Finally! After four days without power, the Connecticut Light and Power Co. turned on our power sometime yesterday afternoon. I can't tell you how relieved we are to have electricity and hot water again. I feel about 100% more human than I did the whole beginning of this week, and more equipped to tackle what's been going on my job (things be crazy lately). But I'm even MORE ready to run headlong into the upcoming three-day weekend! Two more days and I'm there!
Because of the power outage, I'm really behind in my reviews (I was reading faster than I was reviewing). Today is book 73, an old favorite, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Harry Potter, now 12, has spent his entire summer daydreaming about returning back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but is off-put by a visit from Dobby, a long-suffering house-elf, who warns him not to return to Hogwarts, since he is in grave danger. Ignoring the warning, Harry returns to find his school in chaos. Students are being Petrified by a mysterious being that moves through the school unseen. Words painted on a wall declare that "The Chamber of Secrets Has Been Opened". And rumors run rampant about the identity of the "Heir of Slytherin", the only person who can open the Chamber. Harry must work with his best friends, Ron and Hermione, to discover the identity of the Heir and the location of the Chamber of Secrets and to clear his reputation for good.
This book, second in the series, is certainly not my favorite, though I think it's a great "second" novel. Now we know the characters -- Harry and Ron, Hermione and Snape and Dumbledore. The lack of Voldemort in this book is what sets it apart from the later books -- granted (spoiler) he makes an appearance in some form towards the end of the book, but it is certainly different from his presence in Books 4 - 7, where he is a constant malevolent presence. Chamber of Secrets is still lighthearted enough that I feel it can still be categorized as a childrens' book. Harry and the crew are only 12 years old, and they still have the pre-pubescent thought patterns that children their age have. Plus we have the introduction of the Polyjuice Potion, when it was a plot point and not a fall-back. Ahhh, the good old days.
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| Kenneth Branagh as Lockhart (from the Harry Potter Wiki) |
Plus, we have the introduction of "Professor" Gilderoy Lockhart, possibly my favorite of all the one-shot Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers (Remus Lupin excluded, of course). Although he's a complete con artist with a shoddy past, I can't help but like Lockhart, and feel sorry for him when he gets his come-uppance is spectacular fashion. His overbearing presence throughout Chamber and his whopping tales is what makes him relatable -- we've ALL had that relative/friend/acquaintance whose entire repertoire of stories has to do with his commendable courage, his riveting good looks, or his astounding intelligence. And Kenneth Branagh was absolutely perfect at playing Lockhart in the film. I can't help but laugh when I see him donning the ridiculous colored attire and prancing about Hogwarts like he's the greatest thing since sliced bread.
A good second novel, and worth a reread every few years, most definitely.
Rating: ****
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