Rating: 
Summary: What really needs to be said?
Review: If you're reading this, you probably already know how great these books are, so I'll keep it simple: this book is exponentially better - surpassing all the lofty expectations I placed upon it. It is with this 900-page tome that Harry Potter makes the leap from children's story to adult fiction. Gone is the majority of the whimsy prevalent in the first four (or, three and a half, really), replaced with a brooding sentiment of foreboding evil. The cover says it all - it is a dark, monochromatic cover, quite different than the four colorful preceding volumes. Notice also that this is the first cover to feature a grim Harry - gone is his characteristic smile. In summation, for the three of you that actually *don't* have the book yet, don't let any aprehensions about the series running thin worry you. The previous four may have been children's books - this one is literature.
Rating: 
Summary: A step back from Goblet of Fire
Review: HPAOP moves more slowly than the last 2 volumes of the series. As usual, we get a lot of side plots, not many of them really interesting. Also, the main plot seems to have been somewhat neglected this time. We get a lot of school politics, not much of everything else.
Not only that, but I felt that the main arc of the series as a whole didn't advance much. Not really many new relevant information , or surprising either.
It was a pleasant read, mind you. Still better than the first two volumes, but certainly not as good as the last two, simply because the book got to big and felt empty compared to those two.
Rating:
Summary: an awesome book
Review: The book we've all been waiting for has finally arrived! Harry Potter is now fifteen and in his 5th year at Hogwarts. The wizarding world is divided on the issue of Voldermort's return, and danger is everywhere for our favourite wizard. Cruel teachers, exams, Dementors and nightmares are just a few of the things Harry has to contend with. The end will leave you shocked, as a character we know and love will die. Harry will alos learn the reason why Voldemort wanted to kill him, which is something we've all been waiting for. I never thought any book could beat the 4th book, but this book is simply magnificent. With J.K Rowling's humor, descriptions and incredible imagination, this book has all the makings of a classic. Don't miss it!
Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: First things first--if you're a Harry Potter fan, which means if you enjoyed any of the other Harry Potter books--go ahead and rush your order, you won't be disappointed. I read the whole thing in one great mass and I'm grateful for every minute of it--and ever so jealous of JK Rowlings. How does she keep doing it? This book was as good as the first four; if I had to choose, I'd put it better than 1, 3, and 4, and almost as good as number 2. I read it in six solid hours (wonderful hours!) today and am ready to start over again first thing in the morning. Harry has grown. He's not an 11 year old anymore. He's 15 and everything he does makes that clear. He's angry and passionate and troubled; he's a teenager with every breath he takes. But for the fourth book in a series to stir so many questions is really quite amazing: I want to know more about Tonks, more about Neville, more about the centaurs, more about Luna. The one thing this book makes clear is that another one is coming and is absolutely required--believe me, you'll want to read the next as soon as you've finished this one. But at the same time, this is a thoroughly satisfying read. Every page was worthwhile. It's not often I finish a 870 page book and wish there were more to go!
Rating:
Summary: So now we know....
Review: I just turned the last page of this long awaited book. Such a sad night for Muggles everywhere. My worst fears about the death of one of my favorite characters are confirmed, and while I am sure there is a greater purpose, I am deeply saddened. On the other hand, I couldn't put the book down all day! What a wonderful adventure, with all the carefully laid clues of the previous books coming together to form such a perfectly weaved story. Dumbledore has answered most of my questions, although I do find there are a few still unresolved I would like to ask him myself. Thanks to Ms. Rowling for letting millions of children find out the joys of reading. And giving us adults (or almost so) a glimpse at childhood again.
Rating:
Summary: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Review: I found book 5 to be worth the wait; J.K. Rowling provides more detailed background information throughout this book both in plot and character development. We are able to see some maturing changes in Harry and his dear friends. I found the sub-plots to be engaging and the new charaters immediately loveable. I also found some sympathy for Professor Snape and shed a tear at the loss of a character. Mrs. Rowling has indeed out done herself, her creativity is inspiring. If you read one book of fiction this year, this is one to keep in mind.
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty good, despite its length
Review: I have just finished reading this book and checked to see if anyone else had reviewed it. I love Harry, but of all the books this one wasn't my favorite. It was actually a little bit of a let down after all the hype. So much mystery about "who dies" and what Dumbledore "should've told Harry years ago", and eagerness to have these questions answered made the length of the book seem almost tedious. Also, I know Harry's a 'brooding teenager' now but his perpetual negative attitude was tiresome. Otherwise, a very good book.
Rating: 
Summary: More of the same - lots and lots of it.
