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Wednesday, July 29, 2015

July Recap: The Long Overdue Harry Potter Reread

July was a very quiet month for me, mainly owing to the fact that the bf was away doing field work on the other side of the country, leaving me to spend most of my time on my own. It was thus a bit of a lonely month for me, but it was thankfully made a bit more endurable by my reread of the Harry Potter Series:

This was the first time I've reread the series in its entirety since before I started blogging! In other words, I was WAY overdue for this reread. July seemed like the ideal month to delve back into the series as it is Harry and Jo's birthday month and it coincides with the Harry Potter Month event. I would really love to make this series reread an annual event itself in my reading schedule because I was basically LIVING for HP for significant portions of this month. Of course my love for Harry has never wavered in the time since I last reread the series, but it felt more amazing than I could possibly say to be able to reacquaint myself with this world I adore so much and would die to see for myself, these characters whom I love to the moon and back, and those words that had such an positive impact on my reading habits when I first read them and continue to do so to this very day.

Yes, this reread of the HP series somehow solidified my love for all things Harry Potter even more... and also really brought into sharper focus for me how lacklustre the movie adaptations are in comparison. Of course I've always been of the opinion that the books are superior, but rereading them back to back in conjunction with watching the movies really showed all the many, many failings of the movies in comparison to the books. I won't go into detail on this topic here as that could be a post on its own, but I will just say that in the end I think I could still objectively view the movies in a somewhat positive light... but ultimately they will never even be in the same realm of the boundless love I feel for the books.


In other news, I have been extremely fortunate to have been appointed a job for the fall semester that will involve much more responsibility and many more hours work than any other teaching job I've had at the university thus far. As a result, I'm thinking I will not be around in the blogosphere as much for the month of August as I prepare for this, the highest ranking position I've had in my lifetime (oh, and there's also that 200-page-long thesis that I've been writing and hoping to finish soon...). I'll have to see how it goes!


Blog Posts in July

Drowning In Series
Waiting On Wednesday: HarperCollins Fall 2015 Catalog
Waiting On Wednesday: Hachette Fall 2015 Catalog
Review: Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #3.5) by Marissa Meyer - 3.5 Stars
Review: Hold Me Closer: The Tiny Cooper Story by David Levithan - 3.5 Stars
Review: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell - 4 Stars
Series Review: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead - 3 Stars
My Life in June: Mad Max, Jurassic World, and Serial Podcast


Best Book Read in July

First off, let's just pretend I didn't reread the Harry Potter Series this month. The following was my favourite read of the month OUTSIDE of HP:


This Song Will Save Your Life really resonated with me so deeply that it was both uncomfortable and supremely meaningful. I just really connected with the main character, her life struggles, and her earnest perspective. There were times that the story became so depressing that it was hard to read... but the uplifting ending made the experience totally worth it. Highly recommended.


38 comments :

  1. I've heard really good things about This Song Will Save Your Life, so I'm happy to hear that you really enjoyed it. Congrats on the new position for the fall too! That's so exciting. I haven't read the Harry Potter books in FOREVER. I really do want to have a reread at some point. I started this blog about finding your inner child, called Forgot My Age (www.forgotmyage.com if you want to check it out) and I thought of rereading the series sometime for that, since those books WERE my childhood basically and the site is all about reconnecting with that!

    -Lauren

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    1. Thanks, Lauren :) You and your many blogs! I don't know how you keep up, all I know is that you are awesome. That's a GREAT idea for a blog!!

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  2. Oh wow, well big congrats on the new and important position and good luck with your thesis writing!! I'm sorry that your significant other was away for July but I'm happy that you found comfort with Harry Potter ♥ I SO wanted to do a reread for HP month this year but with my new job it wasn't possible :( I seriously hope that I will get to do it in the coming year or next year for HP Month :D I have a feeling I'll notice the disparity between the books and the movies all the more then because at this point, the films are fresher in my mind, which is unfortunate. The books will always be in a class all their own in any case!

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    1. Thanks, Miche! I had hoped that you would be doing a HP reread with me this month so that we could buddy read, but I totally understand being too busy. Hopefully you will get the chance to reread soon! And I think I'm going to bypass the movies for a long time now...

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  3. Wow, a 200 page thesis?! Good luck, Aylee! While you may not get as much reading done, definitely try audiobooks. There are some great ones out there. I'm thrilled that you loved This Song Will Save Your Life. I also really connected with that book and have put it on my school's summer reading list for this year. I hope my teens enjoyed it as much as I did.

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    1. Ugh, thanks :) I have been going strong with audiobooks all year long due to busyness so I'm sure I'll keep it up for the month of August :) Also, you are such a great librarian!!

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  4. No way - I just started re-reading the Harry Potter series myself! Not sure if it's gonna be a series-long re-read at this point, but it is SO GOOD to finally return to Hogwarts (which I haven't visited since blogging, either).
    And so happy to hear your thoughts on the movies - I am entirely in agreement. So much so that I refused to watch the majority of them. The third was just so terrible and unfaithful to the book that I stopped for a while. Saw a few here and there, but I don't understand the HP movie love at all, to be honest.
    And yay! Congrats on your position. Good luck with it and your thesis!

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    1. Yeeaaahh I just saw your Instagram picture with you reading PS (or I guess it would be SS for you). Exciting right?? And it feels so good :)

      You know, I used to really love the movies, I think. This was back in the day when I was going to the premiere nights with a huge group of my friends and we would get dressed up and there would be SO MUCH excitement surrounding the whole affair. So I think it must be all about the experience for me. Because I agree that they are pretty bad - some more than others... Ugh, maybe I'll post my thoughts in more detail sometime...

