Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

[Wasif Ahmed]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. This is the only book I have read out of the Harry Potter series but I can say that I loved it. I had seen all the Harry Potter movies before so it was not a problem getting to know what is going on.

[Amyazing22]

I have brought Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, in fact it is lying on my bookshelf right now, however I was put off reading it due to a friend saying it was awful and was completely out of sync with all the others. Harry Potter is my favourite series that I have ever read and I constantly re-immerse myself in its universe. Should I read it or will it ruin the other books?

[Lissy_1992]

I am also soon to be reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. I am so excited to be delving back into the magical world again, but also apprehensive due to what I have heard/read!

As far as I am concerned, the beauty and appeal of Harry Potter came from the characters- their courage, their relationships, even their flaws. They were inspiring to the reader, enabling people of all types to feel empowered. The 'misfit' theme of the main characters enabled so many to relate. So often before the 'Harry Potter' series, both films and books saw heroes/heroines who were often beautiful/handsome, great from the start and barely showed any flaws. They strode through their adventures without hesitation, fighting problems outside of their world as opposed to within themselves, proving idealistic figures as opposed to realistic. However, 'Harry Potter' characters brought flaws and all, leaving readers feeling that they too can be flawed yet still good enough and strong enough.

My biggest hope for 'The Cursed Child' is that it continues on with this theme of inspiring characters that we know and love so well. The magical world provided a wonderful escape from reality yet gave us tools to translate and apply into our real world. Certainly, in our world we cannot expect to experience the exceptional wonders, the magical creatures and the opportunities to demonstrate epic bravery in battle that Hogwarts held. Yet we definitely can expect to experience the inner turmoils, friendship troubles, our utterly human flaws, and the need to show deep courage in daily life. That is the power that Hogwarts provided for me, and I sincerely hope that no matter what weight JK Rowling had in the writing of 'The Cursed Child', that she managed to convey that same power.

[BookSavvy90]

I have read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and believe me when I say the format does not take away from the story. Sure I was a little thrown off at first but I found it was easy to get use to. Besides it's Harry freaking Potter, enough said in my opinion. Be warned however, like in many HP books, there is a certain scene with feels (if any of you have read it then you know what I'm talking about)and you may or may not cry (I for one sobbed like a baby especially considering what happened last year in January). Anyway I think you're gonna really enjoy this one despite the unusual format. So have fun!

[Elizabethmichal]

So my friend read this and he really liked it. The only problem I have, is I don't like the "play style" writing. Did this bother anyone? Or was the story too good and the style wasn't that noticeable ?

[Sabriel]

I've just finished Harry Potter and The Cursed Child and I gave it 4/4.
First of all, let me start by saying it was a nightmare avoiding all the spoilers for this long but I've made it
I got it as a present for Christmas and it was the first book I've read in 2017. It's nice to start the new year with Harry

As I said, I really enjoyed the book but I do understand why there are mixed reactions. It is a play made into a book (script) and not the other way around. I knew I can't expect all the things to be explained in depth like in a book. There's not enough 'time' for that.That's why everything happens so fast and I do understand why some people don't like it.

I must say that the feeling was completely different than reading the first seven books. The best I can describe is this: you know the shows about hoarders for example? Experts come and clean the house and then they come a couple of months/weeks later to see how they're doing and if everything's still clean. That was the feeling I had with CC, like I came to visit and see how's everyone doing, not to follow them and do everything again.

Spoilers ahead (more or less)

I loved Draco's storyline, finally we see more of him than just his bully side. We see what made him the way he is and how much his wife helped him to show his better sides.
I loved the kids as well, but my favorite is Scorpius. He has to fight battles which he didn't chose (Albus too, but it's worse with Scorpius) and he does it very well. He didn't let that stigma to make him into a bad person.
I didn't like Harry, I was really disappointed to what he became. Favorising children is not something I would expect from him, considering his life with Dudley. He does explain himself later by saying 'he didn't have a rolemodel' but he did. Uncle Vernon was one, a really bad one, but Harry should've learnt something out of that. he himself said that it doesn't matter if Albus get's sorted into Slytherin and then the entire book is how he wasn't okay with that. It's hard to be a parent, even harder to be a good parent.
There was one thing I was kinda sad about and that was portraying Ron as a class-clown. He's so much more than that, he was so much more.

