Barry Trotter and the Unnecessary Sequel (2003)

Warning: You must be a fan of Harry Potter to enjoy this book or you won't get half the references.

Harry/Barry after having saved the Hogwash School of Wizards from the unwelcome attention of Hollywood, is now ready to move on. He has married Hermione/Ermine Cringer and they now have two relatively delightful children. The eldest is a skilled magician, but the youngest just seems to lack that conjurer's touch. Have Barry and Ermine given birth to (gasp) a Muddle?

Names and so on are sometimes funny ("Girlrboy Rockhard" for the swishy Gilderoy Lockhart) and sometimes just plain dull ("Lon Measly" for Ron Weasley).

We come to know Barry for being the hero of a series of books which exposed the wizarding world to Muggle eyes, ending centuries of separation. This play-within-a-play theme is cute, and allows for a lot of funny bits.

In Gerber's madhouse-mirror of the Potterverse, wizards "conjure" things by stealing them from Muggles: the item disappears from a Muggle and reappears for the wizard. Likewise, castles and such are drafty, cold, and without toilets; the wizard village of Hogsmeade/Hogsbleed is a slum of casinos and brothels.

At one point near the middle of the story the plot (if you can hope to discern one) noticeably changes from simple random comedic parody to an independent commentary on prejudice and society.

Overall, not that much of an attempt to authentically parodize the Harry Potter book series, but at least you know there exists an alternative.

Book Details:

Title Barry Trotter and the Unnecessary Sequel: The Book Nobody Has Been Waiting For
Author Michael Gerber
Reviewed By Purplycookie ( )

Not at all a bad book, funny at times and mostly enjoyable. ( )