Harry Potter: 10 Amazing Chapters That Aren’t In The Movies
9. Will And Won’t (The Half-Blood Prince)
The third chapter of The Half-Blood Prince is another unconventional part of the story. Dumbledore, much to the horror of the Dursleys, arrives at Privet Drive to collect Harry.
In the wake of Sirius’s death, Harry has inherited 12 Grimmauld Place along with his godfather’s old house elf. At one point, Kreacher actually shows up at Privet Drive, and the Dursleys are not pleased:
“Aunt Petunia let out a hair-raising shriek…Dudley drew his large bare pink feet off the floor and sat with them raised almost above his head, as though he thought the creature might run up his trousers, and Uncle Vernon bellowed, ‘What the hell is that?’”
But the highlight of this chapter is when Dumbledore holds a mirror up to the Dursleys’ poor parenting techniques. He criticises the way they’ve treated Harry over the years and even scolds them for their treatment of Dudley. Dumbledore never raises his voice, but you can feel his rage brimming beneath the surface.
This conversation is one of the most satisfying moments in the series, and it’s a shame it never made it into the movie.