Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban [Review]

Stats:

#3 in HP series

435 pages

Published 1 October 1999

Synopsis:

For most children, summer vacation is something to look forward to. But not for our 13-year-old hero, who's forced to spend his summers with an aunt, uncle, and cousin who detest him. The third book in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series catapults into action when the young wizard "accidentally" causes the Dursleys' dreadful visitor Aunt Marge to inflate like a monstrous balloon and drift up to the ceiling. Fearing punishment from Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon (and from officials at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry who strictly forbid students to cast spells in the nonmagic world of Muggles), Harry lunges out into the darkness with his heavy trunk and his owl Hedwig. 

As it turns out, Harry isn't punished at all for his errant wizardry. Instead he is mysteriously rescued from his Muggle neighborhood and whisked off in a triple-decker, violently purple bus to spend the remaining weeks of summer in a friendly inn called the Leaky Cauldron. What Harry has to face as he begins his third year at Hogwarts explains why the officials let him off easily. It seems that Sirius Black--an escaped convict from the prison of Azkaban--is on the loose. Not only that, but he's after Harry Potter. But why? And why do the Dementors, the guards hired to protect him, chill Harry's very heart when others are unaffected?


My Thoughts:
I love this book. It's my favorite of the series and probably in my top 5 favorite books of all-time. It's just absolutely amazing! Along with a new teacher, I love that we learn more about James Potter's time at Hogwarts and the time leading up to his and Lily's death. The last page is definitely the very best though :)

Previous Book:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling [here]

Next Book:
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling