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Harry Potter and the Art of Spying
The Harry Potter series is more than just a story about a young wizard who saves the world from He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The seven-book saga is an excellent primer on spying, intelligence, and politics. Join spy novelist Lynn Boughey and thirty-six-year CIA veteran and executive director of the International Spy Museum Peter Earnest as they review the spy craft employed and celebrated in J.K. Rowling's bestselling books. From the invisibility cloak to house passwords to Fred and George Weasley's Extendable Ears, "Harry Potter & the Art of Spying" is full of spy lessons for the secret-agent-in-training in the Muggle realm. Learn how to break secret codes, gather intelligence, read character's motives, and why Severus Snape is the best double agent ever.
632 pages, Paperback
First published September 5, 2014
72 people are currently reading
1476 people want to read
About the author
Lynn M. Boughey
3 books7 followersNorth Dakota's first Truman Scholar, attorney Lynn Boughey is the author of Harry Potter and the Art of Spying and spy-novel Mission to Chara, has served on the national committees relating to military matters, and has taught university courses in political science, terrorism, international relations, criminal law, and criminal procedure.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
March 25, 2022
So apparently I marked this as read years ago but I had never actually finished it. So I officially read it through, alongside The Order of the Phoenix, which is the main focus of this book. My main gripe is that the author largely relied on re-summarizing instead of analyzing. Without all the summaries, this book could probably have been around 30 pages.
August 14, 2014
Disclaimer: Okay, this is a wordy disclaimer. Technically, I read an ARC. It says ARC on the cover. I did buy however, even though the book isn’t released yet. See, I was at the International Spy Museum, and this book was on sale early because one of the authors, Peter Earnest, is the Executive Director of the Museum. The Museum is only place selling the book until mid-September.
Let’s get the bad out of the way first. This book has way too many exclamation points. Way too many. It needs to lose a few. There also is a bit too much of a running gag (though the politics part of the gag was funny). There also is a bit too much blow by blow.
Okay, that’s done.
Harry Potter and the Art of Spying is pretty much what the title says. It is about Harry and the gang and how they use spy craft in the series, though the book focuses largely on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The first half of the book is the blow by blow section where Phoenix is described chapter by chapter. The analysis is good, but at times the summery, though infused with humor at times, is a bit much.
Like the Harry Potter series, however, there is something charming about this book. Perhaps it is because the reader gets the impression that it should be Hermione Granger and the Art of Spying because she is singled out more than Harry as the good spy. Ron, not so much. Perhaps it is because the book can easily be read by almost anyone. If a child has tackled the longer Potter books, she should be able to tackle this 600 page critical view.
The best thing about the book, however, is how much knowledge about real world spy craft and history is packed into the book. Earnest and Boughey not only dissect Harry and the Order’s use of spy techniques in terms of gadgets but also in terms of gathering interesting questions and the process that goes in verifying information. Furthermore, throughout the book the authors make connections to real world events, in some cases from their personal experiences and in some cases from current events. The reader might read the book simply because of a Harry Potter interest, but the authors make sure that the reader will leave with more knowledge that a list of spells. Additionally, there is an appendix that offers an overview of intelligence and other real world issues, such as diplomacy. There is also a glossary.
The book is actually an excellent and well thought way to get people, but especially children, interested in wider forms of history and current events. For an adult reader of Potter, the book is interesting for some of the observations, but also for the connections to modern issues. (Sadly, it might also make you wonder about Ron)
Dumbledore, in other words, would approve of this book. So would McGonagall.
Umbridge wouldn’t approve, however.
Which is all you need to know really.
Let’s get the bad out of the way first. This book has way too many exclamation points. Way too many. It needs to lose a few. There also is a bit too much of a running gag (though the politics part of the gag was funny). There also is a bit too much blow by blow.
Okay, that’s done.
Harry Potter and the Art of Spying is pretty much what the title says. It is about Harry and the gang and how they use spy craft in the series, though the book focuses largely on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The first half of the book is the blow by blow section where Phoenix is described chapter by chapter. The analysis is good, but at times the summery, though infused with humor at times, is a bit much.
Like the Harry Potter series, however, there is something charming about this book. Perhaps it is because the reader gets the impression that it should be Hermione Granger and the Art of Spying because she is singled out more than Harry as the good spy. Ron, not so much. Perhaps it is because the book can easily be read by almost anyone. If a child has tackled the longer Potter books, she should be able to tackle this 600 page critical view.
The best thing about the book, however, is how much knowledge about real world spy craft and history is packed into the book. Earnest and Boughey not only dissect Harry and the Order’s use of spy techniques in terms of gadgets but also in terms of gathering interesting questions and the process that goes in verifying information. Furthermore, throughout the book the authors make connections to real world events, in some cases from their personal experiences and in some cases from current events. The reader might read the book simply because of a Harry Potter interest, but the authors make sure that the reader will leave with more knowledge that a list of spells. Additionally, there is an appendix that offers an overview of intelligence and other real world issues, such as diplomacy. There is also a glossary.
The book is actually an excellent and well thought way to get people, but especially children, interested in wider forms of history and current events. For an adult reader of Potter, the book is interesting for some of the observations, but also for the connections to modern issues. (Sadly, it might also make you wonder about Ron)
Dumbledore, in other words, would approve of this book. So would McGonagall.
Umbridge wouldn’t approve, however.
Which is all you need to know really.
December 10, 2014
Could not read beyond page 74. I recently reread the series and came across this book and thought it would be fun to read after having the books so fresh in mind, not the case. The first half of the book deals almost exclusively with the 5th Potter book. Supposedly, the second half is more general, but I never got there due to issues with the first hundred pages.
While I liked the concept, in the pages I read I was just getting a blow by blow of exactly what had happened in the book with reference to know we know why this character did this because of something we learned in a later book. Way too time consuming to read a detailed summary of something I had practically just read (and not for the first time either).
I learned maybe two new tidbits about the spy world that had been misrepresented in American media and everything else was common sense.
This book was turning into a very boring read, I wasn't learning anything about spying, let alone how it related to Potter beyond something I already would know by having read the books in the first place. I was bored out of my mind and as my to-read list is large enough and always growing decided this book was not even close to being worth my time to try to get to the second part.
While I liked the concept, in the pages I read I was just getting a blow by blow of exactly what had happened in the book with reference to know we know why this character did this because of something we learned in a later book. Way too time consuming to read a detailed summary of something I had practically just read (and not for the first time either).
I learned maybe two new tidbits about the spy world that had been misrepresented in American media and everything else was common sense.
This book was turning into a very boring read, I wasn't learning anything about spying, let alone how it related to Potter beyond something I already would know by having read the books in the first place. I was bored out of my mind and as my to-read list is large enough and always growing decided this book was not even close to being worth my time to try to get to the second part.
November 21, 2021
As a Snape fan, I found this book delightful from beginning to end. At last, authors who give the Snape character the full credit he is due for pulling off a nearly impossible career as a double agent with the highest of stakes. Of the many things I enjoyed about this book, one was the feeling that even spies, or experts on espionage writing, like to see themselves validated and represented in literature. Undercover work is thankless by nature and yet so difficult and highly specialized. Some of the real-life spy stories interspersed in this book are jaw-dropping in their tension.
Snape is certainly an odd duck. Not everyone can go through life with one true love/greatest regret, a miserable temperament, and an unrelenting workload... but then, not everyone can handle the life of a spy, either. We don't know their names and never will, but I am sure that there are real-life spies to whom we all owe more than we can ever know. Hurray for fiction's ability to give this double agent the satisfaction of a "Look...at...me" moment with his dying breath.
If Snape is too ill-tempered for your taste, you can also enjoy these authors' admiration for Hermione. Quite a few readers find Hermione to be too much for them, from her hex on the D.A. contract to her extortion of Rita Skeeter. These spycraft writers, though, know to celebrate Hermione's decisiveness in high-stakes fights.
The writing in the book seems geared for a middle-grade or YA audience. As others have noted, exclamation marks abound, and so do dad jokes. I thought I might find this annoying, but to my surprise, I was oddly charmed, perhaps because the personal nature of these voices gave so much warmth and context to the hair-raising espionage stories throughout.
Fun, fun, fun.
Snape is certainly an odd duck. Not everyone can go through life with one true love/greatest regret, a miserable temperament, and an unrelenting workload... but then, not everyone can handle the life of a spy, either. We don't know their names and never will, but I am sure that there are real-life spies to whom we all owe more than we can ever know. Hurray for fiction's ability to give this double agent the satisfaction of a "Look...at...me" moment with his dying breath.
If Snape is too ill-tempered for your taste, you can also enjoy these authors' admiration for Hermione. Quite a few readers find Hermione to be too much for them, from her hex on the D.A. contract to her extortion of Rita Skeeter. These spycraft writers, though, know to celebrate Hermione's decisiveness in high-stakes fights.
The writing in the book seems geared for a middle-grade or YA audience. As others have noted, exclamation marks abound, and so do dad jokes. I thought I might find this annoying, but to my surprise, I was oddly charmed, perhaps because the personal nature of these voices gave so much warmth and context to the hair-raising espionage stories throughout.
Fun, fun, fun.
June 23, 2014
First off, if one made a drinking game of all the times an ! was over used in this book, one would be legally drunk by page 6.
That said,that is the worst thing about this book. I LOVE the series of "Harry Potter" books and I am a fan of "Burn Notice" so this was the best of both worlds. I knew a lot of the terms from other reading and the aforementioned show, but there is a complete glossary in the back which I appreciated. All terms are in bold the first time they are used and in italics later on. The books are referenced with a guide as to which book,and page # in the American hardcover. (All of this is explained in the book.)
While the main focus is on "The Order of the Phoenix" as this is the main "spy work" of the 7, the other books are tied together and quoted. There are a great many tidbits along the way, both about H.P. that I did not realize and about real-life spy practices.
The age range this targeted was not clear, but the conversational tone is comfortable for all ages 13 and up, so adult fans will not feel talked down to, but may find it a little simple at times in explanations.
