Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Book Review

I must admit, this is the first book of the series that has genuinely caught me off guard. This novel presents a sense of juxtaposition in its structure since the beginning of the story seemed to have been stretched out and the end of the story presents a hectic sequence of events. With that being said, I do think it was harder for this storyline to intrigue me because the beginning of the story spent more time focusing on Harry’s time with the Dursleys. (Let’s be honest, the last thing I want is to give my attention to that horrible family). However, as the plot began to progress, I quickly noticed the difference in the nature of this plot. With the introduction of Sirius Black and Dementors, I found this story to illustrate a darker message than the previous two. Not only did I recognize a darker message in this book, I thoroughly noticed personality development amongst all characters. I think it makes sense that the intensity of these storylines would advance as our characters mature and experience more in the world of Hogwarts. 

From the beginning of the book, Hermione seems to be acting strangely toward Harry and Ron - it comes across as she has something to hide. Hermione has always been a bookworm and valued school success above (pretty much) everything else, and it is taken to a new extreme during this book when she overwhelms her class schedule by taking as many new classes as possible. Given the stress of all of this new schoolwork and the natural maturity of adolescents, Hermione breaks out of her shell during this story by standing up against others in outbursts that we normally would not expect from her (i.e. slapping Malfoy and dropping out of Divination class). This bold personality streak stirs up even more banter between her and Ron as their pets do not get along, and they are in constant disagreement about which is superior to the other - not to mention their opposing views of seeking trouble and laying low. 

Harry is open about his fear of Dementors, which came as a shock to me because he typically portrays himself in such a brave light that it was odd to see him living in constant fear for a change. At this point, I think Harry is starting to get irritated with the idea of someone being after him. I mean every time he catches a break something is thrown right back in his track. There appears to be no chance of him being a normal kid. 

Apart from our three main characters, Professor Snape was a character that actually caught me off guard this time. I have not liked him at all for the sole purpose that he is just bitter and mean to everyone that is not Draco Malfoy. When this book focused light on the tension between Professor Lupin and Professor Snape, I immediately figured Professor Snape had bad intentions toward Professor Lupin based on jealousy of the Defense Against Dark Arts teaching position. I was flabbergasted to find out that Snape was right about Lupin all along. It may not have presented him in an entirely new light, but this story definitely opened my eyes to the idea that maybe Snape isn’t as bad as I labeled him as. 

The evil that was revealed in this story opened the eyes of Ron, Hermione, and Harry - exemplifying the notion that you cannot trust everyone, especially when magic is involved. The students are getting older, learning more about themselves and each other daily. I think this book illustrated a great beginning to the development of our characters, and I am excited to see how they continue to mature as the series goes on.