Mouse Farts in a Wind Tunnel

June 21, 2003

Reading the new Harry Potter book today, along with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of other people. Imagine if space aliens orbited earth right now, doing telepathic mind probes. What would they think of so many people thinking about one thing at once? Especially since it isn't sex.

My book came late in the day today, via UPS. It is huge, over 800 pages and if everyone reading it right this minute actually dropped it at the same time, the impact would probably register on the Richter scale.

So far, this book is much crankier and less childish than the earlier ones. Harry has quite a temper and spends much of his time shouting at other people. Considering the fact that he was raised in a little room under a staircase, I suppose it's understandable. I'm surprised he's not the Serial Killer Boy Wizard. But it's early days yet. The adult characters in this book have also become much more neurotic than ever before. Sirius is positively nuts.

The most interesting thing so far is the way that government bureaucracy, in the form of the Ministry of Magic, has become the villain. This was predictable, based on the events in the previous book, but I would not have guessed the way that Rowling would layer on the feelings of dread and doom. In each book, the badness has become more complicated and frustrating. I hate the evil professor Umbridge precisely because I identify with the characters' feelings of helplessness and rage against the type of person who would gladly accept the title of Hogwarts Inquisitor (if not think it up herself). Its like Kafka in wizarding robes.

Which all leads back to the interesting thought experiment that is the phenomenon of Harry Potter. It is very creepy that so many people are thinking about the same thing at the same time, even if it is "just" Harry Potter. Our minds move as one in the great anonymous hive.

posted by el goose on 6/21/2003 08:54:43 PM | link

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