After 19 years comes 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child', and it is a cracker of a sequel from JK Rowling as Gen Next do battle
If there is one theme that the Harry Potter series is known for, it’s that of friendship. Rowling, being the literary genius that she is, had managed to keep the theme (friendship) strong and intact throughout Harry’s previous journeys from books 1-7. With the launch of her new play-turned-book, 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child', the author manages to base the central plot around friendship once again, but this time, the theme is seen played out between Albus (not Dumbledore, but Harry’s second oldest child — Albus Severus Potter)and Scorpius Malfoy (the son of Draco and Astoria). However, the constant time-travelling using “you-know-what” could prove to be quite a task for readers who haven’t read the earlier books at least a dozen times, not to mention that in some parts of the book, solutions to problems characters face do appear somewhat….magically.
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Harry Potter
Remember the first time Harry met Ron aboard the Hogwarts Express in their first year? Well, as they say, like father like son. Bearing a drastic resemblance to their (Harry and Ron’s) first conversation, where the duo instantly click and become best friends, Albus Severus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy strike up a remarkable friendship aboard the Hogwarts Express — nineteen years later — in the first of four acts of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
There are a few changes in the wizarding world, as Potter fans know it: Harry is the head of the Ministry of Magic’s Law Enforcement Department, Hermione is Minister for Magic, Aunt Petunia is dead, Ginny edits the sports pages of the Daily Prophet,and Albus becomes the first Potter to be sorted into Slytherin — along with Scorpius — earning him the wrath of fellow Gryffindors. Scorpius too, doesn’t have it easy. He is rumoured to be Voldemort’s son. Both the first-years have less in common with their fathers too: Albus can’t summon his broomstick “up,” whereas Scorpius, unlike the drawling pompous figure of his father, is kind, funny, and exceptionally intelligent.
Battle royale
As the story goes on, Albus and Scorpius decide to steal the last time-turner (all the time turners were smashed in the battle that occurred at the Ministry of Magic, remember?) from Hermione’s office in the Ministry, in order to right some wrongs, primarily, Cedric Diggory’s death. They undertake a journey into the past, to the Triwizarding tournament in which Cedric was killed, but are, within a span of five minutes, brought back to the present — the side-effect of a really old and not-so-powerful time turner. But in those five minutes, the duo manage to do some irreversible damage, and need to visit the past again in order to undo what they had done. But as luck would have it, the boys end up doing more damage than good on their second try—they end up humiliating Cedric Diggory at the Triwizarding tournament—an act that causes the good-looking and adored Cedric to turn into a Death Eater. In this timeline, Ron and Hermione aren’t married (he is married to Padma Patil and the latter is the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts), a Voldemort day is “celebrated” annually, and one of the most hated characters to ever live in Rowling’s pages — Dolores Umbridge — is the headmaster at Hogwarts once again.
Time travel
If there is one thing that plays a crucial role in Rowling’s latest literary tryst, it is the role of time turners. In Prisoner of Azkaban, we had seen how time turners could be used for doing good, and how Dumbledore himself had egged Hermione on to use it to save the Hippogriff Buckbeak, and Harry’s godfather Sirius Black. However, in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the constant shifting through time, back and forth, could leave readers flicking back through pages to know which universe and timeline they are currently in.
Things take a darker turn in the second and third acts of the book, during which, Scorpius and Albus are forced apart, a decision taken by Harry (who himself has become extremely authoritarian) based on the advice given to him by Bane, the centaur. A certain character (whose name we will not divulge as we do not believe in spoilers) is introduced to the central plot of the play, one who is acting upon a prophecy that will bring back the Dark Lord — an act, to prevent which, Albus and Scorpius go back in time (for the third and last time) to clean up their mess. However, this time, Harry, who has so far only been seen in glimpses throughout the book, makes a commanding re-entry into the plot, and “magically” goes back in time as well, along with Ginny, Draco, Ron and Hermione, in order to rescue the kids as well as put an end to the fabled prophecy this “certain character” was fulfilling.
The resemblance is there
On the whole, Rowling’s new book bears a drastic resemblance to the earlier Potter books, especially in terms of imagery. Moments where Harry offers Albus chocolate when the latter is weak reminded us of how Lupin offered a troubled Harry some Honeydukes chocolate after his (Harry’s) first encounter with a dementor. Albus is as reckless as his father (as Harry was like James, according to Sirius), and instances of his recklessness are paced well throughout the book. The book, in itself, is written in four acts and many different scenes, which gives it a slightly different narrative style than the original paraphrased HP books.
The new fan will like it too
For the new Potter fan, the book will hold surprises, but for those familiar with Rowling’s writing and style, the surprises may not be as hard hitting. After all, the Harry Potter series has been read and re-read, scrutinised and analysed, discussed and dissected, to a point where readers have learnt to gauge clues and their outcomes. This 330-page sequel to one of the best fantasy book series holds a lot in story for both, old-school Potter fans and the ones who are newly getting acquainted with the magical world. But if you thought you know who the “cursed child” is, there’s a 99% chance that you’ve got it wrong
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