Friday, January 27, 2023

Review: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have a seemingly inescapable urge to make this review quick. Or, at the very least, link my review of the first HP book as a more full review would just tread over old ground. Not to be viewed as a negative point, I just feel this book contains much of what made the first book work. The major exception is that all the annoying, and time-consuming, introductions are out of the way. To further credit the book, it uses that extra space wisely to expand on its characters and produce a more well-paced story.

To get this pet peeve out of the way, I need to complain about the Dursleys. First, they're mostly Matilda ripoffs. Second, their motivations to keep Potter away from Hogwarts makes no sense. If I had a kid mooching off my livelihood that I could just send him off to a boarding school for most of the year, I would jump at the chance. This would be especially true if I didn't like the little shit and didn't have to pay for said school.

Speaking of which, who is funding Hogwarts anyway? Is that where all the investments into NFTs end up?

Most of what I liked about the first book is what I liked about the second book, so I won't repeat myself. Just go back and read that review. I will say that this book, like the first, mostly boils down to being a middle-aged youth mystery novel. The solution I found to be rather inventive to the extent that it would have made Agatha Christie proud. Walking the fine line of staying within the magical realm, but not stepping outside to bounds of logic.

The only other thing I have to say about this book is that having watched the movies first, I can't help but picture everyone as their film version counterparts. I still can't believe they got Kenneth Branagh to play Lockhart, and not seeing his stupid grin while reading this book becomes impossible. Though that's one me I suppose. Regardless, CoS comes out much the same way as the first book. An enjoyable older kids book that improves ever so slightly over its predecessor.

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