Hermione does evolve throughout the series though, from not opening up at all from the first part of the first book and crying alone in the bathroom when she felt rejected by the people she was starting to consider as friends, to giving up everything she once believed in when she realised that some things were more important than her set rules and plans. She erased her parents' memory to protect them. She was frustrated by divination because she wasn't good at it and thus her definition of herself as the best student was wavering, she did handle it poorly and rejected it on the subject though. (Also becoming more in touch with her emotions wouldn't have made her bad at runes, so of course she used them)
Book Hermione was a slightly caricatural nerd who grew up to embrace what once made her weak and became a well-rounded badass.
It's not super heavily emphasized from what I remember:
"Harry," said Hermione, "how are we going to get out of here with all those dementors outside the door?"
"Patronuses," said Harry, pointing his wand at his own. The stag slowed and walked, still gleaming brightly, toward the door. "As many as we can muster; do yours, Hermione."
"Expec-- Expecto patronum," said Hermione. Nothing happened.
"It's the only spell she ever has trouble with," Harry told a completely bemused Mrs. Cattermole. "Bit unfortunate, really... Come on Hermione...."
"Expecto patronum!"
A silver otter burst from the end of Hermione's wand and swam gracefully through the air to join the stag."
`
-The Deathly Hallows
`
Her struggle with Patronus' is also slightly inconsistent since, in order of the Phoenix, she has managed to produce a fully-formed Patronus -- but how long it took her to do so is unclear
They had finally started work on Patronuses, which everybody had been very keen to practise, though, as Harry kept reminding them, producing a Patronus in the middle of a brightly lit classroom when they were not under threat was very different from producing it when confronted by something like a Dementor.
.
"Oh, don't be such a killjoy,' said Cho brightly, watching her silvery swan-shaped Patronus soar around the Room of Requirement during their last lesson before Easter. They're so pretty!'
.
'They're not supposed to be pretty, they're supposed to protect you,' said Harry patiently. [Paragraph redacted]*
**[I had to edit part of Harry's sentence in which he explains how Lupin had him train with Bog Art because funsubstance finds mention them (and demon mentors) offensive in the context of that paragraph apparently, and I gave up trying to figure out how to get around it)***
But that would be really scary!' said Lavender, who was shooting puffs of silver vapour out of the end of her wand. 'And I still--can't--do it!' she added angrily.
.
Neville was having trouble, too. His face was screwed up in concentration, but only feeble wisps of silver smoke issued from his wand tip.
.
'You've got to think of something happy,' Harry reminded him.
.
'I'm trying,' said Neville miserably, who was trying so hard his round face was actually shining with sweat.
(Cont)
'Harry, I think I'm doing it!' yelled Seamus, who had been brought along to his first ever DA meeting by Dean. 'Look--ah--it's gone ... but it was definitely something hairy, Harry!'
.
Hermione's Patronus, a shining silver otter, was gambolling around her.
.
'They are sort of nice, aren't they?' she said, looking at it fondly.
[Fin]
^ though I suspect this possible inconsistency may have been in part due to Rowling's own eagerness to show Hermione's Patronus off, since the entire reason she gave Hermione an otter is because it's Rowling's favourite animal
Possibly, though she is also fairly dismissive about missing out on the chance to learn divination from Firenze the centaur
.
.
"'I'll bet you wish you hadn't given up Divination now, don't you, Hermione?' asked Parvati, smirking.
.
It was breakfast time, two days after the sacking of Professor Trelawney, and Parvati was curling her eyelashes around her wand and examining the effect in the back of her spoon. They were to have their first lesson with Firenze that morning.
.
'Not really,' said Hermione indifferently, who was reading the Daily Prophet.'I've never really liked horses.'
.
She turned a page of the newspaper and scanned its columns.
.
'He's not a horse, he's a centaur!' said Lavender, sounding shocked.
.
'A gorgeous centaur ...' sighed Parvati.
.
'Either way, he's still got four legs,' said Hermione coolly."
Thanks for sharing, I didn't remember that part. I can't tell, just from this excerpt, if she was just making excuses cause she doesn't like divination or if she has something against horses, like maybe a fear of them?
Book Hermione was a slightly caricatural nerd who grew up to embrace what once made her weak and became a well-rounded badass.
"Harry," said Hermione, "how are we going to get out of here with all those dementors outside the door?"
"Patronuses," said Harry, pointing his wand at his own. The stag slowed and walked, still gleaming brightly, toward the door. "As many as we can muster; do yours, Hermione."
"Expec-- Expecto patronum," said Hermione. Nothing happened.
"It's the only spell she ever has trouble with," Harry told a completely bemused Mrs. Cattermole. "Bit unfortunate, really... Come on Hermione...."
"Expecto patronum!"
A silver otter burst from the end of Hermione's wand and swam gracefully through the air to join the stag."
`
-The Deathly Hallows
`
Her struggle with Patronus' is also slightly inconsistent since, in order of the Phoenix, she has managed to produce a fully-formed Patronus -- but how long it took her to do so is unclear
.
"Oh, don't be such a killjoy,' said Cho brightly, watching her silvery swan-shaped Patronus soar around the Room of Requirement during their last lesson before Easter. They're so pretty!'
.
'They're not supposed to be pretty, they're supposed to protect you,' said Harry patiently. [Paragraph redacted]*
.
Neville was having trouble, too. His face was screwed up in concentration, but only feeble wisps of silver smoke issued from his wand tip.
.
'You've got to think of something happy,' Harry reminded him.
.
'I'm trying,' said Neville miserably, who was trying so hard his round face was actually shining with sweat.
(Cont)
.
Hermione's Patronus, a shining silver otter, was gambolling around her.
.
'They are sort of nice, aren't they?' she said, looking at it fondly.
[Fin]
.
.
"'I'll bet you wish you hadn't given up Divination now, don't you, Hermione?' asked Parvati, smirking.
.
It was breakfast time, two days after the sacking of Professor Trelawney, and Parvati was curling her eyelashes around her wand and examining the effect in the back of her spoon. They were to have their first lesson with Firenze that morning.
.
'Not really,' said Hermione indifferently, who was reading the Daily Prophet.'I've never really liked horses.'
.
She turned a page of the newspaper and scanned its columns.
.
'He's not a horse, he's a centaur!' said Lavender, sounding shocked.
.
'A gorgeous centaur ...' sighed Parvati.
.
'Either way, he's still got four legs,' said Hermione coolly."