Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) by J.K. Rowling
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Book Reviews of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4)
Book Review: Best yet.
Summary: 5 Stars
Have you gotten doused by the Harry Potter tsunami yet?First, for the comatose: The "Harry Potter" series is the brainchild of British author J.K. Rowling that has taken the world by storm and is credited with saving childrens' literature, with four titles available- "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," and the July-released "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire"- and three more on the way.
Rowling's now infamous protagonist is a young wizard who survived an attack by evil Voldemort, a sorcerer so powerful fellow magical folk dare not speak his name. Because Voldemort killed Harry's parents but failed to murder Harry, the boy is a legend amongst witches and wizards.
Unfortunately, Potter was raised by a disgusting bunch of Muggle (nonmagic) relatives, and grew up without knowledge of his abilities or status, until his identity was revealed to him in the first book and he began attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, with friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.
With these books, Rowling has created a world worthy of Roald Dahl ("Charlie and the Chocolate Factory") or John Bellairs ("The House With a Clock In Its Walls") and captured our own. With a record-shattering first printing of more than 4 million for "Goblet of Fire," it's safe to say- this is Harry's world; we all just live in it.
The largest in the series so far, "Goblet" clocks in at about 730 pages. But it's only that long because so much happens. The fourth book takes Harry and company into some uncharted territory. After a prologue foreshadowing the fallen Voldemort's return into power, Harry and about 10,000 other magic folks descend on the Quidditch World Cup between Ireland and Bulgaria. The festivities are interrupted when Voldemort's symbol, the Dark Mark, appears in the sky and Voldemort's minions, the Death Eaters, storm the campground.
When Harry returns to Hogwarts, he finds both a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, all-seeing black magic hunter Alastor "Mad Eye" Moody and that Hogwarts will be the site of the annual Triwizard Tournament, between the school and two others, the snooty Beauxbaton and the chilly Durmstrang. And trouble, which comes when Harry is illegally entered and declared the fourth contestant in the three-man race, culminating in the death of a familiar face and a duel between Harry and Voldemort.
Book Four maintains the wonder and magic that we've come to expect from Rowling and Harry, although its epic size does mean some plots could be shorter: Subplots involving a roving tabloid reporter with a slander-ready quill and mysterious goings-on with some of the people behind the World Cup scenes could be cut and not missed, and Voldemort goes on quite a bit about his evil plans.
But these are small bumps in the highway to Harry Potter heaven, with bright pots including Mad Eye; Harry's crush on fellow Quidditch player Cho Chang; Hermione's creation of the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, or SPEW; a Ron and Hermione bickerfest that may belie a romance, and touching correspondence between Harry and his godfather, convicted murder Sirius Black.
Best of all, as usual, are the antics of twins Fred and George Weasley, Ron's prankster brothers who have embarked on a new venture inventing and selling gag candies and other schemes. These two are always fun to watch, and Rowling concludes "Goblet" by literally giving them the go-ahead spread more mischief in the coming books.
Finally, a quick word ought to be said about the price. 25 dollars is pretty pricey for a starving college student- or anyone, really- who doesn't want to wait out the long library lines or for paperback editions. It's too bad such a phenomenon can't be more accessible to everybody.
Book Review: One of the most incridible stories ever written? Yes!
Summary: 5 Stars
Harry Potter and the Goblet Fire, the fourth book in the Harry Potter Series, finally came into my possession at 12:10 in the morning of July 8th. Let me tell you, first off, that I am fourteen, and while I don't consider myself an adult, I certainly don't consider myself a "little kid." What I'm trying to say is, don't let yourself be fooled into thinking it is only a children's book. It is in fact an amazing story full of imaginative characters and plot lines worthy of the undying interest of people of all ages. I definately recommend you read this book--the other ones first, of course.First thing you need to know is that the story of this book is much longer, more complicated, and a little darker than the other three. At 734 pages long, it supports an incredible plot that mixes fantasy and mystery together. I won't ruin it for you, of course, but I will say that the reader is hooked by the end of every chapter and is not able to put it down due to the many surprises and twists. I know; I stayed up till three in the morning reading it. There is no Quidditch, a magical sport played by wizards, between the four houses at the magical school of Hogwarts for young witches and wizards in this book(!), but that is taken care of in the beginning of the story at the . . . drum roll, please . . . International World Cup Quidditch Match! The new competition is, instead, the Triwizard Tournament, and it takes place between three magic schools--the other two, we have never heard of before this story. Each has one "champion" chosen to compete against the other schools'. That is what the main plot is about--the three challenges they compete in, along with basic life at the school. The plot underneath, though, is just as amazing and even more mysterious. For the first time, readers will begin to learn the histories of many characters. This book, in fact, focuses on the past and reveals many marvelous secrets. There is a reason for this, of course: history will play an imporatant roll in the future.
Just to explain, the reason I said this book was darker is because You-Know-Who, Lord Voldemort, makes a more prominent appearance in this story. Expect sadness and some O' that black magic, but don't be afraid--it's only a book. If anything, this story is even more enjoyable for adults.
