One of our most favorite characters from the Harry Potter series is the one and only Neville Longbottom.  From a shy, sheepish kid in the first book, to Snake-Killer, Neville goes through one of the most noticeable transformations of any other character in the book.  In this episode, we take a look back at Neville, the significant moments in his life, both before and at Hogwarts, and how he progressed from less than a wizard to a full-fledged Wizard Hero.  In particular, we examine how J.K. Rowling uses Neville to show how cultures and societies reinforce images of acceptable traits and tacitly punish or stigmatize those that fail to embody those traits; also, we discuss Neville’s character as a mirror of Harry’s character.

I had to resist the urge to entitle this episode “Neville Longbottom: From Zero to Hero.”

Please check out the new Harry Potter T-Shirt Store on Zazzle, and let us know what you think.  If you’ve purchased a t-shirt from us at either of our stores, please send us a picture (we won’t post it unless you say it’s OK).

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In the news:

• Daniel Radcliffe is one of Moviefone’s “25 Hot Actors Under 25 List”.
• Did you win the JK Rowling book reading sweepstakes? Scholastic and Raincoast have both announced the winners.
• National Braille Press has announced a new Harry Potter auction.
• Nepotism alive and well in the HP franchise. Ralph Feinnes’ nephew MIGHT be playing a young Tom Riddle in HBP. Take this news as rumor until it is confirmed by WB.
• JKR and Emma Watson attended the Pride of Britain awards.
• Emma Watson attending Nickolodeon’s Kids Choice UK awards.
• The OoTP DVD will include downloadable digital files which will allow users to download to PC or portable devices.
• New Harry Potter merchandise available.
• Prague publishing house IN TROUBLE.
• Harry Potter is the new wizard of the month on JKR’s site.

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We’re just back from Prophecy 2007. In short, we had a great time, came home and immediately sat down to recap . Between the amazing sessions, the vast array of Potter fans and the great discussions, it was a weekend to remember. Penny recapped day one and day two in two previous posts, with some great links to many of the amazing speakers we got to hear. Make sure to check them out, as well tune in to this episode to hear our thoughts.

No news for this episode, we’ll be back with a regular episode later this week.

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*Deathly Hallows Spoilers Included*

It’s been less than a week since the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, yet most of us have now read the book more than once; inevitably, bits and pieces need to be re-read to make sense of them. In addition to re-reading, the comments on our last post were extremely amazing, and really helped make sense of the book. This week, we look back through the comments and pull out a few topics to discuss further: a possible relationship between Harry and Voldemort? Examples of Voldemort’s spells not working, references to Nazis, the fittingness of Snape’s death. What was the purpose of the epilogue? And what did we need the Deathly Hallows for anyhow? Of course, there’s more questions that need to be discussed (who discovered magic later in life? Where did Harry’s parents get all that money from?), but they’ll have to wait until next time.

Thanks so much for all the great comments, keep them coming, we couldn’t do the show without them!

In the News:

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is breaking sales records.
• JK Rowling on the Today show: Announces Encyclopedia of characters and talks about DH.
• Naomi Watts, Joseph Fiennes, and Stuart Townsend not necessarily in the Half Blood Prince movie.

Make sure to listen to our interview on The James Madison Show from Friday, July 20. The interview can be found a the website if you click the podcast button. Special thanks to James and Frank for having us on.

Don’t forget to order your HPProgs t-shirts! Contact us if you’re interested in a red, white or black limited edition t-shirt.

Join in on the HPProgs Thank-You Book to JK Rowling!

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Although we typically focus on a character for our prognostications, thanks to a suggestion, we’re going to focus on a place.  Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is an integral part of the Harry Potter books, so much so that one might even consider it a character.  With Harry and The Gang’s final year at school up in the air (due to the impending Horcrux hunt), Hogwarts future role in the books is up in the air.  What role with their revered educational institution play in the final installment, and what does the history and nature of Hogwarts tell us about Harry’s ultimate mission (besides, you know, vanquishing the Dark Lord)?  All this and more is the topic of this week’s prognostication.

And the news:

• JK Rowling and Dan Radcliffe have a lot of money.
• Kids Pick Potter (and Captain Underpants).
• Conde Nast says Movie 4 is a good travel flick.

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