Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

This article is about the book. For the character, see Half-Blood Prince (character).

For the film, see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film).

Harry Potter Books
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Author	J.K. Rowling
Illustrator	Jason Cockcroft (UK), </br> Mary GrandPré (US)
Genre	Fiction
Publisher	Bloomsbury (UK), </br> Scholastic (US)
Release date	16 July, 2005
Number in series	Six
Sales	11 Million (US) [1]
Dedicated to	"Mackenzie, my beautiful</br> daughter, I dedicate her</br> ink-and-paper twin"
Story timeline	1996-1997

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, released on July 16, 2005, is the sixth novel in J. K. Rowling's popular Harry Potter series. There are seven novels planned. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores Lord Voldemort's past, and Harry's preparations for the final battle amidst emerging romantic relationships. In 24 hours, the book sold 6.9 million copies in the United States alone, or 287,564 books per hour, making it the fastest selling book in recent history. It generated over $100 million in sales on its opening weekend, outpacing even the combined take of the top movies at the box office that same weekend. Bookseller Barnes and Noble reported sales averaging 105 copies per second in the first hour of sales. It is dedicated to Rowling's daughter Mackenzie.

Controversies

The record-breaking publication of Half-Blood Prince was accompanied by controversy both inevitable and unpredictable. In May 2005 bookmakers in the UK suspended bets on which main character would die in the book amid fears of insider knowledge. A number of high value bets were made on the death of Albus Dumbledore, many coming from the town of Bungay where, it was believed, the books were being printed at the time. Betting was later reopened.^[2] Other controversies included the "right to read" Potter books inadvertently sold before the release date, environmental concerns over the source of the paper used in the printing of millions of books, and fan reactions to the plot developments and revelations of the novel.

Right to read

In early July 2005, the Real Canadian Superstore, a big-box grocery chain in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada, accidentally sold fifteen copies of The Half-Blood Prince before the authorised release date. The Canadian publisher, Raincoast Books, obtained an injunction from the Supreme Court of British Columbia prohibiting the purchasers from reading the books before the official release date or from discussing the contents. Purchasers were offered a Harry Potter T-shirt and an autographed copy of the book if they returned their copies before July 16.

On July 15, less than twelve hours before the book went on sale in the Eastern time zone, Raincoast warned The Globe and Mail newspaper that publishing a review from a Canada-based writer at midnight, as the paper had promised, would be seen as a violation of the trade secret injunction. The injunction sparked a number of news articles alleging that the injunction had restricted fundamental rights. Canadian law professor Michael Geist posted commentary on his weblog;^[3] Richard Stallman called for a boycott, requesting that the publisher issue an apology for attempting to maintain suspense for a worldwide phenomenon.^[4] The Globe and Mail published a review from two UK-based writers in its July 16 edition and posted the Canadian writer's review on its website at 9 AM that morning.^[5] Commentary was also provided on the Raincoast website.[6]

In the same week, a Chicago Walgreens mistakenly sold a copy of the book. When the purchaser read about the Canadian incident on the Internet she said she would not return the book, but that she would not read the novel until the US release date.^{[citation needed]}

Environmental concerns

Before and after the release of the book, the environmental organisations Greenpeace and the National Wildlife Federation urged consumers in the United States who planned to buy Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to do so from the book's Canadian publisher, Raincoast Books ^[7], which published on 100% recycled, chlorine-free, ancient forest–free paper. The U.S. edition of the book, published by Scholastic Press, was printed with a percentage of recycled paper that Scholastic declined to make public. The Scholastic Hardcover edition of the book claims, on the last page, to be free of fibres from ancient forests.

Fan reaction

More so than any of the previous books, fans of the series were polarized by the revelations of the sixth book. Rowling herself expected this when she stated on her website:

Book six does what I wanted it to do and even if nobody else likes it (and some won’t), I know it will remain one of my favourites of the series. Ultimately you have to please yourself before you please anyone else! ^[8]

Fans on one end claimed Harry's supposed "lack of reaction" was out-of-character while others criticized his "immediate" acceptance of the death at the end of the book.^{[citation needed]} Supporters argue that the events of Book 5 changed Harry considerably and his reactions are in accordance to the events which transpired.^{[citation needed]}

Another major point of fan reaction is outrage on the part of many fans who supported the relationship of Harry and Hermione Granger. This latest book in the series is the most obvious debunker of this rumour, though Rowling claims to have made such insinuations as early as the third book, even going so far as to say that there were "anvil-sized hints" in the fourth installment pointing toward putting Hermione with Ron Weasley. This, along with Mugglenet's Emerson's remark about those who supported the "ship" being "delusional",interview created a disgruntled portion of the fanbase.

To a few, the plot of The Half-Blood Prince is weak, and the book is not as action-packed as its predecessors.^{[citation needed]} The identity of the Half-Blood Prince character has no apparent bearing on the main plot of the series, some critics charge, and since Harry's main concern throughout this book is to solve the mystery of this character's true identity, the driving plot of the book is not truly resolved. Also, vast tracts of the book deal with Harry passively receiving instruction from Dumbledore regarding Lord Voldemort's past, and this slows down the pace considerably. This view is in part countered in statements made by J.K. Rowling, in which she has stated that book six is very much to be regarded as the first half of a two-volume work, with book seven rounding up the story. It remains to be seen to what extent book seven will explain the relevance of these side stories.

