Harry Potter & the Chamber of Secrets (spoilers)

[kate_nepveu]

Proposition: the reason that Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is less interesting than the first book is that the story is mostly about someone other than Harry.

Discuss.

(Alternatively, what the heck was Bloomsbury UK thinking with the kids-version cover art for the seventh book? (See also: US version.))

ETA: I've booklogged this book & its predecessor.

Comments

Prolly too late for discussion, but I'll post anyways

[thormation.livejournal.com]

(An incessant reminder why USENET is superior to LJ, but I digress...)

Since my "There's no Harry there" theory has already been posted, I am pbliged to pull up my other HP chestnut--namely: The whole Harry Potter series would have been improved greatly if the Sorting Hat had put him into Slytherin despite his pleas to the contrary.

Because Harry is still Harry (that is, generic good guy) there is no reason that we couldn't still have had him bond with Ron and Hermione on the train and still had Friends for Life. But having Harry in Slytherin would have given us a closer look at this supposedly "evil" house, and maybe some of the non-Malfoy people within. Just because Slytherin people are, mostly, clever and opportunistic doesn't mean they would or should all be natural allies of Voldemort. Also, it would have given people's reactions to Harry more nuance--or at least more logic. The way that the Griffindors alternately embrace and shun Harry would make more sense if he wasn't one of them.

Because really, having 1/4 of your school populated by known traitors and malevolent bastards really doesn't make any sense at all.

Re: Prolly too late for discussion, but I'll post anyways

[kate_nepveu]

I did say that about Slytherin in the booklog entry, though not that Harry should've been put in.

Harry in Slytherin is of course a staple of fanfic, but a particularly good one that happens to include this is an AU in which Harry is psychologically well-adjusted by virtue of being raised by Black & Lupin from age 8 (the pivot moment is Black not going to Azkaban). It's an uncanny pastiche, a lot of fun, and a deliberate reconstruction of the best of the books on better plots and more balanced characters--maybe it's a bit too perfect, I admit, but still fun.

The prequel is _Stealing Harry_; the subsequent years at Hogwarts are _Laocoon's Children_, years 1 - 3 (currently in progress; all 7 are projected). You can browse them here : http://sam-storyteller.livejournal.com/tag/

(Nb. readers who don't want to read about two guys in a sexual & romantic relationship should stay away.)