What in the Wizarding World will happen during Harry’s sixth year at Hogwarts? Lord Voldemort has returned and the safety of families and students is at risk. And, there will be yet another appointment to the Defence Against the Dark Arts teaching post.
Ready for revelations? Here we go!
Podcasts:
Who Enforces the Statute of Secrecy to the Muggles? by Barbara Moline
The Prime Minister by Bridget Bartlett
A Shout-Out to Narcissa Malfoy by Eileen Jones
Free Will, Divination and Time Travel Part 2 by Abby Koop
Reader’s Guides:
These guides were originally written in 2005 and 2006. Since that time, a few edits were made here and there but basically the text remained the same. To get ready for this Canon Celebration, our editors have been revising each one. We’ve added fan artwork to the Guide which illustrates the text. At the bottom in the Commentary section we’ve added a gallery of additional artwork. So even if you’ve read our guides before, please give them another look. And if you’re doing a re-read of the first book, have the Guide to each chapter open as you go! I’m sure you’ll find a lot of information you didn’t know.
Calendars
Fitting the books into the real-life calendars isn’t easy! In fact, it’s impossible. But that didn’t stop us:
Day by day calendar of events in the book
Text Changes of the Editions and the Years
Differences between the British and American versions
“Mistakes and non-mistakes” in the text
Essays
The Bendable Vow: Dumbledore’s Hand In One Last Legal Loophole by D B Fwoopersong
The Marks of a Villain by Beth Welsh
Snape’s Eyes by Edward M Kern
Shaken, Not Stirred: The Allegiance(s) of a Certain Potions Master and Spy Extraordinaire by CheshireCat
Interesting Artwork
We have hundreds and hundreds of pieces of fan artwork in our collection. Some subjects get a lot of depictions — Diagon Alley is a favorite topic, for example, and, well, of course it is! But there are a few pieces which illustrate more unusual moments in the text. Here are a few examples:
Severus Snape and Narcissa Malfoy swear an Unbreakable Vow (HBP2)
Albus Dumbledore surrounded by pictures of Dudley Dursley (OP3)
Horace Slughorn suspects he is being manipulated (OP4)
O.W.L. results arrive by owl post (OP5)
Following Draco Malfoy using the Invisibility Cloak (OP6)
Artwork Challenge
Our Artwork Challenge for all you fan artists out there is to depict one of the lesser-known characters and scenes in the series. If we really like your work, we may feature it in the Lexicon! Here are some suggestions from these chapters:
- the Muggle Prime Minister being visited by Fudge and Scrimgeour (HBP1)
- Cokeworth–the town where Snape lives (HBP2) and where the Dursleys (in PS3) took Harry while on the run
- Wormtail attempting to eavesdrop on the conversation between Snape and the Black sisters (HBP2)
- The pile of Daily Prophet newspapers in Harry’s bedroom (HBP3)
- The Ministry of Magic leaflet about security measures (HBP3)
- The ruinous state of Slughorn’s hideout with the one armchair untouched (HBP4)
- Dumbledore and Harry (and spiders) having a chat in the Burrow’s broomshed (HBP4)
- Molly Weasley and a sad Tonks talking together in the Burrow kitchen (HBP5)
- The Weasley Grandfather Clock with the names of family and a dial showing their current locations “Work”, “Travelling” and “Mortal Peril” (HBP5)
- “Oily, smooth-talking” Mr. Borgin (HBP6)
Send your artwork to [email protected]. By submitting it, you are giving us permission to display your work on the Lexicon. We would like to include your name with your artwork so you are properly credited, so when you send your work let us know what name to use. Please also include a way to get a hold of you so that if we decide to feature your work as part of our regular collection we can contact you for more details. All artwork we display remains the property of the artist and they retain all copyright.
Special Feature: The Extra-Ordinary Weasley Twins
Their mother Molly Weasley has up until now said something in every book about how George and Fred are always getting into trouble. She feels they do not pay enough attention to schoolwork and do not focus on getting ahead. Their O.W.L. results were a great disappointment:
“Well done!” said Mrs Weasley proudly, ruffling Ron’s hair. “Seven O.W.L.s, that’s more than Fred and George got together!” (HBP5)
The twins, however, are confident in their own abilities to get ahead in a different way than their mother expects. They both have abilities, ambition and brains.
Before their sixth year (Harry’s fourth year) they try out the experimental Ton-Tongue Toffee on Dudley Dursley (GF5). The fake wands they bring to the 1994 Quidditch World Cup are admired by Ludo Bagman:
Bagman didn’t seem to think the wand was rubbish at all; on the contrary, his boyish face shone with excitement as he took it from Fred, and when the wand gave a loud squawk and turned into a rubber chicken, Bagman roared with laughter.
“Excellent! I haven’t seen one that convincing in years! I’d pay five Galleons for that!” (GF7)
The twins’ Skiving Snackboxes – the contents of which are still a work-in-progress – are brought into school for testing on other students at the start of their final year at school (OP12). A year they do not finish, because there is no point (OP29). They may have used up all of their Weasley’s Wizard Whiz-bangs stock of fireworks to drive Dolores Umbridge towards the brink (OP28) but, thanks to Harry giving them his Triwizard Tournament winnings (GF37), it has afforded them an extra year to plan and develop their products. They are ready to move into Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, their new premises in Diagon Alley (HBP6).
Looking at the diversity of their product lines, the less-than-seven O.W.L.s that Fred and George were awarded between them are likely to have been for Charms, Transfiguration and Potions. Their success shows that they were at some point definitely paying very careful attention in those subjects. Their Snackboxes may be for skiving, but they certainly weren’t.
From the Atlas: Knockturn Alley
Our entry for it on the Lexicon describes Knockturn Alley perfectly:
“Just around the corner from Diagon Alley lies a dark, twisting alleyway devoted to the Dark Arts: Knockturn Alley.”
The most infamous of its shops, Borgin and Burkes, is the location of several important scenes (CS4, HBP6) as well as the first place of employment for a certain Dark wizard.
Coming up next week…
We will be exploring the lion’s share of Half-Blood Prince, chapters 7 through 24. Come join us on the adventure!
