Rating: Summary: The best overview of the Harry Potter books. Review: I got this book in a unique way. The author asked for some people to help review a project. What I got was this book. I must say of the books I have read this has all the details that the others have and more. If you have read the books its good at showing you details you might have missed. It translates allot of the names to bring out some unique results. If you just started the books its great to be able to read a chapter then read the review of the chapter you can see what you missed it. Her ideas in the last sections where she has suggestions on future books is a real eye opener even if I think differently.
Rating: Summary: A must have for HP fans Review: This book is a remarkable labor of love. If you are a true Harry Potter fan, young or old, you should have this book in your library. I read it cover to cover and wished there were more. Also a lovely gift for the younger HP fan who can't afford it on their allowance. Highly, highly recommended.
Rating: Summary: WORTH THE PRICE! - GREAT analysis & info on future HP books! Review: This is a GREAT book! The analysis of all of the HP books to date, as well as the author's ability to pick out the hidden clues about Harry's future adventures makes for a book that is well worth the price. Whether you are a long-time HP reader or a new fan, young or mature, this is DEFINITELY a "must-have" for any fan!If you can, read it before the next movie comes out, or at least the next book. Unlike some fan-authors (and other psychics!), this author is certainly putting her (his?) reputation on the line by making some very specific predictions about the future books in the series. If you are getting it as a gift, PLEASE don't make your Harry Potter fan wait for whatever the occasion to get it! Let them read it right away. There is LOTS to go through in here, and the HP fan who reads this book will probably want to go back through the specific HP books that are mentioned to see the clues for themselves. _WELL_ WORTH THE PRICE!
Rating: Summary: This book will insult your intelligence Review: There are about 5-10 pages of interesting content in this book. The rest is a regurgitation of the plot, interspersed with comments like, "Flitwick was a dueling champion? Awesome. Sounds like the students had better behave in Charms class. ;o)" And yes, the emoticon is in the original text. Also, the author's theory that Flitwick and Lockhart are gay wouldn't be so bad (though, like most of the other theories, it seems off-base) if it weren't for the nudge-nudge wink-wink homophobia. Galadriel Waters sounds like a pen name, so I'm not sure who actually wrote this book, but I really hope s/he isn't an adult. If the author is a young kid, then I guess I feel bad about laughing at his/her horrible grasp of the English language. Still, I wouldn't recommend buying this book, unless you're a huge fan and have exhausted all other Harry Potter-related reading material.
Rating: Summary: Better than High School Review: I was always bored in school when we delved into the hidden meanings of books we were forced to read. And I'm fairly certain that I'll forever have nightmares about Lord of the Flies and a section of the book that details a certain hiding spot.... The Ultimate Unofficial guide, however, was entertaining. I didn't mind that three quarters of the book was made up of direct quotes from the first four Harry Potter novels, because it allowed someone else to highlight a passage of text you should focus on rather than having to switch back and forth between two books. Good things: Occassionally, the authors 'stumbled' onto great clues they decoded that were validated in book 5. Like that thing about Mrs. Figg.... Bad Things: The authors are really keen on running bits and repeated words. Some of which do have literary value as words that have more value - but some of which are just commonly used words. I'd be loathed and unsurprised to find the authors announcing that the word THE is a huge septology clue. afterall JK Rowling uses the word the repeatedly.
Rating: Summary: A Whole New Perspective... Review: This book really gave me a new perspective into the Harry Potter books. A lot of the clues really are rather insightful, and at the very least it helps you look at the Harry Potter books differently. And really makes you appreciate Rowling's thought process while writing them. Granted, I do not believe that James and Lupin are the same person, and I do not believe that Lily is any relation to Slytherin, but what's wrong with reading about ideas you don't agree with? It just helps you sort out your own reasoning. Why is your idea so much better than the one suggested in this book? Ultimately, I think this book is quite insightful, and offers ideas you may not have thought of before. I recommend giving it a shot. :)
Rating: Summary: Hilarious and Helpful Review: The HP analysis within this book is well-thoughtout, in-depth, well-backed, a little cookey, and loads of fun! As long as you have the real interest to go into depth deciphering clues that J.K.R. leaves her readers in every book, every chapter, and nearly every page, this book is for you. I must admit, I'm a little biased since I like the idea that I might discover answers on my own as to the out-come of the HP books, but I like the self-discovery and discussion of others' ideas on the septology. This book is a wonderful read and really intriguing if you are a true Harry Potter fan and love long, meticulous discussions on everything Harry Potter!
Rating: Summary: Aunt Petunia was compulsively straightening cushions. Uncle Review:
Vernon was pretending to read the paper, but his tiny eyes were not moving, and Harry was sure he was really listening with all his might for the sound of an approaching car. Dudley was crammed into an armchair, his porky hands beneath him, clamped firmly around his bottom. Harry couldn't take the tension; he left the room and went and sat on the stairs in the hall, his eyes on his watch and his heart pumping fast from excitement and nerves.
But five o'clock came and then went. Uncle Vernon, perspiring slightly in his suit, opened the front door, peered up and down the street, then withdrew his head quickly.
"They're late!" he snarled at Harry.
I know," said Harry. "Maybe - er - the traffic's bad, or something."
Ten past five ... then a quarter past five ... Harry was starting to feel anxious himself now. At half past, he heard Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia conversing in terse mutters in the living room.
"No consideration at all."
"We might've had an engagement."
"Maybe they think they'll get invited to dinner if they're late."
