This, the fifth installment in the Harry Potter septology, is one of the best so far, though it has its fair share of problems. My main complaint is that the plot unfolds too slowly for most of the novel's bulk (there's a lot going on but not much point to a lot of it), and then Rowling tries to make up for it by cramming a million things into the last 125 pages. It never feels like the students are at school; it seems like they attend class a couple of times, play one Quiddich match, and then it's time for Christmas break (Am I the only one who finds it funny that wizards celebrate Christmas? This sure isn't a Philip Pullman novel.).

I've noticed now that my reading of this series has suffered for having seen the first two movie adaptations. I can't help but hear some of the characters in the voices of the actors who played them (particularly Hermione, Hagrid, and Ron Weasley), and this is particularly problematic for Hermione and Ron, who should have matured in the book. I've managed to create my own internal versions of Snape and Harry (the Dumbledore and McGonagall in the movies matched my imagination), so they were less of a problem. And I can't help but picture Neville Longbottom as Ralph Wiggum from the Simpsons. Of course, I can't fault Rowling for the movies or my own bizarre associations.

As a final note, I'm becoming more and more intrigued by Professor Snape, and I sincerely hope that he gets to play a more prominent role in the last two novels. Dumbledore is still too much of a God figure, and it would be very exciting to see him be the next character killed off. But that's probably just me.