Monday, July 2, 2007

The Great Harry Potter Re-Read, Book 2

















1. Word Count: 85,141 words.

2. Character based on a real person: The character of Gilderoy Lockhart is the one Rowling says is most nearly based on a real person, but she won't say who it is (for obvious reasons).

3. Writer's Block: Rowling's only case of writer's block occurred while writing this book, after her first bout of publicity for the first Harry Potter book.

4. Hogwarts Motto: Draco dormians nunquam titillandus!
Translation: A sleeping dragon must never be tickled!

5. Mandrakes: You know a mandrake has reached adulthood when they start trying to move into each other's pots. In the book, this is preceded by 'teenage' Mandrakes throwing a loud and raucous party in the greenhouse.

6. Movie tidbit: Fourteen Ford Anglia's were destroyed to create the Harry and Ron flying car/Whomping Willow sequence.

7. ***SPOILER***Salazar Slytherin: Dumbledore says that Voldemort was the last remaining ancestor of Salazar Slytherin, instead of descendant. J.K. Rowling said this was a "deliberate mistake". This mistake was fixed in further printings.

8. Ghosts: At his deathday party, Nearly Headless Nick "took several deep breaths". But later in the series, Moaning Myrtle says that ghosts don't breathe.

Denmark Cover Art

3 comments:

Dewey said...

That is a lot of words! Thanks for sharing the cover art. I love seeing the different covers!

Bookfool said...

Again, love the cover art. So sad about all those lovely Fords getting whomped.

Nyssaneala said...

@dewey - if you think that was a lot of words, wait till #4-6!

@bookfool - It is lovely (the cover art, that is). The Harry Potter on the Denmark book doesn't look quite as disheveled as the UK and American ones. Although I wonder where his glasses are.