Despite these debates, book six was hailed by critics and considered by many to be a fine addition to the series and by others to be the best of the immensely popular books.

Plot overview

Half-Blood Prince opens with a darker mood than the previous books. Just two weeks after the conclusion of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, in the summer of 1996, Voldemort and his "Death Eaters" openly wreak chaos and paranoia throughout Britain and persuade the Dementors to abandon Azkaban and join them. Following public outcry over Cornelius Fudge's mishandling on the Voldemort situation, Rufus Scrimgeour becomes the new Minister of Magic. This is a positive move for the Weasley family, as Arthur receives a promotion that improves the family's financial situation.

One evening at his home, Severus Snape receives a visit from Draco Malfoy's mother Narcissa, accompanied by her sister, Bellatrix Lestrange. Narcissa swears him to an Unbreakable Vow that he will protect Draco and complete his mission should he fail, although it is unknown what this mission is.

Due to the increased Death Eater activity, security measures are increased at Hogwarts. Snape is given his coveted Defence Against the Dark Arts post while Albus Dumbledore, with help from Harry Potter, persuades Horace Slughorn to return from retirement to replace Snape as Potions teacher.

Because Slughorn only requires students to have received a minimum of an "E" grade ("Exceeds Expectations") in their O.W.L. exams in order to take his advanced N.E.W.T. Potion classes, Harry and Ron are able to sign up. During the first lesson, Slughorn lends Harry an old textbook marked as the property of "The Half-Blood Prince." The handwritten notes of its talented former owner help Harry outperform even Hermione. As a reward, Slughorn gives Harry a vial of Felix Felicis, a good luck potion.

Suspecting that Draco may be a Death Eater, Harry confides his suspicions to Dumbledore, who appears unconcerned. Later it is revealed that Dumbledore was trusting Snape to investigate.

Just when Ron and Hermione seem on the verge of a relationship, Ron begins dating Lavender Brown — unabashedly kissing her in public — although it is mostly to spite Hermione, who Ron learned kissed Viktor Krum. Hermione retaliates by inviting Cormac McLaggen, an egomaniacal Quidditch player, to be her date to Slughorn's Christmas Party, but the plan backfires. Ron and Hermione continually bicker until Ron is accidentally poisoned. Hermione is so distraught that she and Ron end their feud. Ron later breaks up with Lavender when she proves to be a nuisance. Meanwhile, Harry finds himself the unwelcome object of many girls' attention, but he only cares for Ginny Weasley. He worries that a relationship with her might harm his friendship with Ron. But when Harry unexpectedly kisses Ginny in front of the entire Gryffindor common room after their victorious Quidditch match, Ron gives his approval.

Dumbledore and Harry begin a series of private lessons using Dumbledore's Pensieve to show Harry memories about Voldemort's past. A memory belonging to Slughorn is partially missing. Aided by the Felix Felicis potion, Harry is able to retrieve the missing portion from a reluctant Slughorn. From the memories, Dumbledore theorises that Voldemort split his soul into seven parts, storing six pieces in Horcruxes to grant himself immortality (if the seven pieces are still active and not destroyed) , while leaving the seventh piece in his body. While two of Voldemort's Horcruxes have already been destroyed (Tom Riddle's diary by Harry^[HP2] and Marvolo Gaunt's ring by Dumbledore), Dumbledore believes there are four more. He and Harry set off to retrieve one (Salazar Slytherin's locket) hidden in a secret cave. They are successful, although Dumbledore is heavily weakened in the process.

Returning, they find the Dark Mark hovering over Hogwarts. As they investigate, they are ambushed by Draco Malfoy in the Astronomy Tower. Dumbledore has just enough time to paralyze Harry, who is hidden under his Invisibility Cloak, allowing him to witness events but unable to act. Draco disarms Dumbledore and reveals that the Death Eaters have entered Hogwarts with his help through a Vanishing Cabinet in the Room of Requirement. However, by interrogating Draco, Dumbledore discerns that the obviously scared boy was coerced into aiding Voldemort's followers.

Other Death Eaters arrive and urge Draco to fulfil his mission, killing Dumbledore, but he hesitates. Snape arrives, and after Dumbledore pleads with him, Snape assassinates him with the Avada Kedavra killing curse, although the effects of this particular curse are unlike those Avada Kedavra seen before. The Death Eaters flee. At Dumbledore's death, his paralyzing spell is broken, freeing Harry. He pursues Snape, who identifies himself as the Half-Blood Prince in a short-lived duel before escaping Hogwarts with Malfoy.

Harry recovers the locket from Dumbledore's body only to discover it is a fake. Inside is a note to the Dark Lord from someone with the initials "R.A.B.". It says the real Horcrux has been stolen and will be destroyed with the hope that when Voldemort meets his match he, "will be mortal once more."

