Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Book Details
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
Paperback, 352 Pages
2000, Scholastic Paperbacks
ISBN: 9780848710682
Series: Book 2 of Harry Potter

Synopsis
The Dursleys were so mean and hideous that summer that all Harry Potter wanted was to get back to the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. But just as he's packing his bags, Harry receives a warning from a strange, impish creature named Dobby who says that if Harry Potter returns to Hogwarts, disaster will strike.

And strike is does. For in Harry's second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageous stuck-up new professor, Gilderoy Lockheart, a spirit named Moaning Myrtle who haunts the girls' bathroom, and the unwanted attentions of Ron Weasley's younger sister, Ginny.

But each of these seem minor annoyances when the real trouble begins, and someone--or something--starts turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects...Harry Potter himself?

Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is perhaps the least impressive of all the Harry Potter books. The novel is still one of the very best of the genre, but compared to the other books in the series, Chamber of Secrets felt rushed and was less in depth than what we expect from these books.

The earlier Harry Potter books are much shorter than the final four in the series. While Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone managed to make the very most of its page count, Chamber of Secrets seemed to focus more on plot progression than the wonderful details we loved in the first book. The story was very fast paced. It had to be to fit a story with so much action into such a small space. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a consistently thrilling adventure, but I would have loved if we could have explored Hogwarts and the rest of the magical world in as much detail as in Sorcerer's Stone.

During my re-read of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, I was struck by just how protective Fred and George seem to be of both Harry and their family. On first reading, all I could see what their face value of irresponsible jokesters. I felt like I saw them much more clearly this time around and loved all the things that showed them to be deeper than they first appeared.

While Ginny did appear in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, we really get to know her better in Chamber of Secrets. I loved how clearly unsure of herself she was, especially with what we know of her in later books. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets really sets up the basis from which Ginny grows from.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is most likely my least favorite of all the Harry Potter books, but even being my least favorite of the series, it still gets my highest rating. This book is absolutely necessary to the story as a whole and while not the best of the series, is still well beyond most books of its kind.

Rating

Links

J.K. Rowling's
Website