"Chamber of Secrets" Chapters 16-18; "Prisoner of Azkaban" Chapter 1

[earlgreytea68]

 

Page 285: She looked tense and nervous, and Harry noticed that her hands were twisting in her lap.

Fooooooooooreshadowiiiiiiiiiiing!

Page 292: “Should we go straight to McGonagall?” “Let’s go to the staff room,” said Harry, jumping up. “She’ll be there in ten minutes.”

I really like how Ron and Harry really do try to do the right thing here and get teachers involved. I think it’s to both their credit that they’re not striving to be heroes or anything like that. Heroism just keeps getting thrust upon them (and in believable ways, all credit to JKR).

Page 301: He could see more pipes branching off in all directions, but none as large as theirs, which twisted and turned, sloping steeply downward, and he knew that he was falling deeper below the school than even the dungeons.

What we have learned from Books 1 and 2 is that nothing good happens underneath Hogwarts.

Page 310: Riddle laughed, a high, cold laugh that didn’t suit him.

I like the idea that the first thing to give away Riddle is his laugh. Laughter can be a moment when you lose your inhibitions and become truly you.

Page 316: But I know why you couldn’t kill me. Because my mother died to save me.

I’ve always kind of hated when this is said in the Harry Potter universe. It’s a lovely idea, but I always cock my head and think, Was Lily Potter the first person in the wizarding world to sacrifice herself for someone else?

Page 317: There are strange likenesses between us, after all.

Indeed.

Page 318: He fell hard onto the stone and tasted blood – the serpent was barely feet from him, he could hear it coming – There was a loud, explosive spitting sound right above him, and then something heavy hit Harry so hard that he was smashed into the wall. Waiting for fangs to sink through his body he heard more mad hissing, something thrashing wildly off the pillars – He couldn’t help it – he opened his eyes wide enough to squint at what was going on.

Making Harry have to keep his eyes closed is so effective here. It makes this entire thing even creepier and more terrifying than it would otherwise have been.

Page 325: This is just like magic!

So, apparently, when Lockhart’s memory gets wiped, he remembers how to do things like talk but he doesn’t remember that magic exists. Apparently, his knowledge of the magical world is not as ingrained as other things like speech? I’m probably thinking too hard about this.

Page 328: “What interests me most,” said Dumbledore gently, “is how Lord Voldemort managed to enchant Ginny, when my sources tell me he is currently in hiding in the forests of Albania.”

DUMBLEDORE CONTINUES TO BE AWESOME. THAT IS ALL.

Page 329: Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain?

But, Mr. Weasley, what about your car?

Page 330: “So Hermione’s okay!” said Ron brightly.

Aw, Ron. He’s so far gone already.

Page 333: It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.

The motto of the whole series.

Page 336: “Oh, no one will be able to do that,” said Dumbledore, smiling at Harry.

I love how Dumbledore and Harry seem like they’re police partners here or something, confronting their suspect. They’re just immediately in tune with each other. It’s remarkable, and lovely. They have the most fascinating dynamic.

And with that we come to the end of “Chamber of Secrets.” This wasn’t one of my absolute favorites before the re-read, and I don’t think it’s risen all that much. I mean, it’s a delightful story, an enjoyable and well-constructed book, and it sets up more of JKR’s chess pieces in a beautiful fashion; I just prefer other books. This one feels kind of awkwardly stuck between the simplicity of the first volume and the progressively convoluted books to come.

On to Prisoner of Azkaban.

Page 11: I’m on holiday in France at the moment and I didn’t know how I was going to send this to you – what if they’d opened it at customs? – but then Hedwig turned up! I think she wanted to make sure you got something for your birthday for a change.

Hedwig is so awesome. It makes later events even sadder, to read this here.

Page 15: Then he took off his glasses and lay down, eyes open, facing his three birthday cards. Extremely unusual though he was, at that moment Harry Potter felt just like everyone else – glad, for the first time in his life, that it was his birthday.

This book was my favorite Harry Potter book before I embarked on this re-read. I’m about halfway through it now, and I suspect it may maintain its title. And it’s for little moments like these. All Harry Potter books are wonderfully affectionate books, but there is a warmth to this book, here, immediately, that just really gets me. I find this book, somehow, more touching than any of the other volumes. Maybe that will change as I re-read the rest, though. Anyway, I think this is a brilliant ending to the first chapter of this book.

Comments

[glorious-clio.livejournal.com]

The third book for me was always my favorite. This is the climax of the series, as far as I'm concerned, the rest is falling action. All because little Peter escapes....

As to Chamber of Secrets- it becomes important later, but when you first read it, it's just a transition book.

DUMBLEDORE IS TOTALLY AWESOME; and I think it's more about the effect of Lily Potter's sacrifice- it's just so all encompassing because it has to be, and because of what Harry is up against. But it's never made him "invincible." I think.

[catyuy.livejournal.com]

Have I mentioned how much I love you for doing this?
Cause I really do.

At some point I must steal my sister's HP books (as I got rid of mine when living with her as she said it made no sense to have multiple copies)

[tigerstriped86.livejournal.com]

My entire life seems to be page 333, actually.

[kitsune17.livejournal.com]

Was Lily Potter the first person in the wizarding world to sacrifice herself for someone else?

Probably not, but I could see why they'd want to keep this magic under wraps. Picture an abusive boyfriend and his weak willed girlfriend who does truely love him, even though she shouldn't. He manipulates her into sacrificing herself to save him, and then he's protected. If there were public knowledge of such magic, it could be horribly manipulated.

To be fair, though, so could things like the Polyjuice potion. Wizards seem to be remarkably trusting.

[muneca-brava.livejournal.com]

The third book is my favourite as well. I think it's mostly because it's the calmest of the series. The first two are very much about getting to know the world and the enemies, and from four on it's all about Voldemort returning, but PoA is just in between.
It's really about people, friendships, and explaining what happened all those years ago. It also introduces the Marauders (both as actual characters and as part of history with the map), who are still my favourite part of the HP world and the HP fandom.

I've just reread PoA, as well, and I still love it. It's amazing how after all these years and readings I can still enjoy it so much, but I suppose that's part of the magic.

[earlgreytea68.livejournal.com]

Ah, you're right! This is the climax, and it is all falling action after this! For an English major, I was always appalling with that stuff. My mind doesn't work that way, or something.

Yes, CoS does feel like just a transition.

I agree, I don't think Lily's sacrifice made Harry invincible. It did, however, make him the first person to ever survive an Avada Kedavra curse.

[earlgreytea68.livejournal.com]

Aw, I'm glad you're enjoying them! And yeah, totally steal them back!

[earlgreytea68.livejournal.com]

Well, it's a very true statement.

[earlgreytea68.livejournal.com]

I totally agree that it's the type of magic you'd want to keep under wraps. It just always seemed to me like the explanation for surviving Avada Kedavra couldn't actually be Lily's sacrifice, because in that case there would at least be *rumors* of other people having been able to do it.

[earlgreytea68.livejournal.com]

You're right, it is very calm, and you do get to really focus just on the characters. Even the plot itself is really, in the end, about the *characters,* about the people that Harry came from. And I'm with you, I adore the Marauders, so that could be why this is my favorite. ;-)