The characters are again magical and fun, full of surprises and human emotions. You will get the feeling as you read that you are Harry--yes, you--and you will be hurt, happy, sad, and scared every time he is. You will grow a bond with some characters, and you will learn to hate--even if you don't make a habbit of doing so in real life--others (Professor Snape and Draco Malfoy come to mind). Hermione, Ron, and Hagrid make their comeback, along with Sirius Black--hurray!--and Dumbledore. There are many new characters in this book, most of which are from the other magic schools, but the main focus is on old ones. Expect to learn more about characters from the other books--ones you might have thought weren't so special; each is very important to the very complicated plot. Also, each character changes in this story. They grow, come of age, and begin to take an interest in members of the opposite sex. Could there be romance in the air? Yes, but I'll let you find out who with whom by yourself.
In conclusion, this book is the pivotal one in the series. If you don't read this one, you will not understand anything to come after it. This is where the story begins. Think of the others as a kind of "long prequel" because the future looks very different now than it did before, and we will look forward to reading the next books, which will show us a very strange future. . . .
Book Review: Year Four, the Most Intense Year Yet
Summary: 5 Stars
My mother encouraged me to read the Harry Potter books because she said they were amazing. Seeing how awesome the movies were gave the deciding decision to start reading. This past summer is what started my obsession with the Harry Potter series. These books are unbelievable! They are so full of magic, amazement, and suspense that just boggles the imagination. The fourth book, "The Goblet of Fire", was and is by far the best of the Harry Potter series yet.
The author, J.K. Rowling, really has a way with words. Her books are so full of fantasy that it makes anyone want to believe that the world Harry Potter lives in is real. Each book is a different year at Hogwarts for Harry. Each year he has changed and each year there are more challenges for Harry to overcome. The first three books were all about Harry excepting who he is as a person, finding out why he is so famous and about his parents disappearance. He has two best friends that are always there for him and always help him out with whatever is bothering him. Harry is like a normal teenager except that he lives in a magical world. He has homework, chores, he is punished and plays sports. His homework includes spells and turning pieces of paper into frogs. He can clean the whole house with the wave of his wand. Being punished means going into the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid, the gamekeeper, to figure out what has been killing the unicorns. And Quidditch is a type a sport that calls for seven people to a team, flying on broom sticks, trying to score in the opposite teams goal. Harry also meets a lot of disturbing people, some people who are bad and some people who turn out to be not so bad after all. In the third book Harry was suppose to be deathly afraid of the person known as "Sirus Black". This person turns out to be his uncle who was mistaken for someone who killed a lot of people. Harry learns a lot about family and friendship. These books are very enjoyable.
"The Goblet of Fire" is the fourth year at Hogwarts. This year they have a tournament versus two other schools, and they also have a Christmas ball. The tournament is very dangerous, there is an age limit. Even though there is an age limit, somehow Harry's name was entered into the tournament. Harry knowingly did not enter his name believes that certain dark forces must have been involved. In this book we are revealed a great deal of very valuable information, mostly about the Dark Lord, who is slowly rising to face Harry once again. The last task of the tournament is probably the most intense. Harry wonders why it is so easy for him to make it through to win the Goblet of Fire. Harry is once again faced with the Dark Lord in a scene so creepy that will send shivers down your spine. A character does die in the book and the Dark Lord does regain full power. This book is just so jam packed full of action, suspense, and horror. It is very hard to put down. Although there are 650 pages, there is never a dull moment. This book can be easily read in at least a day or two.
"The Goblet of Fire" is such a great book. The movie is coming out November 18th, and my calendar has been marked. When reading J.K. Rowling's books, your imagination just goes wild. It feels like you are actually there yourself in Hogwarts. The wait to actually see the tournament and all the adventure in the movie in just a couple of weeks is just so unbearable! This is an amazing book for everyone to read. Recommend it to all of your friends. "The Goblet of Fire", is by far the most intense, so much happens in just one year at Hogwarts that it is crazy. There is so much adventure and excitement. Once your hooked, you will not be able to stop yourself.
