Book Review: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

July 31st has really been a special day for all the Potterheads. The reason as we all know was that the eighth story of the famous Harry Potter series, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” opened in the theaters in London, in the form of a play. Since not all people could know the story of our wizarding hero, in that way, it was decided that the script of the play would be released in the form of a book, so that fans all across the globe can actually know the end of the story. Rowling has also confirmed that this will officially be the end of the Harry Potter series, once and for all.

Releasing almost after nine years since the last Harry Potter book was published, fans had huge expectations from this story. That, probably is the reason that within two days of the book being released, there are speculations that it would be one of the international bestsellers of this year.

Before going any further, get this thing very clear. You will not get the plot of the Cursed Child properly if you are not completely well-versed with the original seven books. The story, we can say has it’s own flaws, but it never goes completely off-track even once.

Hence, the good things first. For all those, who had been wondering what happened to our beloved trio of Harry, Ron and Hermoine after the Battle of Hogwarts, the Cursed Child will give you all the answers. Set up nineteen years later, the story starts from the same point where we left it in the Deathly Hallows, i.e. Albus Potter and Rose Weasely leaving for their first year at Hogwarts, accompanied by none other than Draco Malfoy’s son, Scorpius. The theme of friendship, as in the original stories has been kept intact, as we learn the stories of the life of the younger generation in Hogwarts. The main focus, however, has shifted from Harry potter to his younger son, Albus, who apparently does not share a great relationship with his father. But yes, in a very concise manner, the writers have given a direction to all the characters, developing their stories, in a manner, they know the readers will like. There are new developments, with the recreation of some older characters, which makes the plot altogether a lot interesting at places, and the climax is full of an element of surprise.

But that is not completely it. As said earlier, Cursed Child is also sure to bring some disappointment to the readers. The plot focuses a lot on the use of time-turners, something that had minimal importance in the original stories. Also, if you are particularly very fond of Ron’s jokes, and Hermoine’s wits, you may get a little setback, because their characters have lost their former importance, as new stories have developed. Also, since the story is in the form of a play script, it does not appear that convincing at places, where emotion seems to get diluted. Although, it is brilliant to imagine how the makers would have recreated the whole magical world on stage, yet this format may not go very well, on the pages, especially with the young readers.

Finally, with people craving for even a slight bit of story relating to the wizarding world, the Cursed Child is a treat. There are a lot of good things, but the story is certainly not the best of Harry Potter.



Written by Avinash Srivastava
A Writer of Stories, Loves Novels and Movies