So, any other rabid Harry Potter fans here? I've almost finished Order of the Phoenix for the umpteenth time. (I'd like to finish the series yet again before the last book comes out). Anyone else really looking forward to the release at the end of the month? My sis, another rabid fan, told me that JK Rowling has been telling people how she bawled at the end of writing the last chapter, drank champagne, and then bawled again. I'm really hoping it was from fatigue/ a bad year for the champagne. I'll be most upset if she kills off one of the three kids (or Ginny). I watched some clips from an MTV roundtable discussion on the last book, and good gosh, some of those kids are smart! Any thoughts?

Megan

I'm a total Harry Potter finatic! Harry Potter rules! I have read the books three times each. (The 1st one I read 4 times. Hee hee!)

I cant stand waiting for the release of the new book and movie. There are six days left until the Order of The Pheonix comes out and the book comes out in 14 days. Woo hoo!

For who dies in the next book.....I'm not sure. My brother thinks it will be Harry or Hagrid?! There is a good possibility that Harry can die, but that would be awful! Hagrid will not die I don't think. Or one of the obvious answers is He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I hope it's He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.... Or Snape the evil freak!

I love Harry Potter!! I'm almost finished reading the 5th one!! I'm one page 734!! I also cant wait for the book to come out!! And the movie!! Everyone in my house is a Harry Potter fan!!!

P.S. Goofo is my brother

Very nice to have a sibling to enjoy the series with! My sister is coming over w/ her kiddos the weekend of the book release. (Helps that my daughters chose to have a Harry Potter bday party this year... it will be on Sunday). We are always sending each other links since we don't live close enough to argue about the series in real life.

I've read that 2 major characters will die in the final book. I can see one of them being Harry, but I'm hoping not. It would ruin the series for me. One is definitely Voldemort. I'm trying to find her interview with the bbc online... I think it was supposed to air in the UK tonight.

Megan

Goofo,

Is Snape really and evil freak? Is Dumbledore really dead? Maybe this was part of the plan to get Snape deep inside the death eaters.

Avada Kadavra curse kills instantly and has never been portrayed as lifting someone up and sending them flying....

Lots in the last book about non-verbal curses and killing curses only work IF you mean them.(remember when Harry used one in the OOTP. It didn't work because you really have to mean to kill your victim). Maybe Snape used a nonverbal curse to send Dumbledore over the tower and spoke the killing curse.


As you can see, I'm a big Potter fan. I reread 5 and 6. OOTP to get ready for the movie and HBP to prep for the new book. I preordered the new book and I get to read it before the kids touch it.

As for who may die in this book- I have my feelings and fears. JKR says that no one will be able to continue the Potter series after this book....does this mean that Harry has to die? I hope not. I also know she has intimated that Hermione isn't safe something to the effect that people do need to worry about her.....everyone worries about Ron and Harry but not the intellegent Hermione.

OWooo I could go on for hours. In fact my son and I had an hour long discussion about these things last night.

I will leave with this question.... Is Harry a Horcrux?

Rowling has said that Dumbledore is dead. So, I don't think he is going to come back. I wouldn't be surprised if Harry is a horocrux... Voldemort saved significant murders to make them. Harry would have been most significant since Voldemort believed the prophecy. I think there is more to Lily's sacrifice than meets the eye. She was very good at charms and potions according to Slughorn. Someone on the MTV roundtable had a very good point.... what was the point of making Dementers? Dark creatures that can suck the soul out of a wizard..... hmmmm... is this needed to get rid of the part of Voldemort's soul residing in Harry? Thought that was an interesting idea at least. I'm still divided on Snape. Re-reading the books for the, I've lost count how many times, he is really evil to Harry throughout. I'm looking forward to finding out why Dumbledore was convinced of his change of heart.

Megan

I was reading a quote from JKR- it said something to the effect that "scar is no longer the last word. although it is ONE of the last few words."

She said 2 people die.

I think she cried at the end b/c she is ending a huge part of her life. It has to be emotional and she was killing off people.

Where it said that JKR said that Dumbledore is dead?

Let me tell you, there is SUCH a huge amount of secrecy (sp?) with the printing of this book. Turns out my FIL's company is printing the new Harry Potter book and there are armed guards around the presses, shredders to take care of any misprinted pages, they cannot have their cell phones in the area of the presses AND they are all completely covered as well.

I personally never really got into Harry Potter, but my 11yo enjoys it and can't wait for the book to come out Unfortunately Grandpa can't get him an early copy lol.

