sirius's incredible mother, a vicious harpy who makes the Wicked Witch of the West look like a choir girl; a pink-haired punk rocker in the Order of the Phoenix named Nymphadora Tonks ("Wow! a FIREBOLT!?" she gasps when she sees Harry's broom; making us wonder if a Firebolt is the Lamborghini of broomsticks); a somewhat spacy fourth-year Hogwarts student named Luna Lovegood (no wonder she's called "Loony") who, weird though she appears, is the only person who seems to understand where Harry is coing from; and, overshadowing all, a pint-sized witch named Dolores Umbridge, oozing evil from every rotten pore, who usurps Dumbledore's position at Hogwarts as Headmistress and seems to be on a personal mission from Voldemort to do Harry and his friends in. But Harry isn't going down without a fight; he and his friends form their own secret group to learn advanced defenses against the dark arts, which they will put to good use in the book's climactic conflict in the Minister of Magic when they come face to face with Voldemort and some of his more unsavory adherents. Besides having to deal with the noxious Umbridge (one really wants to tie a bag of firecrackers to this lady and watch her explode), Harry has enough on his plate just being fifteen with a crushing course load and a crush on Cho Chang, who turns out to be as shallow as she is pretty. It's an endearing characteristic of Harry that, skilled as he is in wizardry, he doesn't have a clue about girls (asked by Ron to describe his first kiss with Cho, he says "wet"), and when Hermione tries to explain to him how Cho feels when he talks about other girls to her, she might as well be speaking Tagalog. Harry also has to come to terms, like all adolescents, that at least one of his parents wasn't the paragon he imagined him to be; when he inadvertently blunders on Snape's worst memory, and discovers why Snape hated his father so much, we empathize with his shock at realizing that Potter Sr. was a world-class jerk at fifteen. (Like most fifteen-year-olds, he grew out of it.) Rowling left a lot of threads hanging at the end of Book Five and this bothered a lot of readers, but it only left this one on tenterhooks waiting for Books Six and Seven. We suspected from the beginning that it will finally come down to a fight to the finish between Harry and Voldemort, but all kinds of delightful subplots are pending in the meantime. And some of her minor characters, especially Neville Longbottom, are developing in all kinds of interesting and unexpected ways. Yes, someone close to Harry dies, and probably everyone and his brother knows who it is by now, but just in case there is someone out there who is still clueless, I'm not saying who. Just let Rowling keep the magic coming through two more books, and after Book Seven is finally released, I will be among the multitudes clamoring for a sequel. There just can't be a world without Harry Potter.
Rating: 
Summary: Frustrating
Review: I started out deliberately ignoring the Harry Potter phenomenon, until I went to see the first movie with my wife and her (then) 6 year old daughter. We absolutely loved it, and after that we devoured the first 4 books, taking turns reading to each other. We loved the imagination, the humor and everything else. And naturally we pre-ordered this one from Amazon. But we both felt frustrated with this 5th installment. There was some of the humor, the plot wasn't bad and it was generally ok. But we really did not like this emotional, whiny, angry brat that used to be Harry Potter. Now I understand he's supposed to be a teenager, but really, this is way over the top. And all the elements that made the other books such "magical" experiences, just were not on the same level. Some reviewers suggested rereading the book several times to appreciate it. Now I have to ask, how empty is your life if you have time to read a 800+ page book more than once? My two cents.
Rating:
Summary: Good to see that Harry is growing up
Review: Harry is 15 now. And JK Rowlings did the right thing by making him a slightly snotty teenager who wants to rebel against authority. Perhaps my view is colored by the fact that I'm a teacher, but I have met few teens who don't challenge authority, and who react badly to having their rose colored glasses come off. At the same time, the darkening of the series means that parents should pre-read the book to make sure it's appropriate for younger readers. I had a ton of third graders eagerly awaiting this book and not all of them were mature enough to handle it. If your student is above 5/6th grade, no worries. The book furthers the plot line, and takes some of the polish off the wizarding world. If there is an issue I have with the first couple books, it's how perfect everything is (for the most part) is in the wizarding world. Sure they've had their problems, but with Dumbledore and the Ministry standing guard, nothing too horrific could happen again. In this book we see Dumbledore, harry's parents, and the ministry as more fallible, potentially corruptible entities. We also see Snape in a more sympathetic light, making his character grow as well. Overall, kudos to ms rowlings...I just hope it isn't another 3 years before book 6
Rating: 
Summary: I Like This One The Least
Review: I read the book thoroughly the first time i read it. I am a HUGE fan of Harry Potter but i was not an OVERJOYED one who read the book in one day, without concentrating on the characters and J.K's many hints and clues. The fifth book is definitely the most different one from all five books of the series. The flow of the book is somehow hollow and sometimes, the flow was stiff and (i can't believe i'm saying this!) boring! The book could have thinner than it is. There were many scenes which was too draggy and sort of kills off the excitement and anxiety of the readers. Some scenes, however, like how one character died was not thoroughly discussed. I had to read the page three times for it to really sink in that HE was dead. Until now, i am still not conviced that this particular character had died. It's like how the media said that Saddam Hussein was dead. I didn't believe it because there were no proof of his death. Now, my presumption was correct :He's still alive. I personally think that the character maybe alive, but perhaps in a different form or was just trapped or hidden 'somewhere'. Anyway, i thought that the fifth book was the least interesting as i had managed to put it down more than 50 times (something i found it hard to do when i was i reading the former four). The revelations made in this book was not as groundbreaking as i thought it would be. Not much progress on the character's development too, except for Harry who became very moody and emotional ( a sign of puberty ).