Over all, a great read for any H.P fan or spy fan.
That said,that is the worst thing about this book. I LOVE the series of "Harry Potter" books and I am a fan of "Burn Notice" so this was the best of both worlds. I knew a lot of the terms from other reading and the aforementioned show, but there is a complete glossary in the back which I appreciated. All terms are in bold the first time they are used and in italics later on. The books are referenced with a guide as to which book,and page # in the American hardcover. (All of this is explained in the book.)
While the main focus is on "The Order of the Phoenix" as this is the main "spy work" of the 7, the other books are tied together and quoted. There are a great many tidbits along the way, both about H.P. that I did not realize and about real-life spy practices.
The age range this targeted was not clear, but the conversational tone is comfortable for all ages 13 and up, so adult fans will not feel talked down to, but may find it a little simple at times in explanations.
Over all, a great read for any H.P fan or spy fan.
Read
December 13, 2025You know how a child will say something that is kinda funny, so the adults laugh a bit and then the child proceeds to repeat that same joke over and over again? You'd think that two adult writing a book about spy craft with experience in the field would have more social awareness than a five year old, but alas, they make the same joke over and over ("Now a short word about jokes: JOKES!"). This, along with the repetition that is bound to happen if you try to analyse the spycraft in EVERY chapter of a thick book, made this book quite a tedious read. Unfortunately the Appendix was the best part of the book because the authors weren't trying to be cool kids.
Besides that I do have to mention that the constant complimenting of Rowling left a bad taste in my mouth, especially in the chapter about ethics where they paint her as this amazing person who would never harm someone in a minority and/or who is different. She has gone out of her way the past years to show that she most definitely would. Can't fault the authors for that too much though, she wasn't as blatantly problematic when the book was written.
Besides that I do have to mention that the constant complimenting of Rowling left a bad taste in my mouth, especially in the chapter about ethics where they paint her as this amazing person who would never harm someone in a minority and/or who is different. She has gone out of her way the past years to show that she most definitely would. Can't fault the authors for that too much though, she wasn't as blatantly problematic when the book was written.
September 13, 2014
I generously received a review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I love the Harry Potter series; I began reading the series when I was 19 years old and since then have read each book a minimum of two times...most of the time, more than that. I get excited whenever I'm reading a book or watching a show or movie and there is a reference to HP.
So obviously I was extremely excited to get my hands on this book. I immediately began reading it and within a few pages, my excitement turned to annoyance and then to boredom.
The annoyance was caused mostly by the excessive use of the exclamation point. This is a serious pet peeve of mine. There is no reason to use it more than one time per page...and even then it's still too much. Nearly every other sentence ended with an exclamation point. It was exhausting to read. I felt like I was being shouted at.
Then the boredom set it when I realized that the first half (plus) was dedicated to a single novel in the series. The authors proceeded to tear apart the novel page by page and analyze it in spy speak. By the time they got around to even mentioning any of the other books in the series, I was finished. I had no desire to read more of the book. I had gotten way too bogged down by the page by page commentary of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
I tried taking a break and coming back to finish this up but after the second attempt at this, I realized that it was not worth it. Somehow the authors managed to take one of my favorite series of books and completely ruin the magic of them for me.
I love the Harry Potter series; I began reading the series when I was 19 years old and since then have read each book a minimum of two times...most of the time, more than that. I get excited whenever I'm reading a book or watching a show or movie and there is a reference to HP.
So obviously I was extremely excited to get my hands on this book. I immediately began reading it and within a few pages, my excitement turned to annoyance and then to boredom.
The annoyance was caused mostly by the excessive use of the exclamation point. This is a serious pet peeve of mine. There is no reason to use it more than one time per page...and even then it's still too much. Nearly every other sentence ended with an exclamation point. It was exhausting to read. I felt like I was being shouted at.
Then the boredom set it when I realized that the first half (plus) was dedicated to a single novel in the series. The authors proceeded to tear apart the novel page by page and analyze it in spy speak. By the time they got around to even mentioning any of the other books in the series, I was finished. I had no desire to read more of the book. I had gotten way too bogged down by the page by page commentary of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
I tried taking a break and coming back to finish this up but after the second attempt at this, I realized that it was not worth it. Somehow the authors managed to take one of my favorite series of books and completely ruin the magic of them for me.
July 3, 2014
When I got an advanced copy of this book I was excited to see what the authors said about the Harry Potter series I have read and loved since I was 8. When I started reading, I realized that I was just as interested in the spy terms and techniques that the authors explain as in the Harry Potter analysis. For example, I thought the coin Hermione used to communicate with the rest of the D.A. was a cute bit of magic for Rowling to imagine. As it turns out, coins like that have been used by spies all over the world for years! Little details like that really made me admire the Harry Potter series that much more and kept me reading almost as much as the original series did.
I think this book also helps to illustrate why the Harry Potter series was never just for children. HP and the Art of Spying discusses the newspaper bias in the Daily Prophet, the motivations of heroes and villains alike, and the ethics of keeping secrets in both wizarding and muggle worlds. I would recommend this to any Harry Potter fan and probably to those "muggles" who have not quite embraced the magical world of witches and wizards!
