Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Bk. 2) by J.K. Rowling

Harry's on summer break after completing his first year at the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, and his aunt, uncle, and cousin are as mean as ever, trying at every turn to keep him from fulfilling his destiny as a wizard. Their efforts to prevent his return to Hogwarts are aided by an unknown force: a mysterious elf who shows up and warns Harry that he must never return to the school. Before departing, the elf performs a bit of mischievous magic that is blamed on Harry. As a result, Harry not only gets a stern warning from Hogwarts for using magic in the "real" world; he is also locked away by his aunt and uncle in a tiny closet beneath the stairs.

Harry is eventually rescued by his classmates and friends, the redheaded Weasleys, but getting back to Hogwarts still proves to be a challenge. When he finally does get there, his troubles quickly multiply. Someone has opened the door to the Chamber of Secrets, releasing a deadly monster with the power to kill. Several classmates turn up petrified, and in addition to trying to puzzle out who the culprit is, Harry finds himself a prime suspect. The truth lies down the end of a trail marked by a magical diary with invisible ink, a ghost who hides inside a toilet, a flying car, a pompous new teacher with a talent for hyperbole, and some ghastly giant spiders. When one of Harry's friends is imprisoned and another is turned to stone, Harry is forced to once again confront his archenemy, the Dark Wizard Voldemort, who has a whole new bag of nasty tricks up his sleeve.

I'm a HUGE Harry Potter MOVIE fan. (Don't give me that look.) But to be honest, I had no idea what this book was about. I must have blocked it out at some point. So, this was kind of new for me. Which is nice, because I thought I knew what was going on with Harry Potter, but I obviously don't because I couldn't recall a single thing about the Chamber of Secrets. What is this Chamber? Who is the heir of Slytherin? It can't be Harry...right? How does Voldemort play into this book? WHAT IS GOING ON!?!?!?

I liked this book. I forgot about Moaing Myrtle, who I think is pretty funny. I completely forgot about Lockhart. I forgot about Tom Riddle. I think the only things I remembered were the flying car and Dobby. And they are both in, what? The first chapter?

Anyway, this book was a new adventure for me. I liked that, especially since it's been around for about half of my life. How can anything that old (and hyped up) be new? :)

Don't be a Harry Potter hater.

(I thought I was. I remember saying at one point that I would NEVER read these books.)

You still have plenty of time! Read the series with me!

Happy Reading!