Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince book corrections

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - 8 corrections

Comments made in brackets are corrections from other visitors. As such, any aggressive/abusive corrections (and I get quite a few) written as if they're comments I've made myself will be ignored. To submit your own corrections for mistakes, just click "make changes" when viewing mistakes, and click "correct entry". Some entries have "duplicated entry" after them - these are entries which were already listed on the main page, but were submitted again. I occasionally leave these online for a while, just in case they were moved in error, so don't worry about pointing them out to me.

Malfoy used the Imperius curse on Madam Rosmerta to have her deliver the cursed necklace to a Hogwarts student. If Hogsmead is "outside of school" and Malfoy was underaged at the time, shouldn't the Ministry investigate the use of an Unforgivable Curse so close to Hogwarts? And if so, wouldn't they have found out that Rosmerta was cursed? [The way I understand it, the phrase "outside of school" refers to when students are in the Muggle world during the summer. Since Hogsmeade is an entirely wizarding village, I would think that while the Ministry certainly would investigate the matter, it would be difficult for them to ascertain who specifically performed the curse; there are sixteen groups of underage students (3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th years, from four Houses) who are allowed to visit the village.] Corrected by Cubs Fan

It states in the Half-Blood Prince that the ministry can only detect magic, not its perpetrator. Therefore, when Dumbledore visits Harry at the beginning of the book and performs magic, shouldn't the ministry have detected it, knowing that Harry was an underage wizard? (There should have been no magic being performed at the house at all). [As explained in "Deathly Hallows," there is a charm placed upon magical people under seventeen that detects underage magic. Since Dumbledore is of age, it's possible that the Ministry knows this, and it is thus legal magic.] Corrected by Cubs Fan

In the US version, page 485, Slughorn tells Harry that he has "a house-elf taste every bottle after what happened to your poor friend Rupert". Slughorn should have said "poor friend Ron", not Rupert. One assumes this is a reference to Rupert Grint, who plays the character Ron in the movies. [If you notice, Slughorn calls Ron a different name earlier in the book as well, so this is not J. K. Rowling's mistake, but a character mistake. But the assumption (that it is a referrence to Rupert Grint) is plausible.]

In the American edition, page 188, Slughorn says, "One tiny bottle of felix felicis is enough for twelve hours' luck. From dusk til' dawn, you will be lucky in everything you attempt." But then on page 476, Harry says, "I don't reckon I'll need all of it, not twenty-four hours' worth." [This is Harry's mistake, not Rowling's.] Corrected by Phixius

In the part of the book where Harry holds Quidditch trials the book says that there are first years holding the old school brooms, but in the first book it says that first years are not allowed to have brooms or be on the house Quidditch teams. [Since Harry was allowed to join the House Team in his first year, it is logical to assume that the rules have now been changed. As to the first years having brooms, they are not their personal brooms (which they are not allowed to have) but the house brooms.] Corrected by Guy Brigman

It is repeatedly said through the books that no one can apparate or disapparate on Hogwarts' grounds. However, both Dobby and Kreacher apparate to Harry when he calls them. [It has been argued that house-elves have magical powers of their own that aren't affected by wizard law. So it's not entirely unplausible that Dobby and Kreacher can Apparate around the castle, even with the anti-Apparation charm in effect.] [Jk Rowling has said that Dobby and Kreacher, being house elves, can. It's not apparating or disapparating, it's their own kind of house elf magic.]

In this book, during the end, Snape says that he is the Half-Blood Prince. Earlier, when Harry is at the Weasley's for Christmas, he wonders if his dad was the Prince. He looks in the book, and it says that the book was from fifty years ago. He is depressed by the fact that his dad wasn't at Hogwarts fifty years ago. In the fifth book, when Harry is in Snape's pensieve, he sees his dad and Snape finish their O.W.L.s. This would mean that they were in the same year at Hogwarts. [When Harry first wonders about if the book belonged to James Potter, it is under the assumption that the Prince had owned the book when it was new. But as we later find out, poor students (such as Snape) can get cheap, used books through a special fund at Hogwart's. It is therefore quite possible that Snape had a ten-year old copy of the book at the time when he dubbed himself the Half-Blood Prince.] Corrected by Twotall

On page 425 of the US version, it says '"Nice commentary last match." said Ron to Luna as she took back the green onion, the toadstool, and the cat litter.' But a couple of paragraphs later it says '"What is this, by the way?", he added, holding the onionlike object up to eye level.' Didn't she already take back everything a few lines ago? [Even though Ron gave the Gurdyroot back doesn't mean he couldn't have picked it up again to ask what it was. Everything was still outside of Luna's purse, so it's very possible Ron could have just been curious and grabed it before he asked Luna about it.]