Short-and-to-the-Point Book Review #1: The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy

This year I have challenged myself to read 60 books on a variety of subject matter--fiction, non-fiction, philosophy, theology, environmental issues, pop culture, literature, etc. For each book I plan on posting a short-and-to-the-point review (1-2 paragraphs max), a recommendation and a grade. Hope you enjoy!

2010, John Wiley & Sons

Review
My first book of 2012 was The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles, another entry in the Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series. Like others in the series, this book strikes a good balance between interesting philosophy and Harry Potter-themed content. The articles are from experts in various philosophical fields who all have a particular interest in Harry Potter. It was a good read, though some chapters I found far more interesting than others. Of particular note are Tamar Szabo Gendler's article entitled, "Is Dumbledore Gay? Who's to Say?" and Charles Taliaferro's on "The Real Secret of the Phoenix: Moral Regeneration through Death." (Some may recognize that Taliaferro is a well-loved professor from St. Olaf).

Recommendation
Certainly worth a gander if you like philosophy and Harry Potter, but even if you care nothing about philosophy this is not a bad option. If you care nothing for HP I think there are better options to read on pop culture and philosophy. Like Bernie Bott's Every-Flavor Beans, this is a mixed bag. The articles I mentioned above are great, especially Gendler's article, and I commend them to you. Other articles are nothing new in the HP universe. But overall, the book was a quick read, entertaining and a worthy companion to the HP corpus.

Grade:
B+