Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5) Harry Potter7

Product Description

I say to you all, once again--in the light of
Lord Voldemort's return, we are only as strong
as we are united, as weak as we are divided.
Lord Voldemort's gift for spreading discord and
enmity is very great. We can fight it only by showing
an equally strong bond of friendship and trust.

So spoke Albus Dumbledore at the end of Harry Potter's fourth year at Hogwarts. But as Harry enters his fifth year at wizard school, it seems those bonds have never been more sorely tested. Lord Voldemort's rise has opened a rift in the wizarding world between those who believe the truth about his return, and those who prefer to believe it's all madness and lies--just more trouble from Harry Potter.

Add to this a host of other worries for Harry…
• A Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher with a personality like poisoned honey
• A venomous, disgruntled house-elf
• Ron as keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch team
• And of course, what every student dreads: end-of-term Ordinary Wizarding Level exams

…and you'd know what Harry faces during the day. But at night it's even worse, because then he dreams of a single door in a silent corridor. And this door is somehow more terrifying than every other nightmare combined.

In the richest installment yet of J. K. Rowling's seven-part story, Harry Potter confronts the unreliability of the very government of the magical world, and the impotence of the authorities at Hogwarts.

Despite this (or perhaps because of it) Harry finds depth and strength in his friends, beyond what even he knew; boundless loyalty and unbearable sacrifice.

Though thick runs the plot (as well as the spine), readers will race through these pages, and leave Hogwarts, like Harry, wishing only for the next train back.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6023 in Books
• Published on: 2003-06
• Released on: 2003-06-21
• Format: Unabridged
• Number of items: 23
• Binding: Audio CD

Amazon.com Review
As his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry approaches, 15-year-old Harry Potter is in full-blown adolescence, complete with regular outbursts of rage, a nearly debilitating crush, and the blooming of a powerful sense of rebellion. It's been yet another infuriating and boring summer with the despicable Dursleys, this time with minimal contact from our hero's non-Muggle friends from school. Harry is feeling especially edgy at the lack of news from the magic world, wondering when the freshly revived evil Lord Voldemort will strike. Returning to Hogwarts will be a relief... or will it?

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

From School Library Journal
Grade 4 Up-Harry has just returned to Hogwarts after a lonely summer. Dumbledore is uncommunicative and most of the students seem to think Harry is either conceited or crazy for insisting that Voldemort is back and as evil as ever. Angry, scared, and unable to confide in his godfather, Sirius, the teen wizard lashes out at his friends and enemies alike. The head of the Ministry of Magic is determined to discredit Dumbledore and undermine his leadership of Hogwarts, and he appoints nasty, pink-cardigan-clad Professor Umbridge as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and High Inquisitor of the school, bringing misery upon staff and students alike. This bureaucratic nightmare, added to Harry's certain knowledge that Voldemort is becoming more powerful, creates a desperate, Kafkaesque feeling during Harry's fifth year at Hogwarts. The adults all seem evil, misguided, or simply powerless, so the students must take matters into their own hands. Harry's confusion about his godfather and father, and his apparent rejection by Dumbledore make him question his own motives and the condition of his soul. Also, Harry is now 15, and the hormones are beginning to kick in. There are a lot of secret doings, a little romance, and very little Quidditch or Hagrid (more reasons for Harry's gloom), but the power of this book comes from the young magician's struggles with his emotions and identity. Particularly moving is the unveiling, after a final devastating tragedy, of Dumbledore's very strong feelings of attachment and responsibility toward Harry. Children will enjoy the magic and the Hogwarts mystique, and young adult readers will find a rich and compelling coming-of-age story as well.
Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* No, you can't put it down, but believe me, you'll wish you could. This is not an easy book to lug around. Its worldwide hype aside, the fifth installment in Harry Potter's saga should be judged on the usual factors: plot, characters, and the quality of the writing. So how does it fare? One thing emerges quickly: Rowling has not lost her flair as a storyteller or her ability to keep coming up with new gimcracks to astound her readers. But her true skills lie in the way she ages Harry, successfully evolving him from the once downtrodden yet hopeful young boy to this new, gangly teenager showing all the symptoms of adolescence--he is sullen, rude, and contemptuous of adult behavior, especially hypocrisy. This last symptom of the maturing Harry fits especially well into the plot, which finds almost all of the grown-ups in the young wizard's life saying one thing and doing another, especially those at the Ministry of Magic, who discredit Harry in the media to convince the citizenry that Voldemort is not alive. Rowling effectively uses this plot strand as a way of introducing a kind of subtext in which she takes on such issues as governmental lying and the politics of personal destruction, but she makes her points in ways that will be clearly understood by young readers. To fight for truth and justice--and to protect Harry--the Order of the Phoenix has been reconstituted, but young Potter finds squabbling and hypocrisy among even this august group. And in a stunning and bold move, Rowling also allows Harry (and readers) to view an incident from the life of a teenage James Potter that shows him to be an insensitive bully, smashing the iconic view Harry has always had of his father. Are there problems with the book? Sure. Even though children, especially, won't protest, it could be shorter, particularly since Rowling is repetitious with descriptions (Harry is always "angry"; ultimate bureaucrat Doris Umbridge always looks like a toad). But these are quibbles about a rich, worthy effort that meets the very high expectations of a world of readers. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Excellent, Nearly Super
"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" takes Harry back to school for his fifth year. This is the longest and most complicated book so far. I think that it is excellent and comes close to being a super book. However, J.K. Rowling did run into some problems. The major problem is how one fits a great deal into a smaller space. Yet, the author must be true to several ideas that permeate the entire series.