I think this book also helps to illustrate why the Harry Potter series was never just for children. HP and the Art of Spying discusses the newspaper bias in the Daily Prophet, the motivations of heroes and villains alike, and the ethics of keeping secrets in both wizarding and muggle worlds. I would recommend this to any Harry Potter fan and probably to those "muggles" who have not quite embraced the magical world of witches and wizards!
February 21, 2015
Interesting. Fairly repetitive and I felt like the authors were talking to children, not adults (this must be for adults, as a children's version is advertised as upcoming on the back cover). It was, however, quite an interesting way to learn a bit more about spycraft in the real world.
August 19, 2015
A fun look at Harry Potter from the perspective of professional spies. Unfortunately, the very thing that made it interesting also makes it boring after a few chapters. This book does a chapter by chapter analysis of Order of the Phoenix, and becomes so predictable that my attention would wander constantly.
Nice concept, but the book is too long for its utter predictability. Seven longer chapters analyzing spycraft in the Harry Potter books, book by book, would be much more interesting and engaging, since the story would change faster and the analysis would cover a wider range of scenarios.
Nice concept, but the book is too long for its utter predictability. Seven longer chapters analyzing spycraft in the Harry Potter books, book by book, would be much more interesting and engaging, since the story would change faster and the analysis would cover a wider range of scenarios.
Want to read
November 18, 2015I'm very excited to read this! It's a new story for myself and I hope I will have a chance to read it :)
November 20, 2022
This book is a pretty big letdown – largely harmless, but not really worth the time of Harry Potter fans. Boughey and Earnest are no doubt excellent spies with a wealth of knowledge about the world of espionage… and only a passing familiarity with Harry Potter. Therefore, readers looking to glean insight into the world of spying will find a wealth of information in this tome; readers looking for insight into Harry Potter will be left disappointed.
The first half of the book, which is a chapter-by-chapter recap of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, at least bears the hallmarks of perfunctory effort. The authors lay out how the events of OotP can be seen to reflect concepts of spying, from security to propaganda and so forth. There wasn’t much here that was particularly revelatory, but it was a mildly entertaining way to recap the fifth Potter book.
Unfortunately, the second section is where it all derails. That is where the authors reverse the format, and want to explain concepts of spying by pulling examples from all seven Potter books. This section is riddled with mistakes that any diligent reader of the Potter books will immediately spot, and changed the reading experience from one of disinterest to one of active annoyance. For instance…
On page 17, the authors write, “Perhaps use of the Invisibility Cloak would result in a nasty letter from the Ministry of Magic for underage use of magic, and use of magic in the Muggle world.” That is completely wrong – the cloak’s invisibility is an inherent property, so using it would not register with the Ministry at all.
On page 346, the authors refer to Neville being a “full-blood,” when the proper term is “pureblood.”
Page 359 assets that Kreacher was recruited by “presumably Voldemort himself” – when we know for a fact it was Narcissa Malfoy who recruited him.
The profile of Draco Malfoy on page 365 asserts that Voldemort is Draco’s direct handler, and they only communicate face-to-face – which is both devoid of backup in the text, and completely implausible.
Page 424 defines a Squib as “a witch with limited or no magical powers.” No, a Squib is someone born to wizarding parents who is completely devoid of magical powers, and therefore not a witch.
In discussing the Order of the Phoenix headquarters on page 432, “Since nobody ever got into headquarters, it’s clear that everybody in the Order kept that secret.” Um, yeah, because they MAGICALLY HAD TO – the point of a Fidelius Charm is that only the Secret-Keeper can reveal it.
Those are just the examples that I screengrabbed once I was sufficiently irritated to keep track of the errors. There were plenty more.
Additionally, the authors are either carried away with their own cleverness, or used to writing down to a much younger audience. They have this catchphrase of “And now a word about xyz: XYZ!” Also, every time they digressed for so much as a paragraph, they would spend a few lines saying, “But we digress! Now returning to the story!” Do they assume that readers’ attention spans are so inadequate that they need a roadmap for every paragraph of the text? We can return from digressions without enormous blaring signposts! (I should also note, these digressions increased in both number and length as the book went on. Did we need three pages about Lynn’s misadventures in sneaking about in Russia?)
Perhaps most surprising and disappointing, there were a lot of things they had nothing to say about! The last chapter of the book is about Severus Snape – fertile ground for a lengthy text about spying! – and all the authors do is recap The Prince’s Tale blow-by-blow.
I’m forced to conclude this text was created for the authors to create a quick buck – surely lots more money to be made by slapping a “Harry Potter and the…” on any book about spying they wanted to write. But unless the reader desperately wants an introduction to the world of espionage, they’d be advised to skip adding this to their Potter shelves.
The first half of the book, which is a chapter-by-chapter recap of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, at least bears the hallmarks of perfunctory effort. The authors lay out how the events of OotP can be seen to reflect concepts of spying, from security to propaganda and so forth. There wasn’t much here that was particularly revelatory, but it was a mildly entertaining way to recap the fifth Potter book.
