By 1999, the demand for Harry Potter was so great that his US publishers slid the publishing date of "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" from September back to June.
"This time around," wrote Monitor reviewer Yvonne Zipp, "Harry manages to get into trouble even before the school year begins and winds up a prisoner in his own home. His friend Ron Weasley has to rescue him in a flying Ford Anglia - which they subsequently crash-land on school grounds."
Once back at Hogwarts, it appears that something is stalking the students – and Harry finds himself suspected of the crimes.
Zipp praised the book, writing that "Rowling's sense of humor keeps things from getting too scary for smaller readers – you've got to love a battle where the hero literally pulls victory out of a hat."
Many critics praised the 2002 movie version of "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," calling it deeper, darker, and more dramatic than "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." Some others, however, found it to be too long and in the Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan called the movie a cliché.
