Well, I finished it.
I am known for being a fast reader, but I managed to eak out the first third of the book by reading a chapter a day for the first 10 days. Then on Tuesday night, I started reading as normal . . . and couldn't put it down. I finished it at 1.00 in the morning.
Well, what a read. Quite possibly my favourite one out of the series (that position was previously held by Prisoner of Azkaban).
I found it heart wrenching in places - when Dobby died I had a few tears in my eyes, especially when Harry was dressing him so carefully in clothes. However, I was most affected by Harry's walk to Voldemort with the Resurrection Stone. Those simple childish words "Does it hurt?" - had to wipe my eyes somewhat at that point. Maybe it's partly because I have lost my own mother, but I think the majority of people would have been moved by his mum telling him how brave he was being as his parents walked side by side with him to his inevitable death.
And then its glorious conclusion with Harry and You-Know-Who. Unexpected for me at least - I never thought that Harry would die, but never foresaw that finale. I thought there was definite Christian overtones in it as well, in a The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe kind of way. It will be interesting to see what the anti-Harry Potter Christian fraternity make of it.
But yes, I loved it. Its threads of relationship, family, trust, love, loyalty and self-sacrifice for "the Greater Good" are, I think, refreshing subjects to read about - especially in children's literature.
The only gripe I had was the epilogue - I read the last three words, turned over the page and went "Is that it? . . . . ."
