Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts 1 & 2, Special Rehearsal Edition Script by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany

               Book Review: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts 1 & 2, Special Rehearsal Edition Script by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany

Amazon Summary: Based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, a new play by Jack Thorne, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the eighth story in the Harry Potter series and the first official Harry Potter story to be presented on stage. The play will receive its world premiere in London’s West End on July 30, 2016.

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.
While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places."

 My summary in a few sentences: Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy, his best friend, use a time-turner from the ministry of magic to try to save Cedric from his death in the Triwizard Tournament. However, each time they come back, the future changes to completely gruesome situations, and they must find a way to get back to the real present before it is too late.

      My thoughts: First off, I really like the fact that this book was a play. I've always wanted to have a play version of each Harry Potter book, because honestly, who wouldn't want to reenact the entire dialogue in their head? I think that is awesome. 

     

      However, being a play has some challenges. There wasn't really any part where I felt like I was really at Hogwarts, since there was no main description of it. There was also minimal interaction between Albus and the other students, which was disappointing, as the students also make Hogwarts seem so real. Also, Albus's first few years rush by because they aren't the main part of the story, so the reader definitely doesn't feel entranced by it. 

      

     I love that Ginny and Hermione still act the same as they were 19 years ago, just slightly more mature. However, even though Ron is really funny,  I feel as if his character is exaggerated. He should have grown up a little more, because some of the things he says just don't seem like an adult would say them. The most developed character was Draco Malfoy, which was nice to see. He finally has stopped being cruel to Harry (for the most part, anyway), so it was sad to see how his wife had died. I would have appreciated some background on her to be honest, because I'm still not entirely sure where she comes from (she was never really mentioned until the epilogue in book 7).

      

     My biggest problem was with Harry and Albus. They are not close at all, and they seem so different than what was expected. Albus decides to leave school to help a complete stranger, leaving Harry in a mess looking for his son. In addition, even after his failed attempts with the time-turner, Albus still tries again, which really annoys me. Also, he and Scorpius, his best friend (Draco Malfoy's son), seemed more fake to me. It just seemed like they were meant to be really funny, which was super obvious at some points. Even Harry made a lot of mistakes as well, like telling Albus that he wishes he weren't his son. Albus seems to get over it, but that is actually really, really, hurtful to say to anyone. He keeps making little mistakes like this that really show readers how different he is from before.

     
     The plot and action of the story were pretty fun to read as it goes back to different generations. It's fun to see what life would have been like without Voldemort dying, and the twist at the end with Delphi, Amos Diggory's "nephew" is really surprising. I also like how the story wasn't entirely predictable, and how Harry and Albus's relationship does improve in the end. I'm guessing the point of this story was not to just make a story about wizards, it was to teach who one should trust, how people can make mistakes quite often, and how people cannot always live up to their legacies. If that was the goal of the play, it was well done.

     Overall, I would give this book about 4 stars, because for a play, it was as "magical" as it could get. I understand how hard it is to develop characters when you only show what they're saying. If this were to be a novel, the rating would definitely not be as high, but as a play, it was enjoyable to reunite with the Hogwarts family again.

Check out the cover here by wikimedia.