Harry Potter and The Cursed Child by JK Rowling, John Tiffany, and Jack Thorne *contains spoilers*

This review will be a little bit different due to the fact that Harry Potter and The Cursed Child is a script and not a novel. Thus, it will be difficult to critique it in the same way since it is mostly dialogue. Don't get me wrong, I love Shakespeare and a good play will garner a shining review from me any day, but this was not Shakespeare. I should have heeded my husband's warning and stayed far away.

When Harry Potter and The Cursed Child was announced my husband swore he would never read nor see the play because it was only based on Rowling's idea and not written by her. I defended the play saying that she would not have put her name to something she did not stand behind or believe in. Plus, if the ideas were hers and just written by someone else, what could be wrong? (I now remind myself that this is exactly what fan fiction is and that does not always turn out well.) After finishing the Harry Potter series I was dying for more and so I went out to purchase the play. I read it within two days. During that time I went from enjoying the play, to loving it, to absolutely hating it.

My biggest issue with the script was that it did not really answer as many questions as it presented. There was a lot of lacking description and, while I initially thought this was okay and chalked it up to the medium in which is was presented, in the end there was too much that I did not understand. One of the things I, and so many others, love about the Harry Potter series is that the world has logic. Everything in it makes a certain kind of sense and is explained fairly well. So to have various questions about the logic of the play come up and then never be explained, was very frustrating.

Some of these questions had to do with the massive amount of time jumping. There were inconsistencies with the time as well as how it all worked. I was wondering how all of this time jumping wasn't screwing up the minds of the people doing it. I was also frustrated by the portrayal of the old characters. Ron was made out to be some complete buffoon who only showed up for comic relief and had no real substance, which made his relationship with Hermione seem even weirder than it already was. Malfoy was believable and so was Hermione. Harry seemed overly whiny and heroic, more so than normal. There were odd moments where it felt like a Harry Potter novel and then even more odd and bigger moments where it felt like weird fan fiction. The sad thing is that I loved the two main characters of Albus and Scorpius. If Rowling herself wrote something about them I would definitely be up to read it.

Another disappointment was that the whole play focused on Cedric Diggory's death, which seemed like a weird focus. This was coupled with a strained father/son relationship between Harry and Albus which did not seem like a genuine problem and more a plot device. Not to mention the fact that Albus and Scorpius should have ended the play as boyfriends and then didn't, for reasons unbeknownst to me. And then there was the whole Voldemort having a daughter thing that was hardly explained at all and thus made no sense. Overall, it was a disappointing read.

If the play makes its way to America and I have a chance to see it, I will more than likely go. But do I see Harry Potter and The Cursed Child as true Harry Potter canon? No. If anything, it is a decent attempt at believable fan fiction that completely failed. Not only am I disappointed with the script overall, I am disappointed Rowling put her name to it. While her ideas may be fine, the interpretation of them did not do her world justice. I'd say skip this script and stick to the old Harry Potter books, that is where Rowling and her ideas shine brightest.

The Foundation by Isaac Asimov

My husband and I recently started a small book club with some friends focusing on sci-fi and fantasy. We decided a great beginning book would be one of the classics, The Foundation by Isaac Asimov. We were wrong. This was a book that dragged on and on, seemingly without a point, and then just ended.

This book was set in space but so little of it actually focused on that aspect. It was just a bunch of politics with cheesy lines like "Oh great galaxies!" thrown in every now and then. None of the science fiction was explained. The planets that were traveled to were not described. The book is split up into five parts but each part jumps into the future with a new character and does not explain what happened in the time between. Thus there is no character development whatsoever and no point in getting attached to any characters because they are cardboard pieces thrown away as soon as their respective part has ended.

I know all of this seems harsh, but I am someone who has always tried to read classic literature. Even if I do not enjoy a novel I can usually discern what it is about the book that made it classic (with the exception of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but that is another story). So I did try to look at The Foundation from all angles to see what it was that made this a cornerstone of modern science fiction, and I just could not find anything. There was no real plot, no rising action or climax or resolution, no character development, and not very much science fiction at all.

