Time was, when another Harry Potter book was coming out, it was a simple matter to reread the first few in order to remind oneself about what has happened. No longer. I made the mistake of starting Book 5 _without_ having reviewed Book 4, and was constantly losing track of stuff because of names or events I had forgotten. Smarter this time around, I went out in search of a detailed synopsis of Book 5, expecting to find it at one Potter fansite or another. Turns out, though, that the real goods are at good ol’ Wikipedia. Check out their excellent synopsis “here”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_and_the_Order_of_the_Phoenix.

Not only are we on the cusp of a new Potter book, but Cormac McCarthy’s long-awaited latest, _That Is No Country For Old Men_, is due out just a few days later. Maybe I’ll alternate reading chapters from each, just to blow my mind with the contrast. On second thought, nah, the world’s crazy enough as it is.