Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

by J. K. Rowling

Summary:

It’s time for the third years to go back to Hogwarts, and Harry is looking forward to seeing his friends. There’s not much time of summer vacation left, but what is left looks bleak-his Aunt Marge is coming to visit. This is particularly awful because Marge loves bringing her vicious dog Ripper, and has a nasty habit of criticizing Harry and his parents. On the last day of her stay, she pushes him over the edge, and he blows her up-not in a BOOM! way, but in an expanding-like-a-balloon way. Knowing that the Ministry will be very angry because he’s an underage wizard using magic over the holidays [which he's not allowed to do] Harry runs for it. He accidentally hails the Knight Bus-a bus which provides transportation for the stranded witch or wizard. When he arrives at the Leaky Cauldron, he’s astounded to see Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic waiting for him. Fudge appears relieved at Harry’s arrival [though he has no idea why], and tells him that he’s not going to Azkaban [the wizard prison] for merely blowing up is aunt, and no harm’s done. Soon Harry, Ron and Hermione are reunited and off to school. On the Hogwarts Express, their journey is interrupted by a dementor-a hooded soul-sucking creature that feeds off of the emotions of humans and drains all hope and good feeling from a room, and Harry passes out. Thankfully the new DADA [Defense Against the Dark Arts] teacher, Professor R. J. Lupin is in their compartment, and makes it go away.

Upon arriving at Hogwarts, the students are told that the dementors will be at every Hogwart’s enterance until serial killer and Voldemort-supporter Sirius Black is captured after his escape [the first one ever] from Azkaban. Harry’s demonstrated an especially strong reaction to the dementors, and asks Professor Lupin for lessons to help ward them off, which he readily grants. As the year goes on, the third years are allowed to go to Hogsmeade, one of the only all-magical towns in Great Britain, except for Harry because his uncle didn’t sign the permission slip. Fred and George give Harry the Marauder’s Map-a map of Hogwarts showing every secret passageway in and out of the castle, a map of the grounds, and all the people as they move around- which allows him to go in and out of Hogsmeade. There after locating his friends, they go to the Three Broomsticks [the Hogsmeade pub] to have a drink of butterbeer, and Harry finds out why he wasn’t in trouble with the Minister after running off-Sirius Black is after him. He’d been muttering “He’s at Hogwarts” over and over in prison, and is also…Harry’s godfather [not in the The Godfather movie way].

At the end of the year, Ron, after thinking his rat Scabbers had been killed by Hermione’s cat Crookshanks, finds him in Hagrid’s cabin. He is then attacked by a giant black dog and dragged into a space under the Whomping Willow, and when Hermione and Harry follow they discover it’s a secret passage to the Shrieking Shack [in Hogsmeade, suppossedly one of the most haunted houses in England]. The dog turns out to be Sirius Black, who is an animagus [a wizard who can turn into an animal at will]. Not long after comes Remus Lupin, then Severus Snape [who is knocked out by Harry Hermione and Ron's simultaneous Disarming Charms]. Remus and Sirius explain that Sirius never killed anyone-and Hary’s in for the surprise of his thirteen-year-old life.

Review:

This was really long too, sorry everyone! I know that sometime I’m extremely thorough and other times very vague, and again, I apologize. Anyway…this book was very interesting, especially the end. I’ve already read this series multiple times but I’m still always intrigued. Fans around the world have been shocked by this ending, and I daresay that if you haven’t read it you will too. This deals with the puzzle of time [I'll give you no more than that] bringing up the space/time conundrum that still gives me a headache to think about. Very fresh, even apart from the first two books, and is possibly one of my favorite Harry Potter books, as it doesn’t come from other sources such as myths, movies, etc. [to my knowledge]. Though I do find the first three very similar and in some ways monotonous, I liked the change that this book brought. I also find that with all the excitement happening to Harry, it gets out of hand and every scene is wilder than the next, though after all, that’s what this book is based on. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban gets a 9/10 for originality, surprise and for being well thought out, though very similar to the first two books [except the ending...]. Recommended for ages 11+

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