To conclude, I loved it, but more like a how's-everyone-doing-check up. I would die if Rowling made a real book out of it, with everything done in depth.

[danielleurban23]

I will be getting my hardback copy on January 23rd. I'm super excited. I have read all seven Harry Potter novels and watched every single movie. I have heard of it being a screenplay more so than an actual novel. Either way, I have to read it. Need to know what happened afterwards. I remember being in 3rd grade when the first book was published. That was before any criticism about the witch craft stuff inside was going around...now, no one criticizes about that anymore. I think books have defied society's rules so much that no one really criticizes their content anymore. I'm not saying just how good the writing was I mean the topics brought up within each book.

[anushreevaishnav18]

Harry potter and the cursed child ... I enjoy this book

[book_saavy]

I actually really liked it, aside from the slight OOC (out of character) qualities. The lessons were nice, just like they were in the original Harry Potter series. I also loved the friendship between Albus and Scorpius. It was different and good.

[PolarTee]

I loved Harry Potter and the Cursed Child! I didn't mind the play format. I kept thinking what a great movie this would make with all the special effects. Fingers crossed that they will take this to the big screen! It was nice revisiting this world and got me all pumped up to see Fantastic Beasts at the movie theater (now THAT was a bit of a letdown!). I hope J.K. Rowling has more Potter lore to share with us!

[Leayna]

Seems I hold an unpopular opinion. I did not enjoy Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at all. The characters in the book were almost unfamiliar to me. I understand that Harry, Hermione, Ron, etc. have grown up but they were all missing the characteristics I grew to love when reading the series over the years. It was so disappointing along with the rushed ending and inconsistent parts of the book.

[christacarb1]

I received this book as a birthday present from my fiancé. I had been wanting to purchase it since it came out, knowing fully well that it was a screen play and not an actual novel, but I have a tendency to not buy things for myself unless it's absolutely necessary since I started living with my fiancé not long ago. I was so excited to read it and knew the standard play format since I read plays while in school. I liked that book and all the nostalgic aspects of it, but I was slightly disappointed with it. I missed the details that J.K Rowling put into her books, and while I knew it would not be as detailed as the books, I had hoped there would be some detail to describe the scenes being set as opposed to mainly dialogue. I would definitely like to see the actual play though when it comes to America. I'm hoping it's as good as people are saying the London one is.

[kandscreeley]

I'm just not really sure I even want to read this book. It's seems like we are just trying to prolong the fame. Don't get me wrong, I loved the Harry Potter series, but, it's kind of over.

[noorsawhney]

I was so incredibly excited to go to the bookstore the morning this was released, despite it not being an actual novel! The excitement mainly came from this being an extension of my favourite series: an introduction and focus on characters who had barely been mentioned before and I was dying to learn more about. From reading the script, the plot revealed itself to be imaginative and engaging, and I can't wait to get tickets for the play!

-- 23 Jan 2017, 12:55 --

I was so incredibly excited to go to the bookstore the morning this was released, despite it not being an actual novel! The excitement mainly came from this being an extension of my favourite series: an introduction and focus on characters who had barely been mentioned before and I was dying to learn more about. From reading the script, the plot revealed itself to be imaginative and engaging, and I can't wait to get tickets for the play!

[Wizard Magic]

This book is outstanding!!! For anyone who liked the original Harry Potter series it is another chance to engulf ourselves in the magical world of Harry Potter. The book was very well written and kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire time it took me to finish the book in one sitting. At every turn, there is something happening and in a sense there is a lot of truth to what goes on in the book. It does a good job of not only entertaining the reader and also touches on the realities of hard choices, the familial tensions, and the burden of expectations. Its a thrilling and quick read I would recommend to anyone and everyone. Can't wait for the movie to come out.