Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (SPOILER THREAD) — Page 8

Waitaminute. Why assume Lily could only be great at one subject? Maybe she was good at Charms and Potions. The HBP book bore signs of being written in during the whole school year- it makes no sense that he'd write extensive notes, including made-up spells, in the whole thing and then give it to Lily. If she was a year younger than him it would be possible, but otherwise I'm not seeing it.

And really, I just think he had a crush on her, not some stalkerish obsession. Let's say he liked her in school and lost touch after graduation. Finding out that he was partially responsible for her death would still be enough to make him guilty, and to make him realize the real-world consequences of being a Death Eater. It's like what happened with Malfoy- he thought it was cool until he was being pressured under threat of death to kill his headmaster. Snape probably thought it was cool until a girl he liked in school got killed.

The Potions thing was new, but interesting to learn. One of the big disappointments about this book, for me, was not learning more about Harry's parents. I mean, for crying out loud, Rowling! I know more about Voldemort's friggin' grandfather than I do about Lily.

If I'm remembering right, Snape called her Mudblood after she defended him, right? That must have been a big blow to his male pride, to be defended by a girl. He was just being spiteful.

Okay, I finally finished this evening. It took almost as long to read through this thread as the book, but there are some really interesting thoughts.
First, I said either Hermione or Dumbledore would die in this book, and was leaning far more towards Dumbledore, the Hermione thing came from someone else. It was his time.
I don't know why in particular this was true, but I was far less emotionally invested in this book than in the fifth. I cried for 30 minutes after book 5, and the end to this one, though I was certainly hoping it wouldn't happen, seemed a little more predictable and, for some reason, I was okay with it.
I think it would be extremely hard to have the book not take place largely at Hogwarts. I always found the stuff that happened somewhere else less interesting anyway, I just wanted them to get to school. I hope something ends up happening there. Plus, like Plum (I think) said, the structure would just be too different from the other books.
I don't know how I feel about Snape. Even from the early "Unbreakable Vow" chapter, I still wanted him to be good, if only to prove Dumbledore right. I'm kind of hoping the Snape is good theory is correct, it would certainly explain why Dumbledore pleaded for his life when he'd called death "the next great adventure" (or something like that.) I do think, however, that he could still be pleading not to be killed not because he didn't want to die, but because he didn't want to leave Harry, therefore not pleading for his life, but for Harry's.

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"Well JK has said that she has had the ENTIRE story outlined for YEARS before the first book she ever published.

She may not have it written yet, but she knows EVERYTHING that will happen already. "

She amazes me.... How can her mind store all of that information!? This is why I am not a writer, I suppose.

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well although I think that Snape is not EVIL at all, probably Alan Rickman's rating will fall a lot on the next Potter movie Premiere.

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"She amazes me.... How can her mind store all of that information!? This is why I am not a writer, I suppose."

She's got boxes and boxes of notebooks. ^_^;;

I had a feeling it would be Dumbledore. Sad, but not unexpected.
And what the hell is all this nonsense about Harry not returning to school?? I really hope it's just a passing feeling. I mean, how the hell can he not go back for his last year?

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It is becauase there are more important things than his final year. I doubt that what he has to use to finish Voldemort (whatver that may be) will be something he learns in his last year.

Finished my reread last night. The ending, while necessary, felt almost corny. It had the same feeling that the first Spiderman movie had. How he FINALLY got the girl, then he gives her up because he has to fulfill his destiny. And how come he is allowing Ron and Hermione (unless i misunderstood) go with him or help him and not Ginny? Surely Voldemort could use them too. Does he not care?

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"And I'd love to have them.

Do you think they'll ever go on Ebay?"

As JKR's big on charity work, I think it's actually possible some of them might go up for charity auctions at some point in time.

"Finished my reread last night. The ending, while necessary, felt almost corny. It had the same feeling that the first Spiderman movie had. How he FINALLY got the girl, then he gives her up because he has to fulfill his destiny. And how come he is allowing Ron and Hermione (unless i misunderstood) go with him or help him and not Ginny? Surely Voldemort could use them too. Does he not care?"

I don't think it's that he doesn't care; he just doesn't want her hurt or killed because of him. I think he loves Ginny, and as more than a friend. Granted, the loss of Ron or Hermione would be devastating to him, but it wouldn't hurt the way it would if Ginny were to die. I have a feeling Harry's one of those chivalrous boys who insists on doing everything for a girl, no matter how many times she tells him that she can open her own damn door. Not that there's anything wrong with chivalrous guys, fellas, but we *are* capable of doing things for ourselves...

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Way off topic here, but.. I wonder just how JKR's ex-husband must be feeling about now?

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Is it coincidence or fate?

I wonder how many more patrons come into that little coffee house now.

No way... she wrote it on a napkin?