Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – J.K. Rowling
Entering his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry finds himself with new resolve, understanding, and responsibility. As captain of the Quidditch team, it falls to Harry to maintain the Gryffindor winning streak while also facing his most difficult year of school, though surprisingly in different subjects. With help from a new potions teacher, and even more help from an inscribed potions book that belonged to the “Half-Blood Prince,” Harry finds himself at the top of the class. In addition to the increase in coursework, Harry also takes private lessons with Dumbledore to help him prepare for the day when he must finally face He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. More than ever before, the boundaries of morality, trust, and friendship are blurred beyond recognition as Harry finds himself facing ever more difficult and ambiguous decisions.

“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” is a beautiful continuation of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Harry learns to trust despite loss, build relationships despite being hurt, and connect with others despite his desire to isolate himself. He begins to see how important the people around him are, especially as he learns about Voldemort’s past. Moreover, Rowling manages to convey all this within the realm of average adolescent occurrences. As always, Rowling finds a way to write the themes of humanity into the world of wizardy and make it accessible to everybody. She creates such polar opposite characters in Voldemort and Dumbledore while also showing how everyone is connected by some underlying thread of commonality. However, she also shatters these universal lessons by confusing the uniting factors with secrecy, treachery, and disloyalty. The less certainty Harry experiences in his relationships, the more he learns to trust what is can be sure of – the supportive relationships in his life.

After the behemoth of “Order of the Phoenix,” “The Half-Blood Prince” feels like a breeze. Pithy, succinct, and only addresses the most relevant parts. Not that any part of Harry Potter is irrelevant, but the story moves along much faster in “The Half-Blood Prince.” Rowling also provides a refreshing change from the increasingly dark storyline by refocusing on hope, optimism, and connection. The sixth book also comes with more than its fair share of heart wrenching grief, but it’s not quite as overwhelming as in previous novels. She also manages to squeeze in politics, academics, and the equivalent of driver’s ed into one of the shorter novels in the series. Entertaining, enlightening, and ever relatable, this book is just as fantastic as any other Harry Potter book. You need to read it.