Despite the failures of the Fantastic Beasts series, Harry Potter fans are eager to see more screen installments. Whether this includes Newt Scamander and his friends or tells a whole new story established from J.K. Rowling's books, they are far from done with tales of the wizarding world.
In the meantime, fans can satisfy their need by returning to the Harry Potter books, perhaps even for the first time since they finished Deathly Hallows when it was released in 2007. If they do, however, they should expect to find a new world between the pages, resulting from the changed perspective that time has created in them. From the problematic nature of elements like the enslavement of house-eves to the disappointing reminder that the movies can never quite add up, rereading Harry's story is sure to come with several harsh realizations.
Harry, Ron, And Hermione Are So Young
Many long-time Harry Potter fans first read the books when they were about the same age as the characters. However, it can be a surprise for returning readers to see Harry, Ron, and Hermione from their adult perspectives.
It's often easy for child audiences to accept the burdens placed on their favorite child heroes, but these dangerous events can be a little alarming for adults. Harry's mistreatment, Hermione's burdensome intelligence, and Ron's constant fear of being overlooked are much more sympathetic to older readers.
The Adults In Harry Potter Are Terribly Irresponsible
Just like the children characters are far more tragic to newly adult audiences, Harry Potter, such as the parents and teachers, suddenly appear all the more clueless. They seem never to have any idea what their children are up to, and when they are needed, they brush the young characters away.
It's no surprise that Harry and his friends rarely went to the adults for help. This might have felt normal when reading in the past, but as adults, it's harder for readers to feel sympathy for these clueless characters.
House-Elves Are Extremely Problematic
From the time Dobby was introduced in Chamber of Secrets, he was easy to love. The movies cut out many of his subsequent appearances, but the books had much more to say about not only everyone's favorite free elf but all house-elves of the wizarding world.
In Goblet of Fire, Harry, and co. meet dozens of house-elves in the kitchens, and they are first confronted with the information that most house-elves don't want to be freed. While this was only charming detail when the book was released, years later, it seems to encourage some problematic topics.
The Harry Potter Movies Leave Out A Painful Amount
It is much easier to repeatedly binge the Harry Potter movies than reread the books, so even the most die-hard fans can start to forget just how much the movies leave out. This means that when they come back to the books, they can find themselves surprised again by some subtle details.
This is especially prevalent from Prisoner of Azkaban onward and becomes worse with each movie. In a sense, rereading the books can almost ruin the films since the reminder that the best or Harry Potter were cut just brings back all the disappointment.
Severus Snape Is Much Worse In The Books
Alan Rickman's legendary portrayal of Severus Snape is not easy to forget. He fit the book description of the character to a tee, and even those who read Philosopher's Stone before watching the film quickly adjusted their mental image to fit the actor.
However, Rickman's Snape was much calmer and more pitiable than his book counterpart. This means that reading about Snape screaming and throwing a fit in rage like he does in the Prisoner of Azkaban book can feel jarring in comparison. He acts purely like a scorned child, which doesn't fit with how audiences have come to know Snape.
Girls At Hogwarts Are Overly Stereotypical
Since the Harry Potter books take the perspective of a teenage boy, it isn't surprising that the outlook on girls is a little off. Perhaps readers didn't think much of the hoards of giggling school girls that became such a nuisance to Harry. But, when revisiting the books in the following decades, they presented a problem.
Harry describes most of the girls as shallow, giggling, and annoying. He even thinks of Ginny as being "not like other girls" since she is tough and cool (he decided this was because she had grown up with all brothers). While his perspective here might not be abnormal for a teenage boy, it perpetuates many harmful stereotypes that are a little more uncomfortable to read through today.
Hagrid Was Much Less Competent In The Books
Hagrid might have been quirky in the movies, but he was always someone Harry could go to for help. If there were a crisis, Hagrid would always jump into action. And, when it came to teaching his class, he wasn't nearly as bad as the Slytherins made him out to be.
If audiences haven't returned to read the books in a while, they might have forgotten that Hagrid's quotes in the Harry Potter books prove that he was a little less capable. He was strong and kind but wasn't the most help in an emergency. In regards to his class, even Harry, Ron, and Hermione couldn't stand it, and for good reason (looking at those Blast-Ended Skrewts).
Harry's Books Character Was So Much Funnier
While the Harry Potter movies improved some characters, others were downplayed to the point of being almost unrecognizable. A great example is the Boy Who Lived himself, who notoriously lost most of his good lines to other characters.
Harry Potter is much sassier in the books than his movie counterpart. Years of being abused by the Dursleys taught him to come up with quick and clever comebacks, which he would later use against the likes of Snape, Malfoy, and even his friends. When reading these scenes, it's easy to become disappointed that the flavor of Harry's character never made it to the movies.
Harry And Ginny Had Great Chemistry
Without Harry's inner dialogue, it was difficult for movie audiences to understand his relationship with Ginny. Their awkward scenes in the movies felt rushed and unnatural, causing many to disregard the couple and instead wish that Harry had ended up with Hermione.
So, when rereading Half-Blood Prince and experiencing the build-up to their surprise first kiss, it can be a shock to just how important Ginny was to Harry. She represented normalcy that he had never experienced, and it's a harsh reality that that connection will never be shown on screen.
The Harry Potter Potter Books Are Full Of Subtle Details And Themes
There is a reason that the Harry Potter books are still being discussed and analyzed over a decade after the final book's release. They are full of foreshadowing and hidden themes, the keys to making literature timeless. Every time a fan reads through the series, they are likely to find something they never noticed before.
While this is part of what makes the series so beloved, it is just another bitter reminder that eight films could never be enough to comprehensively summarize the minute details of the story. Perhaps more screen spin-offs will tell these tales in the future, but for now, fans can only read and reread the books.
