The book was published in the United Kingdom byBloomsbury and in the United States byScholastic. In both countries, the release date was 8 July 2000. This was the first time a book in the series was published in both countries at the same time. The novel won aHugo Award, the onlyHarry Potter novel to do so, in 2001. The book was adapted into afilm, released worldwide on 18 November 2005, and avideo game byElectronic Arts.
When Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger attend theQuidditch World Cup during the Summer with Ron's family, the World Cup is attacked by cloaked assailants who resembleDeath Eaters, the followers ofVoldemort. When the school term begins at Hogwarts,Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody is introduced as the newDefence Against the Dark Arts professor. Dumbledore announces that students from the foreign wizarding schoolsBeauxbatons andDurmstrang will be arriving at Hogwarts to participate in the Triwizard Tournament. A relic called theGoblet of Fire is placed in the main hall, and students are invited to nominate themselves for the tournament by putting their name into it. Although Harry does not nominate himself, he is mysteriously selected to compete against the older studentsCedric Diggory,Fleur Delacour andViktor Krum.
Harry is interviewed byDaily Prophet reporterRita Skeeter, who writes a scathing article portraying him as a disturbed attention-seeker. Using the HogwartsFloo Network, Harry speaks with his godfatherSirius Black, who warns him about Durmstrang's headmasterIgor Karkaroff, who is a former Death Eater. Sirius believes that Harry's selection for the dangerous tournament is somehow connected to the attack at the World Cup. Hagrid alerts Harry that the First Task involves a dragon. After Moody reminds Harry that he is an expert flyer, Harry magically summons his broomstick and uses it to fly past the dragon and accomplish the task.
As Christmas approaches, Harry asks a girl namedCho Chang to theYule Ball, but she is already going with Cedric. Harry and Ron end up going to the ball with the twin sistersParvati andPadma Patil. Ron is sullen as he observes Hermione dancing with Krum. As the Second Task nears, Harry learns that he will need to rescue someone from the lake. The house-elfDobby gives himGillyweed, which allows him to breathe underwater long enough to rescue both Ron and Fleur's sister Gabrielle. He is awarded extra points for his bravery and is tied for first place.
In the Third Task, Harry and his competitors must navigate a maze of obstacles to reach the Triwizard Cup. Harry and Cedric reach the Cup at the same time and decide to grab it together. They are immediately transported to a graveyard, wherePeter Pettigrew kills Cedric and subdues Harry. Using Harry's blood, he performs a rite that returns Voldemort to bodily form. As Voldemort and Harry duel, their wands magically connect. This distraction allows Harry the chance to escape back to Hogwarts with the Cup and Cedric's body.
Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape discover that Moody is actually the Death EaterBarty Crouch Jr. When they administer him a truth potion, he reveals that he placed Harry's name in the Goblet, supported him through the Tasks, and ensured he was transported to the graveyard for the rite. Crouch Jr. is handed over to theDementors, who render him soulless with the Dementor's Kiss. Recovering in the hospital wing, Harry narrates the events to Cedric's parents. He offers them his tournament winnings, but they refuse it, so he gives the gold toFred and George Weasley so they can realize their dream of opening a joke shop. During a memorial service for Cedric, Dumbledore tells the students of Hogwarts that Voldemort has returned.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the fourth book in theHarry Potter series. The first,Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was published by Bloomsbury on 26 June 1997. The second,Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, was published on 2 July 1998. The third,Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, followed on 8 July 1999.[1]Goblet of Fire is almost twice the size of the first three books (the paperback edition was 636 pages).J. K. Rowling stated that she "knew from the beginning it would be the biggest of the first four." She said there needed to be a "proper run-up" for the conclusion and rushing the "complex plot" could confuse readers. She also stated that "everything is on a bigger scale," which was symbolic, asHarry Potter's horizons widened both literally and metaphorically as he grew up. She also wanted to explore more of the magical world.[2]
Until the official title's announcement on 27 June 2000, the book was called by its working title, "Harry Potter IV". Previously, in April, the publisher had listed it asHarry Potter and the Doomspell Tournament. However,[3] J. K. Rowling expressed her indecision about the title in anEntertainment Weekly interview."I changed my mind twice on what [the title] was. The working title had got out —Harry Potter and the Doomspell Tournament. Then I changedDoomspell toTriwizard Tournament. Then I was teetering betweenGoblet of Fire andTriwizard Tournament. In the end, I preferredGoblet of Fire because it's got that kind ofcup of destiny feel about it, which is the theme of the book."[2]
Rowling mentioned that she originally wrote a Weasley relative named Mafalda, who, according to Rowling, "was the daughter of the 'second cousin who's a stockbroker' mentioned inPhilosopher's Stone. This stockbroker had been very rude to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley in the past, but now he and his (Muggle) wife had inconveniently produced a witch, they came back to the Weasleys asking for their help in introducing her to wizarding society before she starts at Hogwarts".[4] Mafalda was supposed to be aSlytherin and was to fill in theRita Skeeter subplot, but she was eventually removed because "there were obvious limitations to what an eleven-year-old closeted at school could discover." Rowling considered Rita Skeeter to be "much more flexible".[4] Rowling also admitted that the fourth book was the most difficult to write at the time because the Mafalda character also served as a giantplot hole, which she discovered halfway through writing.[2]
