Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Arthur A. Levine, 1999. Tr. $ 24.99, ISBN 978-0439064866
What’s it about?
In the sequel to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, students of Muggle-born parents have been attacked—and petrified-- by a mysterious and powerful sorcerer who reopened the Chamber of Secrets, which holds a deadly beast. Harry finds himself (and Hagrid) under suspicion, and works with Ron and Hermione to figure out who (or what) is behind these attacks.
Find out more:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets opens with Harry spending his summer with the horrible Dursleys. Things begin to look up when Harry is brought to the Weasley’s home to spend the remainder of the summer. When Harry and Ron are unable to board the train to Hogwarts, they decide to steal the Weasley’s enchanted car and fly to school. They crash into a valuable tree, the Whomping Willow, and are nearly expelled. More trouble is brewing, however. Threatening messages begin to appear, warning students that Chamber of Secrets has been opened and the heir of Slytherin will kill Muggle-born students. These are hardly empty threats—Muggle-born pupils are attacked, and petrified. Harry finds himself under suspicion, and when he, Ron and Hermione investigate the Chamber of Secrets, (breaking countless school rules, of course) they again face a deadly struggle.
The books in the Harry Potter series become more sophisticated as the characters (and Harry Potter fans) get older. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets casts Harry in a different light by creating doubt among his friends in regard to his intentions. The readers ask themselves as well: is Harry the heir of Slytherin? His ability to speak Parseltongue is disturbing, recalls the sorting hat’s comment that Harry would do well in Slytherin. The attacks on the Muggle-born, as well as the attitudes of Slytherins (particularly the Malfoys), is the wizard-world equivalent to racism. Wizards who are Muggle-born are considered inferior by some to those born into wizarding families. Characters with a strong moral fiber, of course, don’t buy into this and find the use of the epithet “Mudblood” despicable. This book is darker in tone than Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, but is not without humor, particularly in the situations involving the character of Gilderoy Lockhart, who is the new instructor of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Lockhart is a self-aggrandizing author of several books that detail his heroics without a smidge of humility. However, it quickly becomes clear that Lockhart has very little skill or knowledge of magic, and probably fabricated the majority of his heroics. His “healing” of Harry’s broken arm is hilarious as well as disturbing. Instead of mending the bones, Lockhart removes them, and comments “The point is, the bones are no longer broken.” Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets contains a satisfying mix of mystery, humor, and fantasy that ends with an unexpected twist. The conclusion is a bit too pat, and the book’s arc is very similar to the first book. Still, this is a diverting read with plenty to enjoy.
Genre: Fantasy
Reading level: 7th grade
Interest level: Grades 4-9
Subjects: Wizards, Magic, Boarding School, Good vs. Evil
Awards:
ALA Notable Book for Children
Children’s Book of the Year British Book Award
Booklist Top Ten Fantasy Novels for Youth
Read-alikes:
For children: Collins’ Gregor the Overlander series
Dahl’s BFG, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, & Matilda
Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia series
For adults:
Grossman’s The Magicians
Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series
Many Harry Potter fans also enjoy the TV shows Dr. Who and Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Series information:
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Companion books:
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Quidditch Throughout the Ages
Tales of Beedle the Bard
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