Chapter 32: in which Hermione Granger is once again smarter, quicker, and more devious than our titular hero. #hpchapteraday

I can't believe this was available for immediate download. Score! #libraryqueuelife #audiobook

I propose this line as an alternative title for the ENTIRE SERIES: "And it seemed that Hermione was quite right." #hpchapteraday #ootp

I long for a perfectly independent, disdainful eyebrow ALMOST as much as I long for unruly curly hair. #thegrassisalwaysgreener

Hanging out on the porch enjoying the end of the day while I catch up on #hpchapteraday. Fully supervised, of course. #littenkitten

Pretty good mail day, sa sa? #NoliteTeBastardesCarborundum #alsofiber

My, what a big history you have. #only12hoursleft

... character, obedience is the grand lesson which ought to be impressed with unrelenting rigour." ::punches Rousseau in the face::

The more things change...

Listening to some more history today while engaging in a modern take on a prehistoric activity. "The fragile peace of the united Israel lasted barely a hundred years." Sheesh.

5.1: OotP is my favorite of the series. I am so excited. #hpchapteraday

The group noun for "ephemeron triflers," aka women, is "swarm." I know you were wondering, and Mary's got your back!

Mary is just sayin' is all.

"And so the land between the two rivers entered a dark age. And for a hundred years or so, no history emerges from the blackness." The thing that strikes me most about ancient history is how casually a hundred years of brutality gets passed by. Generations lived and died; my whole life so far isn't even half of that time period. But it's also somehow comforting; humans find a way. Always.

Ch. 31: The Third Task. Some timely commentary from the always-relevant Emily McGovern! Congrats on your 50th comic! #hpchapteraday #mylifeasabackgroundslytherin

Today, we squeee!!

"...she had to keep reminding herself that the past was a different place. She didn't live there anymore."

It is super fucked up that the Tri-Wizard Tournament judges didn't tell the participants that no one would be harmed under the lake. This is making me so angry. Super. Fucked. Up. Fleur's sister is only 8!!! Also, it speaks to the depths of feeling that Fleur is capable of that she is the only champion whose most-missed person is a family member. #fleurapologist #hpchapteraday

My check out ends tomorrow morning and I have so much left to go but I can't... reach... it... #kittenlitten

I HAVE THOUGHTS. So many thoughts. Can't type them all on this phone keyboard that is a direct descendant of the work these women were doing. But here's the biggest one: humans are a study in contradictions and contrast, and what is happening right now in the US is somehow less surprising after reading about how FUCKING LONG it took for schools in VA to be integrated. These are our steps back. It's ugly and shitty and we can't stop fighting. Ever.

3.3: THE KNIGHT BUSSSSSS! I love Book Knight Bus. Movie Knight Bus is creepy and weird and I hate the unnecessary Rasta shrunken head (also, racist much?!?). But Book Knight Bus is funny and quirky and light. If Stan Shunpike would just use some face cream, I bet he'd be adorable. #hpchapteraday @hpchapteraday #stillbehind #juststickoutyourwand

Doing some work this morning. Adichie is brilliant. #feminism #readharder

#resist

2.4: A lot happens in this chapter, but the thing that struck me most is that Hermione's parents never actually speak. At one point they're "speechless with fright" over a fight in the bookshop, but surely that's the MOST mundane thing they've seen all day? @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

2.2: Dobby. Is. The. Woooooooooorst. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

2.1: So, here's the thing. The Dursley's reaction to Harry threatening magic is funny because we are in on the joke, but to them - especially Petunia, whose sister was killed by magic - it must have been legitimately terrifying. I understand completely why Harry would get some of his own back; he's never had even a speck of power in that house, and he's only 12. But still, I can't help but sympathize with Petunia. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

1.16: OKAY BUT FOR REAL, Quirrell. You idiot. Here are some ways to make sure you're not followed: 1) take the key with you 2) rearrange the potion bottles 3) tear up the clues 4) drink/take the smallest bottle with you. Seriously. You have two brains in your head right now and no one thought of that? You're the worst. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