      Thanks, Amanda!

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  5. I'm glad you got to reread the Harry Potter series this month. I've always like reading them in one go. It makes them feel like one giant extended adventure. Doing an annual reread of Harry Potter would be amazing! Although, I'm not sure I could do it every year. I read way too slowly for that to happen and for me to read all the other books I want to read. Ah well. I do reread at least one book from the series each year though! I'm rereading the series right now! I'm on Deathly Hallows, but I probably won't finish it by the end of the day, but that's okay.
    Congratulations on your new position and I hope the thesis writing goes well!

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  6. AAH! I think this sounds like the perect way to spend a month where you feel a bit lonely, Aylee, and it sounds like it worked really well for you. Now you're making me want to reread HP, though. Which I totally should, I've no idea when I fully read all the books, back to back... two or three years ago, and it was amazing. I'd say I'm well ready to delve into that world again! You and your Potter passion, always getting to me. *takes books 1-7 off shelf, puts them on tbr shelf* xx

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  7. Gorgeous post Aylee. <3 Sounds like July was interesting for you :) And YAY! I also re-read the Harry Potter books that month. <3 It was perfection. Sigh. So much love. But aw. I actually love the movies a whole lot. Though all the differences did bother me a whole lot :( Sad face. Anyway. Hope you are having an amazing August so far sweet girl. <3

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    1. Yes, I loved your HP posts! Thanks, Carina :)

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  8. YAY FOR HARRY POTTER. Okay, I admit, I've never actually read the entire series. I read the first half, and then listened to the other half on audiobook. I have yet to sit down and reread all of them in text format!! Eeeek! I really do love the movies though, but I can see how underwhelming they are if you reread the series back to back.

    Congrats on the new job!! That's so exciting, you're doing big things, Aylee!! Happy August, dear!

    xoxo,
    Jen

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  9. I should probably revisit the Harry Potter series sometime myself! I was just doing this great Harry Potter game over at Pages Unbound (which you should definitely check out! - https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2015/07/26/wizarding-school-adventure-introduction/) and I did a terrible job at all of the trivia questions. I'm glad you enjoyed it just as much on a re-read :)

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  10. Good luck with the new job! I've been re-listening to the Harry Potter audiobooks. They always get me in the mood for fall :)

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    1. Oh, I love that! I really hope I can reread them every summer to prepare for fall :)

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  11. July is the perfect month to reread Harry Potter :) Good luck with your thesis!

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  12. I absolutely need to reread the Harry Potter Series! Believe it or not, I have only read the fourth and seventh book once (how? I don;t know). But it's on my bucket list. I am VERY glad you enjoyed This Song Will Save Your Life. When I read it, it was hard, but so good.

    Goood luck with the new job, Aylee! You'll do great I know it!!

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  13. You can never stop loving the HP series!! I am also a potterhead and I think I'm gonna stay for a very long time!! These books are just so well written and magical! <3

    Haniya
    booknauthors.blogspot.com

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  14. I'm so happy and excited to see that you read the Harry Potter series again and that too during the Harry Potter month. I haven't reread the whole series back to back since I started blogging, and I will make sure I rectify that. I would love to see you make an in-depth post on the book-movie comparison- you'll do it really well.

    Congratulations on the new job! I'm sure you'll be great there. Wish you lots of success! Also, I'm sending lots of flasks of Felix Felicis for you for the thesis! I know how hard it is to complete your research, so I wish you all the luck in the world. Rock it, girl!

    I'll miss you in August! Do keep us updated about your life over on Twitter, Instagram and the like!

    Sarika @ The Readdicts

    P.S: Kudos to you for making a lonely month so eventful! Harry to the rescue, eh? And I hope you and your boyfriend get to spend lots of time together soon. <3

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    1. Aww, Sarika you are the sweetest :) THANK YOU SO MUCH!! <3<3

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  15. What a beautiful post. I really mean that. I'm sitting in bed wearing my Weasley Is Our King T-shirt, and I'm so so glad to know there are other people like me out there. Siblings have been making fun of me today on account of said T-shirt, and I don't know, it's difficult to explain to people how much HP means to me, even here in the book blogosphere, where there are fewer die-hard fans than you'd expect. So thank you, thank you, thank you.

    I'm so glad you did a reread! They actually get better every time. I enjoyed them the most last time, I think, eighteen months ago. The characters are like old friends; the longer you've spent with them, the more precious the time is each time you return.

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    1. Aw, Emily stahp! You are too generous. Thank you for this comment, which made my day when I first read it weeks ago and has made it again today <3

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  16. Oh this is amazing! I'm actually re-reading the series myself right now (while watching Doctor Who at the same time haha). I'm on the Order of the Phoenix right now and I'm totally feeling a bit of irritation at the movies right now - at the same time I want to watch them again.

    Congratulations on the job! It's going to suck a bit not having you around the blog as much but have fun teaching and good luck on your thesis!

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  17. It's been so long since I read HP, and I didn't realize how much of a difference there is in the number of pages after book 3 until I saw your picture!

    Congrats on the new job and good luck on your thesis! What are you doing as part of your new job? Is it at the ROM?

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  18. OMG Have fun rereading the HP series. I haven't finished it yet but I promise i'll get to it! I've always wanted to read This Song Will Save Your Life but can never find it in the bookstores near me. I also want to read NIght Film :P Just happened to stumble across ur blog through friends and I love the look!

    Alex @ The Book's Buzz

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  19. Yay for rereads, we are in the fourth book with my oldest daughter, so we are slowly getting through them. I am still loving this go round as well

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