Unfortunately, the second section is where it all derails. That is where the authors reverse the format, and want to explain concepts of spying by pulling examples from all seven Potter books. This section is riddled with mistakes that any diligent reader of the Potter books will immediately spot, and changed the reading experience from one of disinterest to one of active annoyance. For instance…
On page 17, the authors write, “Perhaps use of the Invisibility Cloak would result in a nasty letter from the Ministry of Magic for underage use of magic, and use of magic in the Muggle world.” That is completely wrong – the cloak’s invisibility is an inherent property, so using it would not register with the Ministry at all.
On page 346, the authors refer to Neville being a “full-blood,” when the proper term is “pureblood.”
Page 359 assets that Kreacher was recruited by “presumably Voldemort himself” – when we know for a fact it was Narcissa Malfoy who recruited him.
The profile of Draco Malfoy on page 365 asserts that Voldemort is Draco’s direct handler, and they only communicate face-to-face – which is both devoid of backup in the text, and completely implausible.
Page 424 defines a Squib as “a witch with limited or no magical powers.” No, a Squib is someone born to wizarding parents who is completely devoid of magical powers, and therefore not a witch.
In discussing the Order of the Phoenix headquarters on page 432, “Since nobody ever got into headquarters, it’s clear that everybody in the Order kept that secret.” Um, yeah, because they MAGICALLY HAD TO – the point of a Fidelius Charm is that only the Secret-Keeper can reveal it.
Those are just the examples that I screengrabbed once I was sufficiently irritated to keep track of the errors. There were plenty more.
Additionally, the authors are either carried away with their own cleverness, or used to writing down to a much younger audience. They have this catchphrase of “And now a word about xyz: XYZ!” Also, every time they digressed for so much as a paragraph, they would spend a few lines saying, “But we digress! Now returning to the story!” Do they assume that readers’ attention spans are so inadequate that they need a roadmap for every paragraph of the text? We can return from digressions without enormous blaring signposts! (I should also note, these digressions increased in both number and length as the book went on. Did we need three pages about Lynn’s misadventures in sneaking about in Russia?)
Perhaps most surprising and disappointing, there were a lot of things they had nothing to say about! The last chapter of the book is about Severus Snape – fertile ground for a lengthy text about spying! – and all the authors do is recap The Prince’s Tale blow-by-blow.
I’m forced to conclude this text was created for the authors to create a quick buck – surely lots more money to be made by slapping a “Harry Potter and the…” on any book about spying they wanted to write. But unless the reader desperately wants an introduction to the world of espionage, they’d be advised to skip adding this to their Potter shelves.
December 26, 2021
Blargh, this suffered from SO much bloat. SO MUCH. It's two of the same book rolled into one. That's how bloated this thing was.
The idea of using Harry Potter to explore spy craft was a neat one. This could have been a really cool read but the authors just... went about it the wrong way.
One half of the book was going through HP and the Order of the Phoenix chapter by chapter (even if the chapter had nothing to do with spy craft) and breaking down the spy work done there. If no chapter had any examples of it (which there were quite a few) they grasped at straws for any sort of tie-in or went with examples in other books.
The other half of the book is spy craft with HP stuff (from all books) thrown in as examples. This was probably the more interesting half of the book, and I would argue the whole book should have been written like the latter half. The only problem was, it covered so much of the same ground as the first half as to make it mostly repetitive and pointless.
It didn't help that large chunks read like a dry textbook. I literally read this to put me to sleep for a few months (thus why it took so long to finish).
It really was a neat idea, but ultimately, the asides of real-world spy stuff were more fascinating than any of the HP stuff. It's a problem of style rather than substance. Organizing the book better would fix a lot of the problems.
This isn't for the passively curious. You'll be here a while if you attempt to tackle the art of spying through this book.
The idea of using Harry Potter to explore spy craft was a neat one. This could have been a really cool read but the authors just... went about it the wrong way.
One half of the book was going through HP and the Order of the Phoenix chapter by chapter (even if the chapter had nothing to do with spy craft) and breaking down the spy work done there. If no chapter had any examples of it (which there were quite a few) they grasped at straws for any sort of tie-in or went with examples in other books.
The other half of the book is spy craft with HP stuff (from all books) thrown in as examples. This was probably the more interesting half of the book, and I would argue the whole book should have been written like the latter half. The only problem was, it covered so much of the same ground as the first half as to make it mostly repetitive and pointless.
It didn't help that large chunks read like a dry textbook. I literally read this to put me to sleep for a few months (thus why it took so long to finish).
It really was a neat idea, but ultimately, the asides of real-world spy stuff were more fascinating than any of the HP stuff. It's a problem of style rather than substance. Organizing the book better would fix a lot of the problems.
This isn't for the passively curious. You'll be here a while if you attempt to tackle the art of spying through this book.
