I bought Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in a bookshop to read to my two sons (7 and 9), and they were enthralled; my wife could hardly believe her eyes when she interrupted the showdown at the finish and discovered them both sitting bolt upright holding their breath! When we found the Chamber of Secrets in the local library we had to get it out immediately. I found it even better than the first, to the extent that I could not wait to read it at bedtime before finishing it. To my mind it is better paced than the Philosopher's Stone, which I felt was a bit slow in setting up the really exciting bit; the Chamber of Secrets starts to hot up about half way through in a well-judged crescendo. But it is even better at developing the characters, including the ever so vital Hermione, who gets a bit more get-up-and-go just when it's needed. This is not a great children's book; it's just a great book. When the paperback is out, we'll be getting a copy.