Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

In this fifth volume of the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, the ascendancy of the Ministry of Magic against the leadership of Headmaster of Hogwarts Professor Arbus Dumbledore continues.  It might be asked what a sixty-two year old retired English teacher is doing reading the Harry Potter series anyway.  I chatted with two children recently, a seven year old English boy and a thirteen year old American girl, each of whom had recently read the book.  They both thought it was a great read.  I think it’s a marvelous piece of satire as well as a great read. 

In this volume, the Ministry of Magic has appointed Delores Umbridge to Hogwarts as Professor Against the Dark Arts.  Umbridge manages to encompass every nastiness teachers hate in educational bureaucrats into one unctuous mess.  She argues that students only need good theory not practical application and that, after all, the purpose of taking the course is to past tests, not to learn to cast spells to fight against the powers of evil which are supposedly seeking to reassert themselves in the world.  Her nastiness is hidden behind the sweetness of a little old lady doing what needs to be done for the good of all, a self-righteousness easily recognized by anyone who’s been inside a school ever, but most especially in these recent days of establishing leveling tests as the standard of excellance.

In this go round, Harry has fully entered in adolescence.  He finds he’s immobilized at thoughts of Cho Chang, a lovely witch in training from Ravenclaw House, and torn between his attraction to her and his bewilderment at her responses to him.  Harry has increasing difficulty managing his anger at his teachers and friends as his world spins out of control.  He knows the evil Lord Voldamort has returned, but the fusty bureaucracy of the Ministry of Magic insists on denial, not out of venaility, but rather from organizational ignorance, a state recognized by all.  Perhaps here lies the source of the Potter saga’s broad appeal.  While children can marvel at the magic trickeries, adolescents connect to the angst of Harry and his friends as they grow up, and adults recognize the institutions we all struggle with on a daily basis.  Add to this a rip roaring adventure tale and this long (870 pages) book becomes a daring page turner. 

I guess I need to enter one word of caution here.  Do NOT start reading the Harry Potter series anywhere but at the beginning.  These books will only make sense when read in sequence.  With five down in the projected seven book series, I’m already looking forward to number eight.