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Travel Notes

You’ll never believe what I did this week. I took a ride in a flying car! Yes, a car that flies and has the ability to turn invisible! I squished in the back seat and listened to Fred and George’s banter. I feel as though we’ll be quick friends.

Highlight of Trip: I flew over Muggle cities in an enchanted car with the Weasleys.

First Impressions
Of course, Chamber of Secrets was the next book in my Harry Potter reading extravaganza. However, if I could skip this one and go right into Prisoner of Azkaban, I would in a heartbeat. Technically, I’m sure I would’ve been able to—this was a re-read, after all—but I felt as though that would be cheating.

Chamber was my least favorite movie and my least favorite book. The plot is solid, but book is so dry! I’m not sure what happened with J.K. Rowling’s writing in this book, but it just wasn’t the same.

The Good
I loved that Harry and Ron had to figure out the mystery on their own. This is why the plot was good, in my opinion. The plot trailed throughout the whole book, rather than a large bang in the last fifty pages. (Spoiler Alert) Hermione wasn’t there to guide them through this bought of troubles; they had to go on some adventures and try to figure it out on their own, even though Hermione did end up spelling it out for them, even though she wasn’t there!

I love Ginny’s character and that she’s so innocent as a first year, especially knowing how badass she becomes later. One of my favorite parts of the book is (Spoiler Alert) when she outs Percy at the end. Literally, that’s how this book ends. Ginny tells the crew, including Fred and George, that Percy has a girlfriend and that’s why he’s been acting so dodgy. It also explains why Percy was so upset with Penelope Clearwater (aka his girlfriend) was petrified, which isn’t in the movie!

Those are the things I love about Rowling’s writing. She connects everything and leaves no plot point unaddressed.

The Bad
That being said, I really believe this book was poorly written compared to the others in the series. I’m not sure if it’s just because I already know what happens and the movie is pretty comprehensive, with the exception of (Spoiler Alert) a few conversations with Lockhart and Nick’s Death Day party.

This book was a struggle to get through. I read every day. It’s part of my daily routine. I didn’t read some days while reading this book because I didn’t want to. I’m not a fan of the characterization. I didn’t feel as though any of the characters really grew. I know that Harry discovers more information about his connection with Voldemort, which is really a plot thing. Nobody grew in this book, which is sacrilegious to writing, in my opinion.

Also, I hate Lockhart. I absolutely hate reading his character because he pisses me off. He’s so arrogant. I love his character arc because I think it’s fitting. Out of all of J.K. Rowling’s characters, Lockhart is the one I despise the most.

Should You Read It?

Yes. You should power through it because it has a solid plot line, despite its writing flaws and lack of character growth. You need to know various plot points from this book to progress in the series. Skipping books in the Harry Potter realm is not an option, but if it were, I would skip this one.