October 3, 2019
I found this book in the gift shop of the International Spy Museum in Washington D. C. What especially intrigued me was the way the book was organized; the first part half of the book offers a chapter-by-chapter commentary to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, viewed through the lens of spycraft. Though there are elements of spying in all of the books in the series, this one was a particularly good choice as it sets up the ministry against Harry, touches on the press using propaganda, features both surreptitious and openly opposing forces like the Inquisatorial Squad and Dumbledore's Army, involves an open spy at Hogwarts (Umbridge), and much more.
Read on its own, I'm not sure "Harry Potter and the Art of Spying" would be quite as interesting. I read the Harry Potter novel alongside it, though, and that made it quite rich. Many other Goodreads comments have pointed out the excessive us of exclamation marks, so I won't belabor that point. I believe the authors had a difficult time determining their target audience. Some writing was aimed at an older, or at least teenage, audience, but some of the word choice and editing (like the exclamation points) was perhaps meant to appeal to younger readers. Despite the uneven writing, I enjoyed the book and got something out of it.
Read on its own, I'm not sure "Harry Potter and the Art of Spying" would be quite as interesting. I read the Harry Potter novel alongside it, though, and that made it quite rich. Many other Goodreads comments have pointed out the excessive us of exclamation marks, so I won't belabor that point. I believe the authors had a difficult time determining their target audience. Some writing was aimed at an older, or at least teenage, audience, but some of the word choice and editing (like the exclamation points) was perhaps meant to appeal to younger readers. Despite the uneven writing, I enjoyed the book and got something out of it.
February 24, 2018
This is an unauthorized review, of sorts.
The book is split into three parts.
Part 1: A chapter by chapter analysis of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and how the events described therein translate into real-life spycraft.
Part 2: An overview of the Harry Potter series and how parts of the series show spycraft, which is used in real-life.
Part 3: Appendix, which explains real-life spycraft (including the intelligence community, governments, and international interplay), and only occasionally mentioning Harry Potter.
I am unsure the age range of the target audience. It may be middle-schoolers, high schoolers, but because of the various headers and the methods employed, probably not really adults. But the topic of the target audience is "anyone wanting to know how the Harry Potter series relates to spying". So if you (an adult) can get over tons of exclamation points and "now a word about pretexts: Pretext!" as well as liberally sprinkled "notes to self", it's a very informative book.
I would give 4.5 stars if I could.
The book is split into three parts.
Part 1: A chapter by chapter analysis of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and how the events described therein translate into real-life spycraft.
Part 2: An overview of the Harry Potter series and how parts of the series show spycraft, which is used in real-life.
Part 3: Appendix, which explains real-life spycraft (including the intelligence community, governments, and international interplay), and only occasionally mentioning Harry Potter.
I am unsure the age range of the target audience. It may be middle-schoolers, high schoolers, but because of the various headers and the methods employed, probably not really adults. But the topic of the target audience is "anyone wanting to know how the Harry Potter series relates to spying". So if you (an adult) can get over tons of exclamation points and "now a word about pretexts: Pretext!" as well as liberally sprinkled "notes to self", it's a very informative book.
I would give 4.5 stars if I could.
September 25, 2024
DNF at 4%
This is a cute book for young fans of Harry Potter who are interested in the world of espionage. There are a few issues with the book:
---varying levels of audience: Most of the (painfully detailed) blow-by-blow of HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX is written in a cutesy, kid-friendly style. Then there are occasional pockets of links to real-life spy events or people, and these are written for adults. It's almost like they are boxed paragraphs designed for the adults who are reading the books with the children: "If you'd like to read more about this topic, read this historical nonfiction book about XYZ." Which leads us to...
---missing boxes? I read this book on the Kindle app, and the indentations, changes of focus, and varying levels of audience lead me to assume the print book has boxes or margin notes or other text features to indicate the change of focus. Without them, it was a jumble to read.
So I'm going to set this one aside and move on. It's not grabbing my interest right now.
This is a cute book for young fans of Harry Potter who are interested in the world of espionage. There are a few issues with the book:
---varying levels of audience: Most of the (painfully detailed) blow-by-blow of HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX is written in a cutesy, kid-friendly style. Then there are occasional pockets of links to real-life spy events or people, and these are written for adults. It's almost like they are boxed paragraphs designed for the adults who are reading the books with the children: "If you'd like to read more about this topic, read this historical nonfiction book about XYZ." Which leads us to...
---missing boxes? I read this book on the Kindle app, and the indentations, changes of focus, and varying levels of audience lead me to assume the print book has boxes or margin notes or other text features to indicate the change of focus. Without them, it was a jumble to read.
So I'm going to set this one aside and move on. It's not grabbing my interest right now.
April 3, 2018
Gosh I wish I liked this more than I did. It combines a couple of my favorite things. And if it started with part 2 -- which begins after page 350 -- then it would probably have doubled its rating. The first part just summarizes the HP books, chapter by chapter, pointing out spycraft. This would have been so much better done IMHO if it talked about spycraft and then illustrates with examples from the book (essentially what part 2 does).
Also this suffered from over use of ! -- and that's me saying that, I overuse an exclamation point with the best of them. But it's also a symptom of some really informal style information sharing and irreverence in a manner that would be fine if it was a talk to middle-schoolers, but not so great in writing in an actual book.
