QUOTE(mynameisginny @ Aug 7 2007, 01:26 AM)
Who names their son Hugo?
That occurred to me too so I did a little research (on babynames.com) and it turns out:
QUOTE
The meaning of Hugo is Bright In Mind And Spirit
As for the other names we know that Ron Bilius is named after a deceased relative so presumably the tradition continues through the generations.
Hi, by the way, everyone(!) *waves* Took me a while to get back online this year. I'm still writing my NaNo novel!
So what did I think? Well, still I prefer Azkaban above all others, including Deathly Hallows, but overall I thought it was a fantastic close to the series. Harry's still got issues *hee* but that's probably what makes his character so interesting to read about again and again - nothing like a flawed hero to make you take interest - thus I was especially glad with all the Dumbledore backstory - that was quite awesome. The stuff on Grindelwald was quality as well, especially the tiny little flashback on how he stole the Elder Wand in the first place - got a very good mental image on that when I was reading, especially the grin - not sure what it reminded me of though (irritating!)
Ron & Hermione did thier jobs very well as always, the perfect foil & counter-foil to Harry and each other in every situation - best part being Hermione 'welcoming' Ron back after the episode with the Doe.
Snape! SNAPE! HAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA! I totally should have made a bet on him! But what a way to go, icky! I was almost expecting it to be a duel between him & the entirety of the Hogwarts' staff that got to him when it came to that but iI was happy with the way it came out regardless.
Ginny is the equivalent of Alan Rickman in the films - gleefully robbed most scenes she turned up in!
Lupin and Tonks I will not talk about, much unhappy Yoda I am. That said, glad the SHT was shot to bits by a new, far crueller & more inventive use of the silver hand - JKR knew exactly what she was doing there.
Draco Malfoy - hee, hee, hee - totally turned out the way I expected after the end of HBP - and yes, laughed myself silly at his receding hairline.
Hagrid & Grawp rock the earth! And socks!
The whole final battle I feel worked really well too, everyone played their part and the deaths of the characters who took part really illustrated the simple & deadly rules that take over - you live or you die - and there's not much you can do about it. Unless you're Harry, jammy sod(!) And to finish on this little part, my obvious highlight:
QUOTE
NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU B**CH!
Molly Weasley in perfect form as Ripley there - and an end that Bellatrix deserved, although I personally wanted Neville to finish her off - but he got Nagini, so Longbottom's triumph is still supreme. If a bit crispy.
I know that the death, torture, rule under Lord V upset a lot of people but I was glad it was taken that way - it gave JKR a chance to show just how bad things can get when there's no one to oppose. The 'Taboo' charm was an awesome little insight into how you can have your freedom snatched away (even if it's just one word) and the Death Eater and Snatchers running around causing mayhem & havoc was a good way of showing how terror tactics would win over doing the right thing.
But speaking of doing the right thing I want to start my own version
Potterwatch if I can keep a straight face for long enough.
Dobby
(that is all)
Aberforth!
Gringotts!
The Deathly Hallows story I thought was great, the idea of how they were woven into the modern wizarding society was awesome - I'm a bit fuzzy on how Harry's related to the brothers so I'll have to re-read that when I get to the end of the series again (although I'm currently working on The Dark Tower series - if JKR ever feels brave enough to read some Stephen King she should go for these - Book V is like an homage to her in one place!). I liked Harry's use of the Resurrection Stone in comparison to the other Hallows - the Invisibility Cloak was kind of a given with Harry since it turned up in Book I and the wand was clever but ultimately only had the one use.
That's all I can think of for now, but all in all, I was very happy with
yoda