Harry potter and the cursed child discussion

syrima

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 1:09 am

Read the book today and just had to post about it here, it was a fast read but I felt really worthwhile. So nice to see the characters as grown up parents who are lovably imperfect. Great new characters too. People are kvetching about the time travel but I think jkr had to do this bc hello the bad guy was defeated so without the suspense of omg will he come back the whole play would be just a glorified sitcom.
Play form took getting used to, but it leaves a lot to the imagination, while focusing on the dialogue and action. What did you think?

youngishbear

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 1:13 am

I didn't read the book yet, but just from reading the spoilers, I was disappointed that she didn't stick to the simplified time travel system she had used in POA. The premise there was basically that only what has already happened can be made to happen using time turners. Leaving the options open for future and past meddling messes up the orderliness of the Potterverse.

Looking forward to changing my mind after reading the book!

gold21

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 1:39 am

Is it a good choice for a 10 yr old Harry Potter fan who enjoyed the original 7 books? Same reading level and relatively clean?

bigbird

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 3:09 am

Loved it! Although I already read spoilers, I never cease to be amazed at how she comes up with these complicated plots. Would love to see the play!

syrima

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 7:17 am

Gold21, it depends. Play is less scary to read than book 6 or 7 for sure. No complicated philosophy about horcruxes and resurrection like book 7. Language is clean throughout, which is appreciated. Lots of scenes are kind of replay from previous books so that kids will definitely enjoy. That said, there are married adults in the play who kiss each other "hard" and this play is pretty explicit about the possibility that a child can be born out of wedlock ( to Voldemort, but still). So if you don't want your kid to know about that idea yet then that might be a reason to pass. If he can deal with the peer pressure of "all my friends are reading it!"
My 12 year old dd will be reading it, my 9 year old ds is still stopped at book 2.

syrima

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 10:03 am

Yes the reviews are mostly bashing - it's actually fun to read them. Just remember that lots of these people are diehard fans who have named kids after the books,lined up outside bookstores at midnight to grab one, and feel the sun rises and sets over Hogwarts, and have set their expectations pretty high.
if you are just expecting a book with suspense and some good scenes it delivers on that.

gp2.0

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 10:28 am

I'm a huge Harry Potter fan and I think I'll stay away. I don't like reading scripts anyway, and after reading the spoilers about why people are disappointed, I think I'll be disappointed too. There are lots of websites for reading really good Harry Potter fanfiction. No need to read subpar fanfiction.

Looking forward to Fantastic Beasts in a few months.

youngishbear

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 10:33 am

gp2.0 wrote:

I can't stay away. Even if it will upset me.

Please do share good fanfiction links.

amother

Olive

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 12:47 pm

For those who read all 7, to what extent are dating/physical relationships a factor in 3 and 4. My child, a relatively sheltered 9 year old, just finished 2, which has a touch of "crush/like" in it, and mentions Percy kissing his girlfriend. (Child and I are reading the series together.). I don't plan on letting them go past 4 right now, due to the violence in 5/6/7, and would appreciate guidance on where to make the cutoff. I don't want to read in advance to decide for myself, child would be upset if I finish the series first. Thank you!

syrima

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 3:56 pm

Not much about dating/crushes in book 3 yet. My concern for that age would be more the idea of dementors, which suck out a person's soul, as well as betrayals and double agents, and a story about multiple people dying. Definitely a step up the maturity ladder from book 2, but maybe if you read it together you can help explain things.

amother

Olive

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 4:22 pm

Thanks! We are reading together. As I promised not to read ahead (it helped them swallow the "you aren't reading all seven now" pill), your advice is a big help!

gp2.0

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 11:39 pm

youngishbear wrote:

I can't stay away. Even if it will upset me.

Please do share good fanfiction links.

Sorry! It's been ages since I read any so I don't really remember specific ones. But if you go to any fanfiction site you can filter your search by five star reviews, only complete fics, maturity level, and anything else you'd like to see featured. You only have to read a paragraph of the first chapter to see if it's well written and your style, and you're off. fanfiction.mugglenet.com had some great ones back in the day that are probably still up, so did fanfiction.net.

I could probably dig up a list somewhere of the best fanfictions and see if any of them ring a bell. But like I said, it's been awhile...

Rutabaga

Mon, Aug 01 2016, 11:41 pm

I haven't read this thread yet because I don't want to see any spoilers, but I just got notified that the copy of the book I requested from the library is in. I'm very excited to read it over the weekend!

gold21

Tue, Aug 02 2016, 12:06 am

syrima wrote:

Thank you. Thats a very helpful review of the book!! Tongue Out