Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5)
by J.K. Rowling

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Book Reviews of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5)

Book Review: Terrific fifth entry! This was worth the long wait!
Summary: 5 Stars

It was another boring and unpleasant summer with the despicable Dursley family on Privet Drive in the town of Little Whinging. What's really made things more unpleasant is that his bullying cousin Dudley Dursley has started terrorizing the local neighborhood; Harry himself hasn't heard a thing from his friends Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, nor any news about the return of the revived Lord Voldemort. One night during a confrontation with his fat cousin Dudley, Harry and Dudley are under attack from two rogue Dementors that arrived in Little Whinging, Harry barely dodges being expelled from Hogwarts. Although he continues on at Hogwarts, things only get worse after that. The Ministry of Magic vehemently is trying to deny the truth of Voldemort's return to power and Harry himself is the victim of vicious smear campaigns to discredit his hero status after his encounter with Voldemort during the End of the Triwarding Tournament. Hogwarts no longer feels like a refuge from Voldemort's increasing powers. Even then, a toad like woman named Dolores Jane Umbridge takes the position as Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher but restricts the lessons to just the theory behind the various defenses. Ultimately, she starts passing out decrees to undermine Harry's efforts to tell the truth about Voldemort's return by horrific detentions, docking points from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw, while the Slytherin students form a group called the Inquisitorial Squad and undermine the other three houses performances at their various subjects and even the other staff members are feeling the strain of the various decrees that are being laid upon them right and left and at a frequent rate.

Even when looking at an inward perspective, Harry is going through very turbulent times in his life so far. He is now 15 years old and the effects of adolescence are starting to take their toll on his mentality. Heavy crushes on various interests, bouts of rage and raging hormones are making things less and less pleasant for Harry but that's not the worst of it all. He has been having dreams of going down this dark hallway in some place that is called the "Department of Mysteries" and the lightning scar on his forehead has been becoming excruciatingly painful to where it's been interfering with an already complicated life at Hogwarts. Voldemort is now gaining power again as his legion of followers, the Death Eaters, are regrouping to carry out his malicious goals of killing the muggleborns, half-bloods (wizards or witches born to One pureblood parent, one muggle or muggleborn parent), and muggles and having the `purebloods' be the dominant race again. Harry Potter is becoming increasingly strained from Voldemort's ability to use Legilimency (The ability to penetrate into peoples minds) against Harry and force him into seeing what Voldemort's seeing and/or doing as Harry sleeps.

This is a very powerful novel from the Harry Potter series on so many levels. It hits so close to home about high ranking bureaucratic government agencies trying to ruin the reputation of individuals who in fact try to do good just out of the fear of losing one's power even though that wouldn't necessarily happen. This book made me so angry not because it was bad, it was an excellent book but that it's oh so true how the inefficiency of political powers put many lives in danger by failing to warn the public about the impending dangers of an evil power rising and attempting to take over societies. Sometimes, I would even go far enough as to say that governmental agencies who undermine peoples attempts to warn about impending danger are just as bad, if not worse than the actual danger itself because of the attempts to reduce the publics ability to defend itself against attack. Cornelius Fudge is the prime example of this by refusing to believe Dumbledore's warnings about Voldemort's return and trying to discredit Dumbledore himself by sending in various cronies to ruin his reputation through various smear campaigns. Sadly, to tell you the truth, smear campaigns like this happen almost all the time around the world and even here in the US.

This is the darkest of the five books so far and if it is made into a movie, this could very well make "Chamber of Secrets" seem more like a comedy show. The artwork alone perfectly matches the dark tone of this book because the more light-hearted tone of the first book is almost completely absent on here and with some of the various scenes, I have to honestly say that this series is no longer exactly a children's book series and should evolve into a more grown up series. Althouhg some argue that this is a children's series, those who first read the "Sorcerer's Stone" are not the same people anymore and aim for a more mature tone and "The Order of The Phoenix" does just that. The tone of the books has gotten darker with each book and will only get more so with the final two books.

Summary of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5)

The fifth book in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series follows the darkest year yet for our young wizard, who finds himself knocked down a peg or three after the events of last year. Somehow, over the summer, gossip (usually traced back to the magic world's newspaper, the Daily Prophet) has turned Harry's tragic and heroic encounter with Voldemort at the Triwizard Tournament into an excuse to ridicule and discount the teen. Even Professor Dumbledore, headmaster of the school, has come under scrutiny by the Ministry of Magic, which refuses to officially acknowledge the terrifying truth that Voldemort is back. Enter a particularly loathsome new character: the toadlike and simpering ("hem, hem") Dolores Umbridge, senior undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, who takes over the vacant position of Defense Against Dark Arts teacher--and in no time manages to become the High Inquisitor of Hogwarts, as well. Life isn't getting any easier for Harry Potter. With an overwhelming course load as the fifth years prepare for their Ordinary Wizarding Levels examinations (O.W.Ls), devastating changes in the Gryffindor Quidditch team lineup, vivid dreams about long hallways and closed doors, and increasing pain in his lightning-shaped scar, Harry's resilience is sorely tested.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, more than any of the four previous novels in the series, is a coming-of-age story. Harry faces the thorny transition into adulthood, when adult heroes are revealed to be fallible, and matters that seemed black-and-white suddenly come out in shades of gray. Gone is the wide-eyed innocent, the whiz kid of Sorcerer's Stone. Here we have an adolescent who's sometimes sullen, often confused (especially about girls), and always self-questioning. Confronting death again, as well as a startling prophecy, Harry ends his year at Hogwarts exhausted and pensive. Readers, on the other hand, will be energized as they enter yet again the long waiting period for the next title in the marvelous, magical series. (Ages 9 and older) --Emilie Coulter

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