Rating: 
Summary: Treading water
Review: After the stunning Goblet of Fire, this was a bit of a let-down. The last book ended on a cliff-hanger, with Dumbledore sending envoys all round the world to assemble a coalition against the resurrected Voldemort. It felt like the series was about to erupt out of Hogwarts and become something truly epic.Then the Order of the Phoenix comes... and nothing really happens. The members of the Order spend a whole year sneaking around, but we never find out what they're actually trying to accomplish. Cornelius Fudge spends an entire year disputing Harry's story, and then changes his mind right at the end. Voldemort spends an entire year (as far as we can tell) trying to get hold of a prophecy which turns out to be ambiguous and of marginal importance, rather than maneouvering his forces to try and seize power. And, as always, people sit down at the end of the book and explain to each other what just happened, rather than having a couple of conversations during the year that would sort it all out. Having said that, the book has a lot of the usual Harry Potter virtues: some great slapstick, some great suspense (I particularly liked the Dementor attack and the trial at the start), some great supporting characters (I hope we see Luna Lovegood again), some great revelations (finding out a bit more about what Aunt Petunia knows, and seeing the Dursleys slowly move from comic foils into something a bit more nuanced and vulnerable). I'll definitely be getting the next one, but I hope that, when she says "The second war begins", she means it this time.
Rating: 
Summary: An Excellent Addition to the Series
Review: Order of the Phoenix, while not as good as Goblet of Fire, is still a damn good read. My only complaint against the book would be the rehash of plots and devices from previous books. I understand that Ms. Rowling has a seven book series in mind, but maybe some new plot devices would be in order. That being said, this book is a must-read for any Harry Potter fan. The thing about this book is that it's beginning to move out of the realm of children's books into the young adult world. The characters are of course growing up and dealing with all the problems of teenagers their age, but the action is also becoming more adult as Lord Voldemort becomes ever braver in his attempts to take over the wizard world. One of the great things about this book is the back history of the story, which allows some character's actions to be better understood. In addition, a few of the characters make a serious turn in development as they accept the inevitability of events, that they must change in order to survive and be on the side of righteousness. Like Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix features the death of a beloved character that is totally unexpected and will bring a tear to the eye of any avid reader, so parents should once again be cautioned.
Rating:
Summary: A dose of Reality
Review: An absolutely superb book and in my [humble] opinion - the best one she has written. Harry is going through a period of self-doubt and bitterness throughout the novel, and JKR lets us see right inside his head. I think it has disturbed some of the younger readers to see their hero questioning friendships and trying to cope with being misunderstood by the people all around him. He has moments where his temper and self-importance get the better of him, and he lashes out at a world that is on the brink of turning its back on him. Finally Harry has been brought as close to "real" as he can be, by letting us see that he's just a boy - with a gift - trying to get through the challenges of adolesence 1 day at a time. He saw a friend murdered last year and his parents murderer restored to full strength - lets cut him some slack and celebrate a great book that has not been afraid to show us another [darker] side to this wonderful world of spells and magic. Lets also not forget, that if every one of the 7 books showed Harry & Co. skipping around like a nuns on a hill top every time somthing happened, the final conclusion would be leave the reader unable to genuinely feel anything is at stake, and that all the characters have made it through to the end having not made any effort or suffered any hardship at all.....
The book is just as rich as its predecessors and continues to make you wish you were a pupil at Hogwarts and a seeker on the Griffindor Quidditch team!
Rating: 
Summary: Rowling's gotten her last royalty from me
Review: I am (or was) an adult fan of Harry Potter who's read the first 4 books several times over, and always with enjoyment. Book 5 left my enthusiasm deflating like a balloon on a cactus. After the great windup of Book 4, with danger and conflict imminent, the stage seemed set for an epic battle between good and evil. Instead, we had this repetitious, self-important snoozefest. I suspect Rowling is too contented to write well anymore; when she was a struggling loser in Scotland, she had an incentive to create a livelier, more vivid world to escape to than the one she was stuck in, but now it's clearly a chore for her to tear herself away from her much more interesting life to try to rekindle her interest in a moody brat at a boarding school. The wit and cleverness of her earlier books is dead, but I'm shocked by how her sense of pacing has gone to pieces in this book. She seems to be going through the motions of setting up cliffhangers, only to run out of steam and abandon them when it's clear she has nothing interesting to say anymore. Hagrid is mysteriously absent through almost half the book; as the previous volume ended with him about to head off on a secret mission, I had high hopes that something interesting would result when he finally returned. But his interminable recitation chapter delivered absolutely nothing. He went on his mission, accomplished nothing and came home, and Rowling thinks this is enough material to stretch over an entire chapter. Another sign that her inventiveness is flagging is the way she is recycling her gimmicks from earlier books. We read about the Put-Outer in Book 1, but she either thinks her readers are too stupid to remember, or if they liked it once they'll like the exact same thing all over again, because she plows through an almost identical description of the gadget in Book 4. Everything that was fresh and funny the first time is trotted out again for an encore. I'm not impressed by demands of Book 5 fans that I read the book twice, or three times or ten times until I've grown numb to its flaws and have succeeded in brainwashing myself that it's good. I was happy to read the earlier books more than once; I can't even be bothered to dig out my copy of this one to look up a quote, and I doubt I'll ever look at it again. Nor will I be pre-ordering Book 6 like I did Order of the Phoenix; I can wait until a used paperback copy comes my way.
