Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry just can't seem to catch a break, can he? Even when he's not wrapped in some scheme involving Voldemort, he ends up going through his most intense emotional trial to date.

Harry's off to start his third year of Hogwarts, after blowing up his aunt, going on the lam and finding out Sirius Black, a convicted mass murderer and major supporter of Voldemort, is after him. Fearing for his safety, the Ministry of Magic stations the Dementors of Azkaban, soul sucking monstrosities with a curiously evil fascination with Harry. Needless to say it's going to be an interesting year, especially with sightings of Sirius Black that indicate he's headed straight to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry......

So, confession time; I've always considered this in the running for my least favorite of the series, topped only by Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Which is the first major surprise of the re-read for me; I absolutely loved it. I couldn't help myself, I completely blew past everyone else in the read along and I have no regrets. I just enjoyed it too much. Rowling ups the ante in this book on many levels.

Rowling finally seems to master her handling of the darkness that I pointed out she begins to use in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. The entire book takes on a dark, sinister air right off the bat when we learn Sirius Black is on the loose, and it rapidly becomes clear the name is synonymous with extreme violence. In addition to this, we meet the Dementors, truly some of the most foul creatures in the entire series. On top of all this, as the Dementors draw near, Harry relives the murder of his parents with a level of detail unlike anything to date, adding a morbid pall to the tale helped along by the threat of execution lying over Buckbeak the Hippogriff. It's the little things, that all come together and makes it work. She finally stops trying to add a childish, wonderous spin to the darkness, and what we end up with is an even darker, but infinitely more powerful story.

I like to think of this as the book when Harry finally hits puberty. His infamous temper begins to rear it's head, and over the course of the novel Harry deals with plenty of emotional turmoil as the relationship between Sirius Black and his parents is slowly revealed. In addition to this, even the best of friends will argue now and then, and when Crookshanks enters the picture, Ron and Hermione begin to squabble. Precisely like two kids that secretly like each other, but Rowling's still holding that card close to her chest in this book. It's a laundry list, when you think of it; the book opens with him enduring some pretty horrid insults from Vernon Dursley's sister, then he spends all year listening to batty old Professor Trelawney predict his death, amplified by his seeing death omens all over the place.

I actually have one complaint with this book. I think it wraps together far too neatly in the end. It's a signature Rowling ending, with all the threads tied off except those she intends to use again, but the final straw for me was the letter he receives allowing him to go to Hogsmeade. That really made me groan. But at the same time it felt like precisely what the book is, a middle grade book ending.

All in all, considering I never held any special love for this book, I'm glad I chose to re-read this series. So far not only has every book been even more fun to read than I can recall, it's also interesting seeing everything from a new perspective. And now with the first act of the series over, things are only about to heat up with the Goblet of Fire. Onwards!