The comment was made that perhaps this book is so important because of the series it is a part of, or at least the original trilogy. This may be true, but I think that books need to be able to stand on their own to be considered "good" or "classic". So maybe Asimov's Foundation series is what most look at as a "foundation" for science fiction, but I do not intend to continue reading to find out.

In conclusion, there are much better science fiction books out there. If you are looking for a classic I hear that Dune is really good. I always love Alastair Reynolds. Even the Star Wars books I have read are better than The Foundation. Does this mean I will never read a book by Asimov again? Not necessarily. I have heard great things about I, Robot. I also know that Asimov began this series when he was twenty-one, so perhaps this book is just an example of immature writing and Asimov gets better. For now, I will be exploring other books, but maybe one day I will return to Asimov's world.  

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

This was the fifth or sixth time I have read The Time Traveler's Wife. When I first read the book it was right after I saw the film and then I read it every year at least once. But it has now been about four or five years since I picked it up and a lot of life has happened to me. I always love rereading books but especially books that I consider a favorite because I like to see how my perception of the book changes as I have changed. In the case of The Time Traveler's Wife, I have not read the book since I got married and lost my baby. I will not use this post as a personal reflection about those experiences and this book, but I will say that after rereading it this time I felt that I understood the characters on a deeper level and parts of me felt more healed. I also made the exciting discovery that my husband and I share the same wedding anniversary as Henry and Clare, and some deep nerdy, bookwormy part of me was really happy about that. All in all I finished the novel loving it more than I have ever loved it in my past read throughs. This is a beautiful piece of literature, let me tell you why.

Audrey Niffenegger does a fantastic job of explaining time travel. It is not something that Henry understands so of course the reader cannot fully understand either, but I feel like she does a good job at not losing the reader when jumping through time. It helps that each section begins with the complete date as well as the ages of Henry and Clare at that time. This time I felt that I understood the time traveling in a better way and perhaps she meant for it to be that way. I love that Niffenegger also writes the novel from both Henry and Clare's perspectives. It adds so much to the depth of the story and their romance.

I have long considered this novel to be one that every couple should read. The characters are so real and even though their problem is extraordinary, unless we all time travel and I just did not know, they still handle the issues that come with it in a very human way. There are sensual moments and funny moments and heartbreaking moments. Every page of this book is filled with wonder and life. Many questions and themes are talked about and in some ways this book is more philosophy than romance. Questions about time and how it works or what it is, questions about fate and cause and effect, questions about meaning; these are all elements of The Time Traveler's Wife. Books that are beautiful are one thing, but books that are beautiful while also making you think are quite another thing. A rare thing.

This novel spans so much time that it would make or a lengthy post if I picked it apart thoroughly. So I am not going to do that. I also think that it is a novel everyone should experience for themselves, (I know I have said this about other novels but this is a big one), thus I do not want to spoil parts of the story. I will just say that my favorite parts are some of the more ordinary moments between Henry and Clare, which I feel is what Niffenegger wanted for the reader because these are the moments Henry and Clare love as well. I love that this book has so many cultural references and is full of so much poetry. This was the first book I ever dog-eared and it has more pages eared than not. I love that this book is not a romance novel entirely and not a science ficton novel entirely. It is hard to categorize in fact. It simply is, which is maybe another purposeful point made by the author.

Read this book. Read it because when you finish it you won't be dreaming of a better partner, you will want to love your partner more. Read it because it will break your heart but in the best way. Read it because you will love it. My reading of it this time left me feeling full and it was the first time that I finished this book and immediately wanted to dive back into its pages. This is not a book I would recommend to everyone though, it is a special book. One I would only give to a select few people in my life, which is a bit like love in a way I suppose and this book is full of love. See the film but not until after you have read the book. Know that this book will captivate you and so you must have a good chunk of time set out to read it. And most of all know that The Time Traveler's Wife will change you in some way but that, for me anyway, that is the best part of it all.