Rating:
Summary: Harry's 5th year
Review: Harry Potter is not what you could call a normal kid. He is a wizard and hates his life during the summer living with his Aunt and Uncle. Every summer he lives with them and puts up with his spoiled cousin Dudley. It is the summer before his 5th year at Hogwarts. (a school of witchcraft and wizardy.) Every year he loves going back to Hogwarts. But, this summer would be different then all the others. He gets into a mess with the Ministry of Magic.
He arrives at Hogwarts and is stressed out. His 5th year starts out as any other. But, as the year progresses strange things start happening to Harry. Hogwarts changes dramatically, and the changes are the worst for Harry. He needs to talk to his godfather(Sirius Black), but will he get through to him?
This book is a great and exciting book. I never wanted to put it down. Harry Potter is a great adventure for kids of all ages. I would give this book a rating of 5 stars because it kept me wanting to read on.
Rating:
Summary: Slightly less brilliant than previous books
Review: I think the strangeness thing for me, was the loss of sensibilities in this novel (as hard it is to say for a fantasy book) - but really, its hard for me to believe that Harry would change in such a abrupt and shocking way - there is no gradual progression to his new mentality, or underlying pyshological issues - it's just good Harry, then bad Harry - there is no underlying transformation. So that is my issue with the novel.
Rating:
Summary: not good,but not bad
Review: I have read all of the Harry Potter books and I really dont think this one was as good as the rest of 'em. I really did not like the way the she mad Harry out as a way-to-self-assured-head-way-to-big-jerk. And the way that no one belived him about Voldemort. I really hope the next one will be better like the 4th one wasthat one is my faviort)The length was ok but if she wanted to go into so much detail then it should have been longer. I wouldn't have minded and die hard fans wouldn't either.
Rating:
Summary: Harry Potter
Review: Nobody believes Harry that Voldemort has come back. No one but the Order of Phoenix and Ron and Hermione. Things turn for the worst when the new defense against the darks arts teacher shows up at Hogwarts. Harry encounters a giant in the 5th book. Dumbledore gets kicked out of Hogwarts. Harry encounters many problems in the 5th book of the J.K. Rowling series.
This book compares to the other Harry Potter books is 2nd best. I recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy books. It is good because it is a little mystery and action. My favorite book is Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Although my favorite book is the third, I suggest the 5th book to all Harry Potter fans. -Matt Bartlett
Rating:
Summary: The darkest one yet
Review: My husband snatched this away from me and read it first. Luckily, he reads fast so he was done in 2 days. He didn't like it, because of who was killed, since it was one of his favorite characters. I, on the other hand, loved this book just as much as I loved the other 4. It is definitely darker than the other 4, but that doesn't bother me in the slightest. Harry is getting older and more mature, so his experiences have to reflect that. Why some people don't get that I'll never know. Anyways, JK Rowling only gets more talented with each book. She really knows how to suck her readers in quick, and keep them entranced until the very last page. I don't think anyone saw more than my forehead peeking up from the pages until I was finished with this.
Rating:
Summary: SPECTRUM Children's Book Club Recommendation
Review: Reading Level: Ages 9-12 The fifth installment of the Harry Potter series is different from its predecessors -- it had to be. The death of Cedric Diggory and the return of Lord Voldemort marked the abrupt end of innocence in this epic story and sowed seeds of discord and discontent. In the first four books Harry was propelled along his series of adventures by outside forces and the circumstance of his fame. He was, like typical youth, immersed in the here-and-now, focused on the problem of the moment, without much thought to the past or concern about future consequences. During the month spent secluded at the Dursleys after the tragic events of the Triwizard Tournament, Harry has time to think about what has happened to him and worry about what is to come. And he's angry, frustrated, and feeling alienated even in his true home, the wizarding world. This broadening of Harry's perception of the world around him is the foundation to the multitude of changes found in "Order of the Phoenix". All of which result in the best Harry Potter book yet. This is the first volume in the series where there is no attempt to craft a standalone book. From the first page on, Rowling assumes you know the story and are immersed in the world she has created. (She has saved us yet another 30-or-so pages by cutting the usual back story references required in a standalone book.) As expected, "The Order of the Phoenix" draws on a rich existing cast of characters and locales, while taking us to places we've never been and introducing memorable characters including a clumsy auror, a wizard from the wrong side of the law, and a positively dreadful new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. But this is not the most striking difference in the book. What is most different about the "Order of the Phoenix" is its tone and its deviation from the comfortable style and structure of the previous installments. All of these changes have been orchestrated to instill in us the same anxious and unsettled feelings Harry is experiencing-and they are effective. From the first chapter, we are nagged by feelings that "this isn't right" or "that's not the way it's supposed to be." Rowling has set us up and is now masterfully manipulating the rules of the game. Rowling no longer focuses only on what Harry does. The increased bulk of the book is due almost entirely to the inclusion of what Harry thinks and how he feels. Harry's rampant feelings are at the core of this volume. This is an appropriate-and welcomed-change, not only for Harry, who is now fifteen, but for the older reader, for whom this book is intended. The characters, plots, and emotional landscape have all matured in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," and so has J. K. Rowling as a writer. - KB Shaw, Publisher
SPECTRUM Children's Book Club
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