Review of “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets” by J.K. Rowling
Immediately after finishing the first book, I started the second book and finished it in a few days. I listen to these books on my morning walks, and the more I am enjoying it, the longer I walk. So, far I've really been enjoying these books, so I look forward to listening to them on my walks, thus I am getting in some good exercise!
So, the book opens with Harry having a bad summer with the Dursely's and Ron comes to rescue him. I like how the books give more characterization of the Dursely's and how Harry doesn't fit in with them. We also get the introduction of Doby the house elf, thus learning about he existence of house elves. Harry then lives with the Weasly's for a couple of weeks. This gives the audience some insight into Ron's home life and how wizard family's live with magic all around them. The second book continues the world building established in the first book and then adds what we need to know for the plot of the story.
The book also adds more to the legend of Lord Voldemort, and it's revealed that his real name is Tom Riddle. The book builds the mystery of how Voldemort and Harry are connected. I love the reveal that Harry can speak parseltongue, a good call back to him speaking to the snake in the first book. A trait that we learn is very rare and must have been a transference of Voldemort's power to Harry when he tried to kill him, leaving Harry with his famous scar.
The Chamber of Secrets also spends more time with some of the ghosts, such as nearly headless Nick and moaning Myrtle. I completely forgot that moaning Mrytle was killed during the last time the chamber of secrets was opened. Something that adds tragedy to the character, despite her being a bit annoying. We also get to understand more of why Filch is so grumpy, it's because he is a squib. A term used for someone who isn't a wizard but comes from a wizarding family. These added details gives more context to character interactions and the history of Hogwarts.
In the second book we also find out why Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts and ends with his name being cleared. We are also introduced to some new characters, Gilderoy Lockehart, Lucius Malfoy and Doby the house elf. I gotta say that I found Doby to be kind of annoying, and kept saying to myself, “get out of here Doby and leave Harry alone”. He ended up causing Harry more trouble and harm then provided any good. However, his living conditions and need to punish himself makes me feel sad for him. Lucius Malfoy is a terrible person, knowingly putting Riddle's diary into Ginny's books and not caring if muggles die. Also, I feel bad for Ginny, it was clever to not give her much screen time because it makes the twist come out of nowhere.
Gilderoy Lockehart. What can we say about him? I love Gilderoy Lockehart! Even though he's a shady, lying and manipulative person who only cares about fame, I still like him. I like him being so self absorbed and a bit oblivious to other people's feelings about him. He keeps trying to fix things or show off his skills that he boasts in his books, but it always goes wrong. Makes me wonder why would he attempt these things when he knows he can't do it? Despite being bad, he's just such a fun character.
I really enjoyed reading this book, not sure if it's better than the first, it about on par. Knowing where the story goes having seen the movies, I'm looking forward to continuing with the series, learning more details in the books. One thing I have wondered is, if Dumbledore and McGonagal know that the Dursely's treat Harry like crap, why do they keep sending him back? When Harry clearly doesn't want to go. Is there no magical wizard orphanage Harry could go to? Maybe we'll get the answers in later books. I'm looking forward to finishing the series.
Thank you for reading and be sure to check back every week as I dive into the wizarding world. I'll be reviewing all 7 books and other stories from the PotterVerse, such as Fantastic Beasts (not the screenplay) and The Tales of Beedle the Bard. So stay tuned to the blog for new posts every week until Christmas! Thanks for reading and be sure to follow the blog on social media for all the updates.
Read my review for Neil Gaiman's fairy tale "Troll Bridge".
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