I so wanted to like this more than I did!
Also this suffered from over use of ! -- and that's me saying that, I overuse an exclamation point with the best of them. But it's also a symptom of some really informal style information sharing and irreverence in a manner that would be fine if it was a talk to middle-schoolers, but not so great in writing in an actual book.
I so wanted to like this more than I did!
February 25, 2018
reposting this because I accidentally deleted earlier review.
First thing I need to say is that you will want to have finished the Harry Potter series before reading this book or you will get spoilers. My son recommended this book to me and suggested that it would be perfect to read at the same time that we are listening to Book 5 since so much of this book refers to Order of the Phoenix. That was the perfect suggestion and it made it even more fun to revisit Book 5 and gave us a lot of great ideas to discuss.
My only complaint about the book is that it gets a little repetitive at the end. They seem to keep quoting the same sections near the end of the book, but otherwise it is a fun and interesting companion to the Harry Potter book series.
First thing I need to say is that you will want to have finished the Harry Potter series before reading this book or you will get spoilers. My son recommended this book to me and suggested that it would be perfect to read at the same time that we are listening to Book 5 since so much of this book refers to Order of the Phoenix. That was the perfect suggestion and it made it even more fun to revisit Book 5 and gave us a lot of great ideas to discuss.
My only complaint about the book is that it gets a little repetitive at the end. They seem to keep quoting the same sections near the end of the book, but otherwise it is a fun and interesting companion to the Harry Potter book series.
April 10, 2019
I will preface this by saying that I haven't read any of the Harry Potter books, but did find this an enjoyable read. It does have major parts of the Harry Potter books plots outlined in this book when the comparisons to the spies and spy techniques are called out, so if that is important to you, save this book for reading after you read the full Harr Potter series.
While it isn't a large section of the book, I enjoyed reading the Appendix which covers how our US government works and how it ties in to spying. The glossary is also quite extensive and can give a person a good background on spy terminology.
While it isn't a large section of the book, I enjoyed reading the Appendix which covers how our US government works and how it ties in to spying. The glossary is also quite extensive and can give a person a good background on spy terminology.
January 14, 2023
Excellent explanation of the working of the intelligence community. Information is presented through chapter by chapter analysis of Harry Potter #5 The Order of the Phoenix.
“Note(s) to Self “ sprinkled throughout the pages emphasize the lessons learned. “Note to self: If you understand history, you will understand subtleties and nuances that others do not understand.“
Ultimately this is an entertaining textbook. It engages the reader in the best way. A reading of HP#5 is helpful but not necessary as the analyses are fully explained, with page numbers provided for reference.
The Appendix was dry and repetitive. Published in 2014 but still very relevant in 2023.
“Note(s) to Self “ sprinkled throughout the pages emphasize the lessons learned. “Note to self: If you understand history, you will understand subtleties and nuances that others do not understand.“
Ultimately this is an entertaining textbook. It engages the reader in the best way. A reading of HP#5 is helpful but not necessary as the analyses are fully explained, with page numbers provided for reference.
The Appendix was dry and repetitive. Published in 2014 but still very relevant in 2023.
October 22, 2017
From the beginning, I was a little offset by the fact that there was not a clear tone to this book. Was it meant to be more serious, or more fun? It was very hard to tell at times.
Also, I felt the book repeated itself a lot, especially when spending half of the book analyzing Order of the Phoneix scene by scene. A lot of analysis was not necessary for the book and would have cut it down a significant amount.
Also, I felt the book repeated itself a lot, especially when spending half of the book analyzing Order of the Phoneix scene by scene. A lot of analysis was not necessary for the book and would have cut it down a significant amount.
September 13, 2021
DNF. Was a cool concept, comparing spy craft to Harry Potter, however it seemed a little "dumbed down" to my liking. Apparently there was a kid's version of this book. I don't really know how different it could be.
The book spent so long rehashing the plot of Order of the Phoenix that I just wanted to put this book down and read that instead. The Spy Museum in DC where I got this book was amazing though. Highly recommend a visit!
The book spent so long rehashing the plot of Order of the Phoenix that I just wanted to put this book down and read that instead. The Spy Museum in DC where I got this book was amazing though. Highly recommend a visit!
November 13, 2017
A fun way to look at the Harry Potter series especially Snape's character. Also learned a few things about the US spy system
This wasn't a page turner, I put it down several times to read other books but was fun
This wasn't a page turner, I put it down several times to read other books but was fun
June 17, 2019
I agree with others that they could have cut out the OotP play-by-play and put that information in other places. What bugged me most were the glaring Potter lore errors. Every time I ran across one, it was like being poked in the eye.
Still, it was a fun enough read.
Still, it was a fun enough read.
July 31, 2019
This book is fascinating. A bit cheesy and at times repetitive, but it was so fun to read and I learned so much that I didn’t care.
January 24, 2025
Poorly edited, reads more like a textbook.
Read
October 16, 2016I'm officially DNF'ing this one. It just is not for me, way too detailed of a dissection of every single action in Harry Potter and I'm just not interested in analyzing it in that way.
