New Clues to Harry Potter Book 5: Hints from the Ultimate Unofficial Guide to the Mysteries of Harry Potter

Rating:
Summary: For those having trouble...
Review: I wrote a review for this book earlier, but for those that are having trouble with the clues, a Harry Potter fansite formed a discussion board for all of the clues in this wonderful book. It can be found at http://www.newclues.mugglenet.com/

What's great is that if you disagree with all of the theories in the book, you can use this place to prove why, so either way, you still are spending time with the magic of the Harry Potter world.


Rating:
Summary: disappointing.
Review: J.K. Rowling's writing is deceptively simple. On the surface, her books are populist fairy tales, Tolkien for tweens. It's easy to to dismiss Rowling on the grounds of her immense wealth, the licensing of her characters, and the merciless onslaught of merchandising, but Rowling is actually a master storyteller and a linguist of Lewis Carroll proportions. What seem like fun children's books are really meticulously crafted pieces of art. Anyone who doubts this can consult the "Guide to the Mysteries of Harry Potter," which explains the subtleties and nuances of Harry Potter books 1-4 in an understandable, intelligent way.

While the previous Guide was fun, easy to read, concise, and well-informed, the Guide for book 5 doesn't quite do Rowling's massive maze of a novel justice. This Guide is "hints only" -- which means that you are expected to seek out references and clues on your own. The authors send the reader on quite a few wild goose chases and seem to confuse "literary allusions" with "important and vital clues." There is also the tendency to reinforce the importance of a "concealed clue" without giving the reader sufficient information to dig it up.

For instance, there are constant references to a "big mythological deity" relating to baboon/simian running bits in book 5. The Guide tells us that this is important but we are never told where to look. Norse mythology? Greek? Egyptian? You have to give us a little more to go on, Guide! Eventually, I tracked the big mythological baboon deity down (hint: Egyptian god Babi) and after reading up on him, I wasn't sure ol' Babi had anything to do with the story at all, especially not in the context in which these supposed references to him were made. The Guide duped me, wasted my time.

Most of the "suggested reading" that the Guide refers back to throughout the book contains literature that is ALLUDED to in book 5 (and many of these allusions are questionable), and this is an important distinction. Emily Dickinson's poem "I'm Nobody" certainly seems to be directly referenced by Rowling. However, there is nothing new in this poem -- at the very most, it hints at what we discover about Neville at the end of the book. You won't miss anything if you don't hunt it down and read it, though. As for T.S. Eliot's "Burnt Norton" and "Murder in the Cathedral," well, you could say those works have related themes, but they're really reaching. And Saki's "The Open Window" and Alfred Lord Tennyson's "Sir Galahad" and the lyrics to the Moody Blues song "The Dream?" Don't bother. There's nothing there, nothing at all.

Sorely missed are the "Rowlinguistics" sections at the end of each chapter -- the Guide is not nearly as enthusiastic about explaining the nuance of Rowling's use of language as they were in the previous guide, and that's a pity, considering most of us are not fluent in Latin and French and have trouble working these things out on our own. The Guide instead devotes its time to a few pet theories (Lupin and James performed a Switching Spell and Lupin is Harry's dad!) that frankly DO NOT have much evidence to support them. These theories are largely intuitive, without a logical leg to stand on, and we know what Hermione would have to say about that. To spend more time defending strange theories than dissecting what is ACTUALLY contained in the books is... well, does Galadriel Waters work at The Quibbler? Maybe I should try reading the Guide upside-down.

Ultimately, this guide was very disappointing, especially when stacked up against the guides to the previous books. I felt it was sloppy and rushed in places, desperate and far-fetched in others. If this is your first outing with sleuthing guides, start with the guide for books 1-4 -- they will give you most of the tools you need to unlock "Order of the Phoenix" on your own. Don't go out of your way to get this one.

Rating:
Summary: Great book for every Harry Potter fan
Review: New Clues to Harry Potter Book 5 is simply a must read for every Harry Potter fan.

Rating:
Summary: This is NOT Harry Potter for Dummies!
Review: Quite the contrary actually! This book gives readers the process, rules, and sources that Ms. Waters and her colleagues use to figure out JKR's clues. We all know that JKR is a well-read individual; it only makes sense that she would indeed refer to 'classics' from literature and other sources. Unlike Ms. Waters first guide, this book is intended to give those who would like to try their hand at figuring out JKR's clues a sort of blue print to follow. It does not spell out everything like the first guide. But, it does separate what is actually their speculation and what are decidedly clues. Order of the Phoenix is incredibly complex and this book will help you to understand underlying clues in the text. It is not fanfic or some useless book of theories. It helps you to sift through the red herrings and see what JKR intended. However, this book IS NOT for the faint of heart. It will take critical thinking and a lot of reading to truly use this guide to its fullest. This book is intended for our enjoyment while we wait on Ms. Waters' update to her unofficial guide AND the all important HP Book 6! Just as a footnote...there must be something to Ms. Waters' process; after all, she only had one mistake from the first guide to Order of the Phoenix! That seems like a pretty good track record to me!

Rating:
Summary: Not as expected...
Review: The book is just a "for fun" read. Some of the author's theories are really far-fetched and I could see no connection between some of the clues and why it was so important. For an example, why is it so important that the readers remember Dudley's best friend's name (Polkiss and Piers)? What does that have to do with clues to reveal book 6? Also the author really emphasizes that Neville has had a memory charm oh him! The exapmle they used did not make sense in my head and I saw no connection to it pointing to Neville's memory being modified. The running bits really confused me, I mean what does wheels and spindels have to do with the outcome of the book?
I honestly think that if you are a person who is looking for help anaylzing the book, then this is NOT the book to buy.

Rating:
Summary: Not a Book for the Average Harry Potter Enthusiast
Review: The previous "Ultimate Unofficial Guide to the Mysteries of Harry Potter," is highly recommended for those who want an interesting read without having to put forth great effort. WARNING: This book ("New Clues to Harry Potter Book 5") is not an easy read. It is sort of like taking a college level literature course. There is an entire list of recommended reading from the works of Lewis Carroll's, "Hunting the Snark" and Emily Dickinson's "I'm Nobody," to Classical Mythology and Mysticism. With their previous book, they came up with some accurate predictions, such as: Peeves may serve as the castle's alarm system, and how the Weasley twins' inventions may prove to be helpful, but they also bombed out on others. However, the point is that it gives a fun new approach to literature in the guise of hunting for clues. It certainly has given me a new appreciation for the classical literature and mythology that I never had before.

Rating:
Summary: Makes the wait worth it
Review: This book is fantastic. This book came out 3 months after OotP as a clues only guide and right away it challenged the Harry Potter lover in me. No matter if the clues are right or wrong, I can spend hours debating them with my family, making it a FANTASTIC book to read with everyone. Its even helped my turn some of my more skeptical friends into sleuths! I recommend this book for all ages and fan levels. The only problem I have is that some of the clues seem to be way over my head. Overall it is a great book that makes you think and helps you through the wait for book 6.

Rating:
Summary: Good.. but not great
Review: This really helps you think deeper into the world of Harry Potter. I love Harry Potter and have been reading it since I was 5 and I've never thought this deeply before. Now my extra HP books are filled with stickies and paper all thanks to Galadriel Waters! Cheers!