The school year ends abruptly with Dumbledore's funeral. Prominent members of the Wizarding world, including Rufus Scrimgeour, attend. Dumbledore is entombed, and Minerva McGonagall is appointed Hogwarts' interim headmistress, but she and the other teachers fear the school may be closed. McGonagall and Scrimgeour attempt to find out what Harry learned from Dumbledore, but Harry keeps it secret.

Harry decides not to return to Hogwarts next year and will instead search for the remaining Horcruxes and defeat Voldemort. He tells Hermione and Ron, and they insist on accompanying him. He ends his relationship with Ginny, telling her Voldemort would attack him through her. Harry observes that at least he will get to spend one last golden day with his friends. There will be one additional happy occasion before the trio sets off on their mission—Bill Weasley's and Fleur Delacour's wedding.

Other

Dedication

Crowds wait outside a Borders store in Delaware for the midnight release of the book

Rowling became pregnant with her third child during the writing of this book, and often joked about them racing each other into the world. For this reason, the book has this dedication:

To Mackenzie,

My beautiful daughter,

I dedicate

Her ink-and-paper twin

Movie Release Date

Box Office Mojo reported, and Warner Brothers has confirmed, that the movie based on the sixth book is scheduled to be released on November 21, 2008. Steve Kloves is expected to write the screenplay, but a director has yet to be chosen. [9]

Spoilers

The plot detail "Snape kills Dumbledore" along with a list of chapter titles were leaked on the Usenet group alt.fan.harrypotter as early as July 14, 2005—two days before the official release date. Weeks earlier, betting patterns on the website "Blue Square" recorded an unusual surge in bets originating in a town where the book was being published (as pointed out in the Guardian newspaper May 24) [10]. A number of direct scans from the book were also leaked, with the spoiler highlighted to attract viewers' attention. It noted that the spoilers had already appeared on Ain't it Cool News before a cease and desist letter from the book's publishers led to its removal. ^{[citation needed]} This leakage, however, enabled some people to run around release parties shouting the spoilers and was made into an Internet meme.

Text changes

As with Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the United States version of the novel has slightly changed text from the British version. In this case, however, the reason for the edit has not been explained on the author's webpage, but it clearly makes the nature of an offer from Dumbledore to Draco explicit, whereas the British edition is more ambiguous. The text can be found in chapter 27, "The Lightning-Struck Tower". The parts added in the United States version have been highlighted in bold, below:

"[…] He told me to do it or he'll kill me. I've got no choice." "He cannot kill you if you are already dead. Come over to the right side Draco, and we can hide you more completely than you can possibly imagine. What is more, I can send members of the Order to your mother tonight to hide her likewise. Nobody would be surprised that you had died in your attempt to kill me — forgive me, but Lord Voldemort probably expects it. Nor would the Death Eaters be surprised that we had captured and killed your mother — it is what they would do themselves, after all. Your father is safe at the moment in Azkaban […]"
(US Edition p. 591)(CND Edition p. 552) ^[HP6]

Translations

Various publishers have announced release dates for local translations of the book.

See: Harry Potter in translation

Editions

Bloomsbury (United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, etc.)

• ISBN 0-7475-8108-8 Hardcover
• ISBN 0-7475-8110-X Hardcover (adult edition) (Different cover and binding, same text)

Raincoast (Canada, etc.)

• ISBN 1-55192-756-X Hardcover
• ISBN 1-55192-760-8 Hardcover (adult edition) (Different cover and binding, same text)
• ISBN 0-7475-8152-5 Hardcover (large print edition)

Scholastic (United States, etc.)

• ISBN 0-439-78454-9 US Hardcover
• ISBN 0-439-79132-4 Deluxe Edition
• ISBN 0-439-78596-0 US Paperback

US Children's Edition Scholastic	US Deluxe Edition Scholastic</center>	UK Adult Edition Bloomsbury Raincoast	UK Children's Edition Bloomsbury Raincoast
Danish Edition Gyldendal	Dutch Edition De Harmonie	French Edition Gallimard	German Children's Edition Carlsen
Japanese Edition	Spanish Edition Salamandra	Hebrew Edition Books in the Attic Ltd.

References

1. ↑  "Potter's 'Prince' Conjures Record" by E!Online
2. ↑  "Bets reopen on Dumbledore death" from the BBC
3. ↑  "New 'Harry Potter' book leaked" from the CBC
4. ↑  "The Harry Potter Injunction" by Michael Geist
5. ↑  "Don't Buy Harry Potter Books" by Richard Stallman
6. ↑  "Much Ado As Harry Potter Hits the Shelves" by The Globe and Mail
7. ↑  "Greenpeace to U.S. Potter fans: Buy Canadian" from the CBC
8. ↑  "Do You Like 'Half-Blood Prince" from J.K. Rowling's Official Site

• ^[HP2] Rowling, J.K. (1998). Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. UK ISBN 0747538492/US ISBN 0439064864.
• ^[HP6] Rowling, J.K. (2005). Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. UK ISBN 0747581088/US ISBN 0439784549.

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