After publishing my post last night, I sat down and finished reading the rest of The Deathly Hallows. I just love the ending. Yes, there is action but J.K. is brave enough, smart enough to insert two extended periods of rest, both for her characters and her readers.
First, there is the trip through Snape's memories, that important montage of scenes that help Harry and us see just how harrowing and courageous a life Snape has led. It's an important point in the novel and helps us to understand both Snape and Dumbledore better.
Second, there is the scene in the mythical version of King's Cross station, where Harry meets up with Dumbledore himself, just after Harry has tried to let Voldemort kill him. Another important scene, both from the standpoint of explaining a number of plot points and of helping us to see both characters - Harry and Dumbledore - more clearly.
I found this structure, this willingness on the part of the author to break up the intensity of the action in this way, to be quite Shakespearean in nature when I first read the novel. And it works in so many ways, making the action scenes even more effective, even more breathtaking than they would be on their own.
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