The Harry Potter Azkaban book, which is the third installment of the Harry Potter series, appeared darker than usual for a children’s book. The title alone hints at it: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. What is Azkaban anyway? And what is its importance in the story? Azkaban, which is a maximum security prison in the wizardry world, houses the foulest of criminals. Its wardens are creatures known as dementors that suck the happiness out of people, incapacitating prisoners out of sheer hopelessness. In the book, the supposed killer who murdered Harry’s parents managed to escape somehow and is out to get him. The story revolves around this premise up to a surprising conclusion towards the end.
A murderer who is out for vengeance on the protagonist of the story is not something you usually find in children’s books. Moreover, the dementors who introduce grief by their mere presence also execute death sentences with their soul-sucking kiss. In addition, the main protagonist is also portrayed in an all-too-human negative light as early as the beginning chapters with Harry bursting out with fits of anger and lasts throughout the entire story. His emotional bursts then lead him into making stupid decisions. An un-heroic hero, death, anger, grief, and hopelessness; elements seen only in adult mystery or suspense books, are found in the Harry Potter Azkaban story. Yet, JK Rowling was able to mix these elements together, adding courage and determination along the way, to produce an enjoyable and satisfyingly dark story. It’s just amazing how Rowling could introduce these into her titles and come out of it unscathed and loved by the general public.
The Harry Potter Azkaban book received much acclaim though it diverted from the norms of what a children’s book should be. This diversion, instead, made it more accessible to a wider reader base. This is just proof of how good a writer and how daring JK Rowling is. A move, which would normally destroy the reputation and credibility of a writer, instead, produced the opposite for her, boosting her into the limelight and into the hearts of millions.
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