Jeff Jensen, who interviewed Rowling forEntertainment Weekly in 2000, pointed out thatbigotry is a big theme in theHarry Potter novels andGoblet of Fire in particular. He mentioned how Voldemort and his followers are prejudiced against Muggles and how, inGoblet of Fire, Hermione forms a group to liberate Hogwarts' house-elves who have "been indentured servants so long they lack desire for anything else."[2] When asked why she explored this theme, Rowling replied,
Because bigotry is probably the thing I detest most. All forms of intolerance, the whole idea ofthat which is different from me is necessarily evil. I really like to explore the idea that difference is equal and good. But there's another idea that I like to explore, too. Oppressed groups are not, generally speaking, people who stand firmly together – no, sadly, they kind of subdivide among themselves and fight like hell. That's human nature, so that's what you see here. This world of wizards and witches, they're already ostracized, and then within themselves, they've formed a loathsome pecking order.[2]
She also commented that she did not feel this was too "heavy" for children, as it was one of those things that a "huge number of children at that age start to think about."[2]
Goblet of Fire was the first book in the Harry Potter series to be released in the United States on the same date as the United Kingdom, on 8 July 2000, strategically on a Saturday so children did not have to worry about school conflicting with buying the book.[1] It had a combined first-printing of over five million copies.[1] It was given a record-breaking print run of 3.9 million. Three million copies of the book were sold over the first weekend in the US alone.[5]FedEx dispatched more than 9,000 trucks and 100 planes to fulfil book deliveries.[6] The pressure in editing caused a mistake which shows Harry's father emerging first from Voldemort's wand; however, as confirmed inPrisoner of Azkaban, James died first, so then Harry's mother ought to have come out first.[7] This was corrected in later editions.[8]
The locomotive wasWest Country class steam locomotive no. 34027Taw Valley, which was specially repainted red for the tour; it later returned to its normal green livery (the repaints were requested and paid for by Bloomsbury). The coaches of the train included a sleeping car. A Diesel locomotive was coupled at the other end, for use when reversals were necessary, such as the first stage of the journey as far as Ferme Park, just south ofHornsey. The tour generated considerably more press interest than the launch of the filmThomas and the Magic Railroad, which premiered in London the same weekend.[10][11][12]
InThe New York Times Book Review, authorStephen King stated theGoblet of Fire was "every bit as good as Potters 1 through 3" and praised the humour and subplots, although he commented that "there's also a moderately tiresome amount of adolescent squabbling...it's a teenage thing".[13]Kirkus Reviews called it "another grand tale of magic and mystery...and clicking along so smoothly that it seems shorter than it is". However, they commented that it did tend to lag, especially at the end where two "bad guys" stopped the action to give extended explanations, and that the issues to be resolved in sequels would leave "many readers, particularly American ones, uncomfortable".[14] ForThe Horn Book Magazine, Martha V. Parravano gave a mixed review, saying "some will find [it] wide-ranging, compellingly written, and absorbing; others, long, rambling, and tortuously fraught with adverbs".[15] APublishers Weekly review praised the book's "red herrings, the artful clues and tricky surprises that disarm the most attentive audience" and saying it "might be her most thrilling yet."[16] Writing forThe New Yorker,Joan Acocella noted that "where the prior volumes moved like lightning, here the pace is slower, the energy more dispersed. At the same time, the tone becomes more grim."[17]
Kristin Lemmerman ofCNN said that it is not great literature: 'Her prose has more in common with your typical beach-blanket fare and the beginning contained too much recap to introduce characters to new readers, although Rowling quickly gets back on track, introducing readers to a host of well-drawn new characters.'[18] Writing forSalon.com, Charles Taylor was generally positive about the change of mood and development of characters.[19]Entertainment Weekly's reviewer Kristen Baldwin gaveGoblet of Fire the grade of A−, praising the development of the characters as well as the many themes presented. However, she did worry that a shocking climax may be a "nightmare factory" for young readers.[20]
In 2012 it was ranked number 98 on a list of the top 100 children's novels published bySchool Library Journal.[21]
InHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, major characters deliver memorable lines that capture key themes: Dumbledore warns of the tournament's dangers, Moody introduces the lethal Unforgivable Curses, and Voldemort reveals that his power was undone by love. Through these characters’ journeys, the story conveys themes of friendship, sacrifice, and the unified fight against darkness.[22]
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire won several awards, including the 2001Hugo Award for Best Novel.[23] It won the 2002Indian Paintbrush Book Award, the third afterPhilosopher's Stone andPrisoner of Azkaban.[24] The novel also won anOppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award for one of the best books, who claimed it was "more intense than the first three books".[25] In addition,Entertainment Weekly listedGoblet of Fire in second place on their list ofThe New Classics: Books – The 100 best reads from 1983 to 2008.[26]The Guardian rankedHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire #97 in its list of 100 Best Books of the 21st Century.[27]
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was adapted into a film, released worldwide on 18 November 2005, which was directed byMike Newell and written bySteve Kloves. The film grossed $102.7 million for the opening weekend,[28] and eventually grossed $896 million worldwide.[29] The film was also nominated forBest Art Direction at the78th Academy Awards.[30]
^Pigott, Nick, ed. (July 2000). "Headline News: Red livery for Taw Valley?".The Railway Magazine.146 (1191). London: IPC Magazines: 17.
^Pigott, Nick, ed. (August 2000). "Headline News: Taw Valley set for four-day tour in EWS red".The Railway Magazine.146 (1192). London: IPC Magazines. p. 5, photo; p. 14.