"Well, they most certainly won't be," said Uncle Vernon, and Harry heard him stand up and start pacing the living room. "They'll take the boy and go, there'll be no hanging around. That's if they're coming at all. Probably mistaken the day. I daresay their kind don't set much store by punctuality. Either that or they drive some tin-pot car that's broken d- AAAAAAAARRRRRGH!"
Harry jumped up. From the other side of the living room door came the sounds of the three Dursleys scrambling, panic-stricken, across the room. Next moment Dudley came flying into the hall, looking terrified.
"What happened?" said Harry. "What's the matter?"
But Dudley didn't seem able to speak. Hands still clamped over his buttocks, he waddled as fast as he could into the kitchen. Harry hurried into the living room.
Loud bangings and scrapings were coming from behind the Dursleys' boarded-up fireplace, which had a fake coal fire plugged in front of it.
"What is it?" gasped Aunt Petunia, who had backed into the wall and was staring, terrified, toward the fire. "What is it, Vernon?"
But they were left in doubt barely a second longer. Voices could be heard from inside the blocked fireplace.
"Ouch! Fred, no - go back, go back, there's been some kind of mistake - tell George not to - OUCH! George, no, there's no room, go back quickly and tell Ron-"
"Maybe Harry can hear us, Dad - maybe he'll be able to let us out-"
There was a loud hammering of fists on the boards behind the electric fire.
"Harry? Harry, can you hear us?"
The Dursleys rounded on Harry like a pair of angry wolverines.
"What is this?" growled Uncle Vernon. "What's going on?"
"They - they've tried to get here by Floo powder," said Harry, fighting a mad desire to laugh. "They can travel by fire - only you've blocked the fireplace - hang on -"
He approached the fireplace and called through the boards.
"Mr. Weasley? Can you hear me?"
The hammering stopped. Somebody inside the chimney piece said, "Shh!"
"Mr. Weasley, it's Harry ... the fireplace has been blocked up. You won't be able to get through there."
"Damn!" said Mr. Weasley's voice. "What on earth did they want to block up the fireplace for?"
"They've got an electric fire," Harry explained.
"Really?" said Mr. Weasley's voice excitedly. "Eclectic, you say? With a plug? Gracious, I must see that.... Let's think ... ouch, Ron!"
Ron's voice now joined the others'.
"What are we doing here? Has something gone wrong?"
"Oh no, Ron," came Fred's voice, very sarcastically. "No, this is exactly where we wanted to end up."
"Yeah, we're having the time of our lives here," said George, whose voice sounded muffled, as though he was squashed against the wall.
"Boys, boys. . ." said Mr. Weasley vaguely. "I'm trying to think what to do.... Yes ... only way. . . Stand back, Harry."
Harry retreated to the sofa. Uncle Vernon, however, moved forward.
"Wait a moment!" he bellowed at the fire. "What exactly are you going to -"
BANG.
The electric fire shot across the room as the boarded-up fireplace burst outward, expelling Mr. Weasley, Fred, George, and Ron in a cloud of rubble and loose chippings. Aunt Petunia shrieked and fell backward over the coffee table; Uncle Vernon caught her before she hit the floor, and gaped, speechless, at the Weasleys, all of whom had bright red hair, including Fred and George, who were identical to the last freckle.
"That's better," panted Mr. Weasley, brushing dust from his long green robes and straightening his glasses. "Ah - you must be Harry's aunt and uncle!"
Tall, thin, and balding, he moved toward Uncle Vernon, his hand outstretched, but Uncle Vernon backed away several paces, dragging Aunt Petunia. Words utterly failed Uncle Vernon. His best suit was covered in white dust, which had settled in his hair and mustache and made him look as though he had just aged thirty years.
"Er - yes - sorry about that," said Mr. Weasley, lowering his hand and looking over his shoulder at the blasted fireplace. "It's all my fault. It just didn't occur to me that we wouldn't be able to get out at the other end. I had your fireplace connected to the Floo Network, you see - just for an afternoon, you know, so we could get Harry. Muggle fireplaces aren't supposed to be connected, strictly speaking - but I've got a useful contact at the Floo Regulation Panel and he fixed it for me. I can put it right in a jiffy, though, don't worry. I'll light a fire to send the boys back, and then I can repair your fireplace before I Disapparate."
Rating: Summary: For Harry Potter fans who appreciate J.K.R. writing skills Review: I'm not a Harry Potter fanatic; I just like the books and the movies (and the actors and the author and the characters and the plot...)This book was a great guide for hidden clues, plot predictions (Divination for books?) and "I-didn't-think-of-that"s. If that's what you're looking for, then this is perfect for you. But if you want the absolute facts, you might want to wait for J.K.R.'s own guide.
Sometimes what you infer from this book can sound outrageous (Lily Potter a Slytherin? Lily's related to Dumbledore?)and sometimes the author goes of on tangents about a tiny insignificant clue (or so we think), but the rest are based on evidence carefuly gathered from the books and J.K.R.'s interviews.
A note: This book covers books 1-4 only. The "New Clues" book is for book 5 and is a hints only guide (it doesn't tell you exactly what the clues mean). I bought both and think it was well worth the money, but this is something to keep in mind.
All in all, this book and its companion are a must for every semi-serious to serious HP fan.
Rating: Summary: Brilliant Review: I loved this book. It had a wealth of information and great analysis. It was filled with a lot of interpretation and great insight. I would rate this book from a scale of 1 to 5, I give it a 6. I had my relatives read the book and they loved it too. It must be part of a Harry Potter fan's library. I wouldn't leave my library with out it. The price is worth the money and it's a great book to own. Go out and buy this!!!! Great JOB Wizarding World Press!!! A++++++
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