Review: ...JK Rowling's problem is simple: She doesn't have anyone editing her anymore. Whereas the first three books were a slim 300-400 pages, long by children's book standards but a good size for a real novel, things have obviously gotten out of control. The page size alone has ballooned to an unhealthy 897 pages. If Rowling things that she can hold our interest by casually dropping names like "Muddlewump" and "Fizz-Bangers", she's sorely mistaken. I remember reading in an article that Rowling said the world is so filled-out, she could write a novel on every character who appears, from Draco Malfoy to Dedalus Diddle. This, my friends, is not necessarily a good thing. This means side plots galore - annoying, irrelevant side plots that plagued book 4, like Hermione's pointless campaign for the house elves, or the fake gold scam with the Weasley twins and Ludo Bagman. Fortunately this time around, Rowling has focused in on the one and only plot that matters - Harry vs. Voldemort. Because Harry is the only person who matters, and she seems to have realized this. The book has instead another problem - it's too dark, too depressing, and for too long. Harry's story is no longer pleasant to deal with, because it is so utterly depressing and obviously deeply traumatizing to him. He is often in a state of shock, physical or emotional pain, or some kind of depressed stupor from all the horrible stuff that continually happens to him, and it's quite painful to read. The reader misses the old Harry of the first three books, who was in wonder and amazement at the magical world, and had dangerous adventures because he wanted to, not because they were brought upon him. It set a lighter tone for the books and now that tone has become too dark for even the mature reader to want to deal with. Certainly, it's too long to deal with the subject in such a manner. The trials and tribulations of Harry Potter become almost painful to read about - we the readers become desperate for someone to come in and say or SOMETHING positive that actually helps. Much like the last 5 chapters of "The Goblet of Fire," Harry's problems are so monumental and overwhelming that no one around him except Dumbledore is able to begin to comprehend, much less help him solve, them. This time, the problems only worsen and Dumbledore, the all-forgiving, all-knowing plot device is often not present. There is no comfort for Harry and none for the readers. His friends, remaining family, and the adults surrounding him become irrelevant because they are simply not relevant to this main plotline that concerns on him and Voldemort, and therefore unable to give him even the lightest bit of advice. His old supports of Ron, Hermione, and perhaps even Neville and Sirius occasionally try to comfort him, only to be confounded by the gravity of the events surrounding him. Harry Potter the plotline has outgrown them all. He is no longer the Boy Who Lived But Also Goes To School And Is A Quidditch Player, he is merely the Boy Who Lived. In an ideal world, where someone had the gall to stand up to Rowling and make suggestions, these might have been made: Book 4 "The Goblet of Fire"
"Gee, do you think you could cut the elf plotline? And the blackmail plotline? And the Yule Ball that goes nowhere? And Reeta Skeeter?" Book 5 "Order of teh Phoenix"
"Gee, could you please do something with Harry other than give him some new sort of deep-seeted trauma?" Rowling needs to be told that makes fun, exciting plots that involve Harry in some way but are not horribly depressing. I do not especially recommend this book. Well, certainlly anyone who's going to continue reading the series needs to read it, there's no way around that. But if you're going to get into the whole series (which is a worthwhile endeavor as a whole), don't get into it just so you can read this book, or you will be disappointed. Get into it for the wonder of book 1 or the magic of boko 3. Treat this one as rather long exposition on the horribleness of being Harry Potter and wait for the ending in book 7.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the wait!
Review: Whew. Ten hours of almost non-stop reading later, I've finally finished the infamous Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix... and I definitely was not dissapointed.
My initial reaction after finishing the book was, 'Geez, my head hurts.' After that, my reaction was, 'That was one ... fine book."
It wasn't really what I had expected. The plot was definitely original, and it had a *lot* of surprises. Revelations are made, things get a LOT clearer in most cases. The size of the book allows for a lot of details to be fit in that wouldn't have been possible otherwise, and they fill out the plot a lot more. Even though the book is massive, off the top of my head I can't think of a single thing that could've been taken out without making the book... lesser, somehow. Though I did wish that the ending action part had been... fleshed out, I guess, a bit more, and a few things explained more thoroughly, over all I liked this book VERY much, and I'm very glad that I stood in that line at midnight for an hour and a half. *Well* worth the time and money spent, and I don't regret the purchase at all.
Rating:
Summary: Actually I give it 10 stars.....
Review: The only bad thing about Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is that I've finished reading it and now have the interminable wait for Harry Potter 6. There are many questions left at the end of HP5--how did Harry do on his OWLS? What is the Ministry of Magic's new plan? Who will be the new Dark Arts professor for Harry and Ron and Hermione's sixth year? Will the Dursley's finally be nice to Harry? None of these questions get answered in book five--we have to wait. But we will see that Ron is a true Weasley through and through, Fred and George know more than they've ever let on, Hermione is not a stick in the mud, and real Hogwarts professors do know how to have fun and recognize the difference between good and evil. Harry is confronted with the most difficult question of his young life--no we don't get the answer to that one either. Hurry up and write Book 6, Ms Rowling!!
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