Quiddich

I don't really have much to say about this chapter plot-wise. We all know how this game comes into play at the end of the story (pretty clever JK!) and how the kids completely misinterpret the whole Snape/broom incident. I may choose to discuss one or both of these at a later date, when the clues payoff.

What I do want to talk about briefly is the point of view jumping that occurs in this chapter. I've mentioned it before in other places in this book, but this is where it's most evident and where I noticed it for the first time. We're with Harry for all the stuff at the beginning of the chapter but as everyone heads down to the Quiddich field we end up with Hermione, Ron, Neville, Seamus and Dean ("the West Ham fan"). After a few sentences, we jump over to Harry and the rest of the team in the locker room. We stick with Harry, until Hagrid suddenly turns up in the stands and explains that he's been watching from his hut, but decided to come see it in person after a bit. Next thing you know, we're circling the field with Harry again where we spot the snitch and go pelting out of it before we get fouled, but wait! now we're with the spectators again and not happy about what Flint just did! We fly back up to Harry where we notice his brooms acting a bit funny, perhaps we should check and see if anyone in the stands has noticed...yep, Hagrid thinks Harry's broom acting funny. We'll stick with the spectators a bit while they save Harry's life and then hurry back up to Harry just in time to experience swallowing the snitch with him. I'm exhausted!

I know this was her first book and thank goodness she found a more Harry-centric style and stuck with it in future books, but really, did her editors not notice the jumpiness? Come on, this is before she was J. K. ROWLING (imagine her name intoned by James Earl Jones) and beyond such petty trifles as actual editing. No, this is her first book, where certainly the editor had far more sway than in later years. Do your job!

So, now I've gotten that off my chest and I promise not to mention it (in depth) again. Does this stuff bother anyone else? Have you noticed this before or have I just ruined this chapter for you? (Sorry!)