Book Review: "Harry Potter, Minus a Certain Flavour"by Peter H. Gleick ("
Summary: 5 Stars
"Harry Potter, Minus a Certain Flavour"by Peter H. Gleick ("New York Times," July 10, 2000)
BERKELEY, Calif. -- My family, like so many others, was excited about Saturday's release of yet another Harry Potter book. But although there are many legitimate reasons for praising the series -- the exciting plots, the new young readers being drawn to books, the quality of the writing -- I am disappointed about one thing: the decision by Scholastic, publisher of the American edition, to translate the books from "English" into "American." Scholastic even went so far as to change the title of the first Harry Potter book from "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" to "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone." Why? Were the editors worried that some people wouldn't buy the book because they couldn't understand it in its original language? Were they concerned that some children would be confused by new words for otherwise familiar objects or actions? I like to think that our society would not collapse if our children started calling their mothers Mum instead of Mom. And I would hate to think that today's children would be frightened away from an otherwise thrilling book by reading that the hero is wearing a jumper instead of a sweater. Are we afraid that when presented with new vocabulary, children will shrink away? Or that alternative spellings of previously known words will make children (and adults) suddenly start spelling things wrong, sending school test scores falling? A careful reading of both the English and the American editions of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" reveals three kinds of substitutions. The first are spelling differences: gray for grey, color for colour, flavor for flavour, pajamas for pyjamas, recognize for recognise and the like. The second are differences in common words or phrases: pitch turns to field, sellotaped to taped, fortnight to two weeks, post to mail, boot of car to trunk of car, lorry to truck. The third are metamorphoses of truly English experiences or objects into something different, but distinctly American: crumpets to English muffins, for example (a particular odious change, in my opinion).
My two sons didn't have any difficulty understanding the British version of the book sent to them by their aunt in London. I admit to occasionally offering the meaning of a new word the first time it appeared, but don't we do that with every book we read to our children, or help them read to themselves? Do we really want children to think that crumpets are the same as English muffins? Frankly, reading about Harry and Hermione eating crumpets during tea is far more interesting to an American than reading about them eating English muffins during a meal. Are any books immune from this kind of devolution from English to "American" English? Would we sit back and let publishers rewrite Charles Dickens or Shakespeare? I can see it now: "A Christmas Song," "A Story of Two Cities," "The Salesman of Venice." By protecting our children from an occasional misunderstanding or trip to the dictionary, we are pretending that other cultures are, or should be, the same as ours. By insisting that everything be Americanized, we dumb down our own society rather than enrich it. As for Harry Potter's latest adventures, my children and I will wait for the British version coming by mail.
Book Review: The Story's Just Beginning....
Summary: 5 Stars
In the fourth novel of her epic Harry Potter story, J.K. Rowling weaves the LARGEST and most complex tale of mystery, suspense, magic and fantasy yet, picking up right where Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban leaves off. Far more complicated and gripping than the first three novels, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire will leave you on the edge of your seat as Rowling takes you on a suspenseful magical ride of mystery as Harry and his friends, Ron and Hermione, battle the forces of evil and indeed a fight for survival itself. Weaving together characters and stories from the previous three novels, the Goblet of Fire is THE pivotal book in the series. As the ending of this novel alludes to, the story is JUST BEGINNING!!! As has become her M.O., not all is as it seems. The ending will leave you in complete shock and surprise, and even horror!!!The Main Story:
Against his will Harry is entered into a deadly tournament which has not been held in over a hundred years, pitting the best and the brightest of Hogwarts and two rival wizarding school against each other. Now Harry is in a battle for survival as the tournament progresses. Can Harry survive the tournament and discover who has entered him and more importantly WHY?
Also, Lord Voldemort unleashes a last ditch effort to return himself to full power.
Supporting Stories:
- Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys travel to the Quidditch World Cup.
- What became of Sirius Black?
- Has Hagrid finally found love?
- For the fourth year in a row, a new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor arrives at Hogwarts, the eery and strange Mad-Eye Moody, a former Dark Wizard capturer, brings his unique brand of defense to Hogwarts and reveals the forbidden curses to the students.
- Trouble in paradise, again? Harry and Ron's friendship undergoes a major test.
- The return of Dobby!!! S.P.E.W. Hermione begins a campaign for elfish rights.
- Blossoming into teenagers, will the gang be able to find dates to the ball? Will Harry, Ron and Hermione find love?
- A new nemesis arrives for the gang in the form of Rita Skeeter, a nosy and trouble-making reporter for the Daily Prophet.
- The signs are appearing everywhere. Will Voldemort make his return?
- What are Fred and George up to?
- What's the deal with Percy and his new boss?
What We Find Out:
- Rowling expands the wizarding world as she introduces the foreign schools of Dumstrang and Beauxbatons into the Harry Potter world, and the unique students they enroll.
- We learn a little more about life as it was at the height of Voldemort's power.
- We learn (and confirm some suspicions about) who Voldemort's supporters are.
- We take a look into the past, again, to see the fall of Voldemort's supporters.
- We learn a little more about Snape's background.
Far more gripping, engaging and horrifying than the first three novels, fans of Harry Potter will love and enjoy the voluminous fourth chapter in his epic story. Rowling continues to expand upon the world of Harry Potter at a great rate, slowly revealing more about his mysterious past and the world around him and interweaving elements and revelations from the first three novels into a great web of mystery and suspense.
Harry Potter mania has swept the nation, if not the world, for the past several years. Rowling's gripping stories of mystery, suspense, shock, fantasy and magic are a true treat. This book is another shining example of why her characters are beloved by both children and adults the world over.
Even at a little over a whopping 700 pages, the book still reads fast.
My total read time: 16 hours, three evenings.
Highest Recommendation