The Literary Puff

The Chamber of Secrets picks up where the  The Philosopher's Stone ends.   We find Harry on his summer holidays from Hogwarts and having, as we have come to expect, a horrible time back at No4. Much to Harry’s surprise, he’s rescued by the Weasley’s in the middle of the night and whisked away to stay at the Burrow for the remainder of the summer holidays. Can I please spend the summer at the Burrow, too!? Nothing in this book seems to go smoothly, Harry has a lot to deal with and the story progresses a little deeper and a little darker. We meet the young Lord Voldemort for the first time and learn a little more about Hagrid and why he was expelled from Hogwarts. This book includes some much loved characters—mainly Dobby—and has some funny and heartwarming moments. As with the first, the tapestry of Harry’s world is richly woven and you’re left wanting more and more. On to Prisoner of Azkaban we go!

As a ten year old girl in desperate need of escape, I first discovered the world of Harry Potter.   At the time, it was to my ten year old brain, exciting and very much a world I wanted to be a part of. It was packed full of everything I craved—friends, mischief and magic. As an adult, it’s remained   that but with a much more complex understanding of what all those things mean. When we meet Harry he doesn’t have a place. He’s bullied by his cousin, ignored by his aunt and uncle and desperate for someone to see him, to really see him and to listen. When strange letters begin to arrive his world gets turned upside down and finally, after a giant of a man named Hagrid, tells him he's a wizard, his life begins to fall into place. He heads off to Hogwarts and embarks on a journey of not only magical discovery, but a personal one too. There is layer upon layer of heartbreaking discovery for Harry. He learns not only about this new, exciting world but he also learns about himself an...