I, too am an avid fan of the Harry Potter series (watching the first movie on tv right now). I read all of the books - the last few I was waiting at midnight so I could be one of the first to read it. I read them as quickly as I possibly can. The kids are always quite impressed that I can read such a big book so quickly. While reading so intensely, other things do go by the wayside- laundry, cooking, cleaning can all wait! Right now I am reading book 5 - Order of the Phoenix to the kids at bedtime. We have about 150 pages left to go- we want to finish before seeing the movie. I cannot wait for the movie or the last book. I just pre-ordered my copy, however we will be camping in the boonies when it is released - about an hour away from civilization(or at least from any store selling the book on day 1). Might have to come out of the woods for a bit to get my new book!

I agree with whoever said they believve Dumbledore is still alive. Snape is harder to figure out. Is he really evil? I'm not sure on that yet. Who will die? I think it could be Snape - he will show his true allegiance with the order by protecting Harry. Is Harry a Horcrux? Hmm possiblity? So much to find out. I have heard this will be the longest book yet. But how can it be the last? - so much more could happen, no matter what is in the next 800+ pages.

I just realized this...I really hope in the seventh book that Ron and Hermione get together. (Unless Ron or Hermione are one of the people JK Rowling kills.)

Remember in OOTP when Dumbledore was battling Voldemort and Fawkes swooped in and swallowed one on V's killing curses do save Dumbledore? Why didn't the phoenix come to Dombledore's defense against Snape? Phoenix tears have healing qualities....No one "saw" Dumbledores body at the funeral but when it burned Harry was smoke rising up in the shape of the Phoenix.

Back to Snape, yes he was horrid to Harry but some people can't get past the torments that others put them thru in their teen years. James was never nice to Snape and Harry looks like his father. It's not right but Snape seems to enjoy being able to finally one up a Potter. Yes, he was a death eater but not all death eaters returned to Voldemort. Regullas Black turned away from being a death eater and was killed for it. What better way to get intel on the Dark Lord than thru Snape. Yes, he said he was at Hogwarts to spy but what else was he going to tell Malfoy's mother and aunt. If he is spying on Voldemort he would not blow his cover to them.

I too am a rabid HP fan. I have had my copy Deathly Hallows preordered since the publish date was announced (was it back in December or January, I can't remember). I really do believe Snape is Dumbledore's man, and I guess we will find out in the end. Yes, he was nasty to Harry because Harry looked just like James, but remember in OOTP when Harry confronts Sirius about Snape's memory in Dumbledore's pensive, Sirius admits that they (he and James) tormented Snape "merely because he existed"... There again, even though Snape is not a nice man, he does manage to teach the trio many important things, and faces one of his greatest fears without a second thought to rescue them from a transformed Lupin in POA.

Anyway, I guess that is one reason why I love JK's characters so much. They are all so well drawn and human. You care about them. She is very good at making her characters neither wholly good or wholly evil (except Voldemort maybe). They are all drawn in shades of gray.

My feeling is that Harry must die for Voldemort to die. It only makes sense that it will almost certainly have to happen that way, especially if JK wants the series to end here. I'm beginning to wonder about Ginny too. Will she try to sacrifice herself for Harry? Who knows...

I hope Rowling doesn't kill Ron of Hermoine.

Rowling's talk where she says that Dumbledore is dead.

Dumbledore is dead news article

My sister thinks that there is more to his death than we know. I wouldn't be surprised with Rowling.

I bet that Harry, Hagrid and Voldemort will die.

I'm a huge (some say obsessed) fan of the Harry Potter books. I've read them all at least 4 or 5 times. I can not wait for the 7th book to come out, yet I'm sad that it is the last one. The movies are great, but the books are better, of course. I can't wait to see the 5th movie too--the Twin's "exit" from Hogwarts was one of the highlights of the 5th book for me and I hope they do it well in the movie.
I think Dumbledoor is dead, but he was already partially dead before he was "killed" by Snape. Remember in the first book when Snape (or is it Hermoine) talks about the "stopper of death" potion? I think Snape used that on Dumbledoor after he was injured while getting the Slytherin ring horcrux. I think Dumbledoor would have died then, but Snape saved him--or delayed (stoppered) his death until they could set things in motion for Snape to be with Voldemort without any suspicion by Voldemort. (see John Granger's book Unlocking Harry Potter: Five Keys for the Serious Reader for more details on this theory).
I think the Twins sacrifice themselves while fighting the death eaters/Voldemort in book 7. I'm so scared that Hagrid will die too---all of Harry's "caregivers" except Hagrid have been killed so far.
I think Harry's anger and explosive behavior is linked to Voldemort transferring some of himself into Harry when he got the scar. (see John Granger again). John Granger points out you don't know anything about what Voldemort is doing throughout book 6---and that doesn't mean that Voldemort is sitting quietly somewhere--it probably means Voldemort is doing something really bad, since the book is really only from Harry's point of view. A point of view that was proven almost completly wrong/inaccurate in its perception (especially about Snape) in books 1-5.
That's my 2 cents for now.

I have read all of the books twice. I will probably read all of them three times once the seventh book comes out.