Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter, along with his best friends, Ron and Hermione, is about to start his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry can’t wait to get back to school after the summer holidays (who wouldn’t if they lived with the horrible Dursleys?) But when Harry gets to Hogwarts, the atmosphere is tense. There’s an escaped mass murderer on the loose, and the sinister prison guards of Azkaban have been called in to guard the school . . .




The plot thickens and the dangers facing Harry multiply in this third thrilling instalment from J.K. Rowling.




Late in the book, Chamber of Secrets, Harry and his friends learned of a special prison for witches that were so evil they had to be removed from the world. The name of this prison was Azkaban, and it was rumored to be a very horrific place. This entire third year of Harry's school is going to be consumed in fighting the most hideous imaginable evil -- a prisoner that has escaped and who is rumored to be out to kill Harry -- and his guards who have come to Hogwarts to attempt a recapture. Harry finds this entire sequence of events almost more than he can handle, even if he is a Wizard from a generational family who had been very powerful; after all, he is only 13 years of age.




F or twelve long years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black. Convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he is said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord, Voldemort. Now he has escaped, leaving only two clues as to where he might be headed: And the Azkaban guards heard Black muttering in his sleep, "He's at Hogwarts... he's at Hogwarts." Harry Potter isn't safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends. Harry Potter's defeat of evil Lord Voldemort was Black's downfall as well.




On top of it all, are faint hints of a traitor in their midst. But, in a surprise ending, Harry discovers that his enemy is not Sirius Black, after all! In fact, Sirius Black was framed for the curse murder of the 13 people and was held all these 12 years in AZKABAN Prison when he was innocent. Harry discovers Sirius is his Godfather and really cares for him.




Once again, we see that the normal world, populated by people who do not practice magic [called Muggles] is depicted in very gloomy ways, while the Fantasy World of Witches and Wizards is painted in very bright, exciting adventures. Why, the difference is enough to make a person reading the book to want to be a Witch or Wizard. As an example, we see that "Aunt Petunia, who was horse-faced ... was the nosiest woman in the world and spent most of her life spying on the boring, law-abiding neighbors." [p. 17]




Harry Potter and his friends constantly look with disdain upon anyone who feels an obligation to obey the rules and the laws of the school and of society. Here, we can see how Rowling plants the idea in the head of her readers that people who obey the laws are "boring", thus giving the implication that it is exciting to disobey the law! Christian parent, is this the kind of message you want to give your kids?