July 14, 2015
I'm a huge Potterhead so anything related to the series, especially if it compares HP to "the real world", is one I immediately go for. I had the privilege to attend the Leakycon panel of these two authors and even got them to sign my book! They're both funny and nice guys, and you can tell they're fans of the series.
The book itself is divided into two parts, and though quite lengthy, is a relatively easy read. The first part deals exclusively with Order of the Phoenix. The authors do a chapter-by-chapter analysis of the book and all the spy techniques used. The second half deals with HP in general; tying all the books and characters into more detailed explanations of spycraft. The techniques used by the C.I.A. are relied on heavily, which is to be expected since one of the authors is a former agent, and much of the real-world spycraft examples hail from the Cold War. Some of my favourite parts were Peter Earnest describing some of his own escapades: this guy's life was beyond cool.
As many reviewers have said, the excessive use of the "!" is irritating, and wears out its welcome quickly. I even discovered spelling errors and mistaken canon facts! I found the tone to be quite juvenile and "text-booky". My eyes would glaze over at the tedium of some of the definitions, and reading a book that sounded like it was aimed at 8 year olds made it hard to slog through. I found the blow-by-blow analysis of OoTP to be a chore to read. The second half of the book was much better, and the reason this book isn't two stars or lower. That's where they really began explaining real life spycraft in comparison with HP. Had Boughey and Earnest skipped the dullness of the first half, this book would be a neat edition to any Potterheads collection. If you're a die hard fan like myself, definitely give this book a try, but otherwise, do yourself a favour and skip the first half.
The book itself is divided into two parts, and though quite lengthy, is a relatively easy read. The first part deals exclusively with Order of the Phoenix. The authors do a chapter-by-chapter analysis of the book and all the spy techniques used. The second half deals with HP in general; tying all the books and characters into more detailed explanations of spycraft. The techniques used by the C.I.A. are relied on heavily, which is to be expected since one of the authors is a former agent, and much of the real-world spycraft examples hail from the Cold War. Some of my favourite parts were Peter Earnest describing some of his own escapades: this guy's life was beyond cool.
As many reviewers have said, the excessive use of the "!" is irritating, and wears out its welcome quickly. I even discovered spelling errors and mistaken canon facts! I found the tone to be quite juvenile and "text-booky". My eyes would glaze over at the tedium of some of the definitions, and reading a book that sounded like it was aimed at 8 year olds made it hard to slog through. I found the blow-by-blow analysis of OoTP to be a chore to read. The second half of the book was much better, and the reason this book isn't two stars or lower. That's where they really began explaining real life spycraft in comparison with HP. Had Boughey and Earnest skipped the dullness of the first half, this book would be a neat edition to any Potterheads collection. If you're a die hard fan like myself, definitely give this book a try, but otherwise, do yourself a favour and skip the first half.
September 4, 2014
CHeck out my full review here: http://escapingrealitybookreviews.wor...
This review is of an ARC. Purchase the book September 15th!
The first half of this book is a play-by-play analysis of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. At first I was nervous. Was there REALLY enough information in OotP to create a full-on chapter-by-chapter, line-by-line, espionage analysis? Believe me, there is. Lynn and Peter will bring up points and theories I had never even considered.
The second half of this book is a series’ analysis from an espionage perspective. It focuses on the specifics of character motivation, different types of spies throughout the series, Wizard security, Magical (and muggle) means of tracking and spying, personal espionage experiences from the authors, and so much more. This was probably in some ways my favorite part of the book. Not only did you get HARRY POTTER, but you also will be absolutely astonished by how much you learn about how Muggle world spying works. It’s fascinating!
For the rest of my thoughts on this book, make sure to follow / friend me, and check out my blog via the link above! Thanks! :)
This review is of an ARC. Purchase the book September 15th!
The first half of this book is a play-by-play analysis of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. At first I was nervous. Was there REALLY enough information in OotP to create a full-on chapter-by-chapter, line-by-line, espionage analysis? Believe me, there is. Lynn and Peter will bring up points and theories I had never even considered.
The second half of this book is a series’ analysis from an espionage perspective. It focuses on the specifics of character motivation, different types of spies throughout the series, Wizard security, Magical (and muggle) means of tracking and spying, personal espionage experiences from the authors, and so much more. This was probably in some ways my favorite part of the book. Not only did you get HARRY POTTER, but you also will be absolutely astonished by how much you learn about how Muggle world spying works. It’s fascinating!
For the rest of my thoughts on this book, make sure to follow / friend me, and check out my blog via the link above! Thanks! :)
November 5, 2016
DNF. Sorry, but the writing style is atrocious. I felt like I was being talked down to the entire time, and the over use of the exclamation mark was driving me mad. >_< Oops? But still, I AM glad to have this for my collection. It's not like I've ever seen another copy, or that I was likely to stumble over it on my own. My mum brought it back from the States after a recent trip (Thank you Zim! :) ) and although I don't like the inside of the book, I like the IDEA of it, and will keep it for display purposes only haha. So yeah, don't expect a fantastic read, but it will look awesome with my other Harry Potter books :)
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