Nonetheless, OoTP is still a must-have for all Harry Potter fans. As uninteresting as it is, one must read it to gather as many clues as possible. Now, i'm going to give OoTP another go, and see whether i feel different about it at second reading.
Rating:
Summary: Harry Potter 5 is the BEST EVER!!!!!
Review: Harry Potter is the best ever!!! I like how it shows Harry growing up and having a girlfriend. It shows Harry's real character. It reveals a lot of new secrets. I couldn't put it down. There isn't one part i didn't like. I don't want to give away the book but it's so GOOD. Many things happen in hogwarts. Some are good and other things not so good. Like i said i don't want to give away the book so go read it your self.
Rating: 
Summary: 650 wasted pages
Review: First of all my English is pretty bad so please forgive me for making 'funny' sentences. The same goes for names of some of the characters cause I haven't read the books in English. But nevertheless...
I must say I was very disappointed while reading the 5th book about Harry Potter. From 1st to 3rd book I really enjoyed Rowling's style of writing and developing a plot. I never knew what's really important and in what way. But in the end it always surprised me how everything was connected (Rons rat comes to mind in part 2).
But 'The Order of Phoenix'... Full of useless information! Completely overstreched! Take a look at building Harry's character! I understand Harry is in puberty now and he acts like that. But to use 4 pages just to describe one simple event! Or his inability to calm down and shut his mouth... And Hagrid's tale comes to mind - in previous books Rowling would need 1 page to say it all, but here she used a whole chapter telling me about sleeping in caves and walking around at night. Useless. Or the fight with Death Eaters - way too long and appears more like a movie script than a book chapter. I could go on for quite some time now...
Everything really worth reading was Dumbledore's explanation at the end. And this is ingenious in my opinion because it gives another weight on some of the characters.
To sum it all up: Rowling's determination to write each book thicker than the one before backfired. She doesn't have enough to write in 750 pages. The proper amount of pages here would be 200 at most. She didn't introduce us to one single new creature that would be interesting. All in all, I get the feeling that I read 650 pages just so the author is keeping her promise and justifying the bigger price of the book. Well, no money out of my pocket. I hope next one will be more fun to read.
Rating:
Summary: A Delightful Tale
Review: There was a time when I mocked the Harry Potter books. My friends who read them were lambasted by my vitriol. Needless to say, I had never read them (it is rather easy to base contempt on ignorance). Then, I saw the movies, which in turn inspired me to read the novels. I was floored. I instantly shed the cloak of the gainsayer and dressed myself in the robes of an admirer.
Certainly my transformation is not unusual. Neither was my anticipation for the fifth book. Having missed the bruhaha of the first four releases due to my erstwhile foolhardy stance, I plunged wholeheartedly into the chaos of OoP's release. I attacked the book with relish, spurred on by my zeal and the book's addictive nature.
I was thrilled. The fifth book is marvelous. I think it suffers somewhat from following the Goblet of Fire, an all-out masterpiece. Why, imagine if Beethoven had composed a tenth symphony! Still, despite being in the shadow of Goblet, OoP can be cherished as the next phase in the Hogwarts saga. It is wonderfully written and is chock-full of action. Most of this action is, I find, character development, but is not internal action even more important than external? It allows us to understand the characters' behavior. OoP is a wonderful and necessary part of the HP story.
Remember, these are episodes in the life of Harry, and are the stories of his times. Each part is integral to the whole--even Napoleon could not have been Emperor if he had not first been Consul.
Rating:
Summary: You have to be prepare for this one
Review: This is a great job of Rowling but be carefule I strongly recomend you to read all the 4 books befrore this one. Cause you need the wizard knowledge you can have to understand what's happening in the book plus is a great experience. In the second and third book Rowling explain us a couple of things from the books that came before and in this one too, but this one you need al the knowledge you can have so you can understand in what track she is tacking you. Well Enjoy your ride in the magic world of Rowling
Rating:
Summary: My new favorite HP book
Review: I agree with the need to re-read this book. Those of you who have read it once and say it's terrible really need to sit down and look at the intricacies of how this book has woven the previous four into it. As for the "sudden" change in Harry, you must not remember puberty too well--it happens suddenly, especially for boys. As a sister who went to college and left a cute, sweet baby brother, only to return to a sullen teenage giant, it does happen quickly! We are seeing new places, people, and exploring all the mysteries that have been alluded to in the first intallments of the series--of course it lends itself to longer explanations! Remember, too, that these are written not with the adult in mind, but for children and some repetition of objects, people and events will be helpful to them. Quite frankly, they were helpful to me as well! I enjoyed this book so much that I have re-read it about five times in anticipation of the sixth. No mean feat--I had my first child on Halloween! Keep a lookout for the third movie as well--it comes out in the States June 4!
Rating:
Summary: Refreshing, Clean and Thoroughly Entertaining
Review: pA-DAH! Finally, a cleanly written, simple prose novel with all the characteristics of a true adventure. We have tragedy, excitement, a hint of romance, in other words -- a well balanced piece. Obviously, it was written for the movies, and thus, it lacks solid character foundations. We will have to 'see' the characters through film or other dramatic media.
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