I didn't finish this book, period. The author's adventures just weren't that interesting to me. I don't think they were worthy of a whole book as thick as Goblet of Fire. To say the least, I was unimpressed. Perhaps because I wasn't interested in her POV in the first place, but wanted to know more about HP itself (not the hype surrounding it). I felt that the suspense in the beginning was unnecessary, though it was written well. The book also jumped around a lot which was somewhat irritating. I guess this book just wasn't for me. Let's get this over with: I did not like this book. The tag line made it seem as though Harry, A History would be an all encompassing, unbiased look at the Harry Potter phenomenon and the fans who lived with in it. However, this book was about one woman's experiences, which were anything but typical. In reality, this book should have been entitled Melissa, A History: The True Story of Harry Potter, Melissa Anelli, and Her Experiences Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon. I don't want it to seem as though I have sour grapes about what Melissa Anelli experienced and where Harry Potter took her. Anelli had multiple opportunities to meet J.K. Rowling, the cast of the Harry Potter movies, and an impressive slew of people who were intimately involved with the entire production of both the book and movie franchises. Anelli was able to attend multiple fan con(vention)s, tour with Harry and the Potters, and even go on a podcast tour around the country. If I could swap spots with Anelli and experience even a fraction of what she did - would I? Absolutely. But did Harry, A History chronicle what several different types of fans experienced? No, not at all. And that is what made me so angry about this book. Boiled down, this book is simply an autobiographical account of Melissa Anelli's life after she took over the editorship of The Leaky Cauldron. But honestly, why should I care about what Anelli and her friends go to do/did during the tenure of the Harry Potter series? I'm still not entirely sure that I should care at all and mostly, I'm annoyed that I wasted my time in reading her book. Harry, A History has two saving graces that come in the form of chapters. In one chapter, Anelli recounts her interactions with Lauren Mallory - the woman who spear headed the anti-Potter movement on the basis that the series is evil because it teaches children a love of witchcraft. The second chapter discussions the "ship wars" or, the fierce feuds between the fans who shipped Harry/Hermione and those who shipped Ron/Hermione. (Shipping refers to an adamant desire to see two specific characters enter into a relationship.) Those were the only chapters that interested me and felt as though they belonged in a book about the fandom. Other than that? I could not careless about Melissa Anelli skipping out on work to fly to London. I saw a review on Good Reads that called Harry, A History, "a self indulgent mess." That basically sums up how I feel about this book. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone unless that person has an active interest in Melissa Anelli's experiences. This is not about the fandom as a whole, and it certainly does not represent the typical fan's experiences. This is the story of one woman's experiences, who was fortunate enough to be an almost insider.
What do You think about Harry E Seus Fãs (2011)?
I have so many conflicting emotions about this book. First and foremost, I absolute LOVE Harry Potter and any die hard Harry Potter fan is going to love how this book really immerses you and makes you feel like you're living the fandom life again. It was amazing to rediscover each book, feel like you're at a release party, and be wrocking out at a Harry and the Potters concert. With that said though, I had many problems with this book. As many of the comments point out the title is misleading, since this is not an actual history of Harry Potter, but one woman's adventure. Even if she did have quite the extraordinary adventure. But I'm not going to harp on this, since so many others have. My main problem was the writing style! I felt like many of the sentences were very poorly structured and could have flowed better, but overall I absolutely hated how Anelli constantly switched back and forth in time without ever making it clear. I read an entire chapter thinking it was the Deathly Hallows release party, only to find out it was actually Order of the Phoenix. She follows absolutely no time line and is constantly switching back and forth between books. It was absolutely infuriating to the point that I almost quit reading! Overall, it was great to reexperience Harry Potter and all that came from the fandom, but I definitely won't be reading this again. The only reason I even gave it three stars is because it's about Harry Potter, and come on... Who doesn't love the Boy who Lived?
—Sophia
You could boil it down to "HP Fandom: The Book" as told by one of the witnesses to the phenomenon, and for that, I love it. I started reading them when I was roughly the same age as the characters, so I missed on some of the earlier nuances when they happened (the PotterWar and H/Hr vs H/R), but as someone who dives straight into fandom whenever I find a piece of media that I like, it's oh so relatable. It's also kind of weird, because PotterCast was the very first podcast I started listening to, back in early 2008.
—jenn
This was terribly interesting, and made me want to dig up all the old interviews with JKR.
—kehau96701
Sure, it's not actually about the characters in the series, but I really loved it!
—Maegan
