As a fan, I initially had mixed feelings about “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” by J.K Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne. On the one hand, I was extremely excited to return to the magical universe I grew up in. It is always nice to visit old friends, but only if it is done properly. On the other hand, I was afraid Rowling should have left well enough alone. The epilogue wrapped up Harry’s story beautifully- why mess with perfection? I was curious enough to see what became of the characters I loved, so I spent an entire day reading, and slightly critiquing “The Cursed Child.” Warning: there are major spoilers below.
As I dove into the text, it felt like returning home. The story immediately picks up during the epilogue scene at the end of the seventh novel. The reader gets to follow Albus, Rose and Scorpius on the train ride to Hogwarts. Albus Potter is the typical middle child who is struggling with his father’s legacy, while Rose Granger-Weasley takes after her mother, especially her attitude in the earlier books, and Scorpius is the kind hearted and comedic relief filled son of Draco Malfoy. What I cherished most about this book was the immense friendship between Albus and Scorpius. It was quite a role reversal from their respective fathers’ relationship.
Speaking of the parents, Harry, Hermione and Ron become supporting characters for the first time. They are in the text frequently, but the story is more focused on the next generation. There are many scenes where these three characters are in more typical parental roles such as in Harry and Ginny’s home or when Harry and Hermione are at work. Harry is the Head of Magical Law Enforcement, Hermione is the Minister of Magic and Ron is the new owner of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. It was an adjustment to see these characters in more parental roles because I grew up with these characters as children.
The majority of the book focuses on changing the past, particularly the Tri-Wizard Tournament which took place during the fourth novel. Albus overhears a conversation between Amos Diggory and Harry about a new Time-Turner and changing Cedric’s death, but Harry refuses. With the help of Scorpius and Delphi, Amos’ “niece”, Albus tries to take up his father’s mantle and save Cedric. Of course being a Potter, the plan does not go smoothly- messing with time never turns out well.
Albus and Scorpius change the time line twice, but I want to focus on the second time. The second time they change the time line Voldemort is in power because he defeated Harry at the Battle of Hogwarts. In this world, Albus does not exist and Scorpius has to find a way to change things back. He enlists the help of an alternate universe badass Hermione, Ron and Snape. Snape is alive in this universe! I actually squealed when I read Snape’s first line. It was like meeting an old friend again--brief, but meaningful.
The eighth book is filled with so many character reunions for the reader, but that cannot save a few of the problems. Harry is not always a great father to Albus. In fact, I caught myself calling Harry a d—k more than once. He is harsh towards Albus and finds him difficult and this does not line up with Harry’s true character. As a reader, it was hard to get through those scenes. Not to mention, where are James and Lily? There is very little mention of Albus' siblings. I also do not buy into the reveal that Delphi is the daughter of Bellatrix Lestrange and Voldemort. It goes against the previous books completely. There was never any mention of Bellatrix being pregnant and it would have been physically obvious to the characters. For me, Delphi was an annoying character in general.
Overall, it was nice to catch up with old friends and check in on this magical universe, but maybe things would have been better if Rowling, Tiffany and Thorne had left well enough alone.