1.13: Hope. Five days in to 45's presidency and it feels in short supply, I have to admit. This chapter reminded me of the nerves I felt leading up to a big dance performance; that curious mix of nervousness and trepidation and trying desperately to plan every possible thing so that if something went wrong, I could salvage it. Even Misty Copeland said she gets nervous - it's a you care. And if we don't care, we have nothing. #hpchapteraday

1.12: Coming in after the fact, there's not a lot more to say about the parallel between white privilege and the invisibility cloak. I had trouble coming up with anything new to say in regards to this *specific* chapter; however, I think there's a lot to say about JKR and her very British xenophobia, and her blindness about other cultures. She's an incredible person whom I highly admire, but our faves are problematic. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

1.11: today, on this particular day, goals are important. At this point, Harry is just a famous kid, and like him, I have not yet begun to fight. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday #resistance

1.10: making friends at Hogwarts is so hard. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

1.9: We'll I'm behind, surprise surprise. Ok. I chatted about this a little with someone, but it's been weighing on me: the teachers' betrayal of the contract between them and the students bugs me. They're undermining their own authority and that of their peers, and then when the students aren't following the rules, they wonder why or blame it on other people. McGonagall's in particular bothers me; she's a stalwart paladin at that school, and...

I started reading this casually on my phone during lunch and now I can't put it down.

1.8: this chapter is full of promises of future knowledge and conflict. Classes, books, mystery, and relationships. The chapter is setting up Hogwarts as a world and also the characters in it; we learn where they fit into the standard School Story that readers expect, and then we get to watch JK break those expectations down in new ways (as all good storytellers do). @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday 🍅🔨

1.7: I'm of two minds about making students sit in front of the Sorting Hat. First, it's unnecessarily nerve-wracking if it's a Big Secret, which it seems to be. But OTOH, it's a relatively mild initiation into a group? Hmm. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday 🍅🔨

1.6: Guys. Molly was asking about the platform because she's a mom and moms ask their young kids questions they know the answer to. She didn't forget. 🙄🙄🙄 This chapter is full of expectations, but Malfoy's are the most confusing. What kind of arrogance makes a kid think he can insult another boy's dead parents and it'll make the boy want to befriend him? FFS Draco. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday 🍅🔨

1.5: Harry is a stranger in a strange land, and in a literary sense, I both love and hate this trope. It's a simple way to introduce world-building because we see new things with the same wonder that the character experiences. But there is a lack of critical thinking that comes with first experiences, and the lack can lead to nostalgia later on, which is dangerous. As readers, we are charmed but miss key markers. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday 🍅🔨

1.4 - The Dursley's have made Harry pay for his upkeep in emotional labor, but they still didn't put him in foster care because of their sense of familial responsibility - which, though laudable, without an equal sense of generosity is a poor way to raise a kid. In contrast, Hagrid bringing food and warmth to the hut on the rock must feel like utter luxury, and that doesn't even cover his generosity of *information.* @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

1.3 Harry's lack of fear about the boa constrictor is curious and maybe a little telling. He also doesn't fear spiders, just plucking them off of his socks in his cupboard. Do normal boys not care about these things? My brothers all shrieked like banshees about creepy crawlies. @hpchapteraday #hpchapteraday

Chapter One: how much damage could have been prevented if the Dursley's weren't so insistent about being perfectly normal, thank you very much? #hpchapteraday #audiobook

And there you have it. #resistance

I need to expand my reading and get back to a semblance of critical thought. #bookishresolutions I'm still waffling about the #hpchapteraday but I suspect I'll fall on the side of "I'll give it a shot."

I've been meaning to get to this, and my lovely Bookish Partner in Crime @SWSondheimer sent me a copy for Icelandic Bookday, so here we go! I'll have to intersperse the series with #ReadHarder books, but so far this is marvelous brain candy so I'm fine with that.

How many stars can I give this? It blew my mind. Dense and confusing in exactly the right ways, leaving enough to the imagination. This is a book to read with steak and red wine - unusual for a SFF piece. I'm torn about moving forward yet - do I start #TheObeliskGate now, or wait until book 3 comes out later this year?

I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOREVER! This is going to be so great.

This was excellent. The stories were a delight - especially the two Alaskan ones! (although this Juneau girl is biased) - and I appreciated each author's reasoning at the end of their respective story. I want to know more about every one of these girls!!

DYING. 😂😂😂