The result is a book that is somewhat darker than any previous book and a book that is somewhat more difficult to read.

I think that younger readers should read this book, one chapter at a time. This will be hard to do, because the earlier books could, almost, be swallowed whole. Here, one must chew on the story, one bite at a time.

Is it possible to improve on what J.K. Rowling wrote? Perhaps. However, I am glad that I do not have to try to do that.

Really, the introductory review supplied by the publisher (way up above) gives a good enough idea of what to expect in terms of specifics. Harry is older and is going through a tough phase of adolescence. The tension is growing between the forces of good and evil. And, Harry must grow up. In addition, all the major characters face some growing pains. Further, the author must point the tale in a particular direction to start lining up a clean direction towards the ending of the series. This requires that the plot must include the death of a semi-major character.

In short, the ending is not quite the heroic success of the previous endings. Nor is the ending as neatly tied together. Finally, the plot of the entire series turns in unexpected and complicated ways.

Yet, I rate this book highly. Have some patience reading this book. There is a lot of material to digest.

This is a very good book but requires some effort on the part of the reader.

George Orwell Comes to Hogwarts
Ms. Rowling's fifth book involves oodles of political intrigue between the government in power and many of the major characters teaching or attending Hogwarts. The school slowly morphs into a brutal, totalitarian institution under the control of the government. The reasons for the repression of the students and teachers are more complicated than simply good vs evil. This story is a wonderful way of teaching readers about the loss of individual rights. It is clearly darker than the previous four, but still very entertaining. There is plenty of magic, humor and excitement to keep readers of all ages entertained. However, I don't believe it is possible to fully understand and enjoy Ms. Rowling's fifth installment without reading the prior books. Also, many things are left hanging at the end and requires you to continue into the sixth novel for answers. No problem there. Ms. Rowling's books are addictive.

An amazing novel
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the great transitional novel in the series. The first books have action and interesting plot twists, but the tone changes in this book. In the previous books, when Harry Potter wins a battle (aka the conclusion of a book), the reader experiences a feeling that everything is all right and will be right. However, throughout this book and into the next ones, the confident feeling that Harry will survive and defeat Voldemort and restore the peaceful, jovial magical world we knew in the first books is challenged. The changes in Harry's character do not inspire confidence either. The character we embraced and grew with is becoming a snotty, arrogant idiot. I found myself questioning whether the world Harry lives in will ever be the same even if Voldemort is defeated.

This is a great book and the beginning of the action that makes this series one of the best I have ever read. I recommend it to all.