This is my least favorite Potter. There, I said it. ;) That's probably due to the fact that the emotional pull in this one is just not as high as in the other books. I only teared up once during my re-read and usually I'm crying every ten pages... but the humor is great in this one, I forgot how much Fred & George is in here and I was laughing out loud several times. 
 Another very unpopular opinion: I don't like Jim Kay's art that much and I honestly think it made my reading experience a little worse because the Illustrated Editions are just so damn big and heavy that they are a pain in the ass to read. I won't buy the next ones... 
 But let's talk about the book. I won't give you a synopsis because DUH it's Harry Potter. :D But here is a list of my favorite moments/ moments that were different in the films and I therefore forgot existed: 
 - at the beginning of the book the cake which Petunia prepared for the Masons actually fell on Harry's head; an owl dropped Harry's warning letter on Mrs. Masons head though and she apparently has bird phobia and ran from Privet Drive screaming - ICONIC 
 - Fred and George actually got into Harry's room to help him with his trunk and didn't stay in the car 
 - Vernon Dursley didn't get pushed out of the window which is just a damn shame because that scene is hilarious in the movies 
 - after arriving at Privet Drive and getting yelled at by Molly (not Harry of course :D) the rascals actually have to de-gnome the garden which was very fun to read about... 
 - there is a casual mentioning of Mundungus Fletcher by Arthur Weasley 
 - Molly and Arthur's relationship is just adorbs and when Molly gets angry because Arthur doesn't get angry at the boys (he basically says that there is a loophole in the law that you could possess a flying car as long as you don't actually fly with it) Molly says: "Arthur, you made sure there was a loophole when you wrote that law!" - I loved that scene, sooo funny 
 - Harry mentions that during his stay you could constantly hear explosions from Fred and George's room - I think it's just awesome how JKR hints at things that are to come later and that Fred and George starting experimenting with fireworks for their jokeshop this early 
 - Hermione sents Ron a reply letter and tells them to meet her in Diagon Alley, I loved the sass in her letter: "but perhaps it would be better if you used a different owl because I think another delivery might finish your one off." - GOLDEN 
 - Harry sees a fucking VANISHING CABINET in Borgins & Burkes and Malfoy is interested in it as well 
 - Malfoy sees a cursed necklace of opals of Borgins & Burkes - rumour has it he used that one on Katie Bell in his sixth year ;)))) 
 - Hermione's parents accompany her to Diagon Alley and in Gringotts they exchange pounds to sickles 
 - Percy's ambitions and how he is at times ashamed of his brothers is obvious throughout this whole book - I think it's nice how JKR started developing her characters this early in the series 
 - Arthur is attacking Lucius and basically shoving him into a bookshelf - CLASSIC 
 - the whole flying to Hogwarts in a car thing wasn't that spectacular at all because in the book they don't get almost run over by the Hogwarts Express and Harry was also not almost falling out of the car :D 
 - McGonagals sass is also real in this one when she disciplinates Harry and Ron for using a flying car and hurting the Whomping Willow: "I didn't think." - "That," said Professor McGonagal "is obvious." 
 - Neville didn't faint because of the cry of the Mandrakes 
 - I loved how in the books when Malfoy calls Hermione a mudblood basically everyone is losing their shit and not just Ron - Alicia shrieked and Fred and George charged Malfoy - BOSSES 
 - I loved Hagrid's indifference to Ron's slug problem: "Better out than in." 
 - Hermione didn't know what "mudblood" meant and Ron had to explain it to her - I loved how book!Hermione has way more flaws/ is less perfect than movie!Hermione 
 - Harry finds out that Filch is a squib by finding a Kwikspell course flyer in his office 
 - The Golden Trio gets invited to Sir Nicolas 500th Deathday party and that feast is just ridiculous 
 - in the books Professor Binns (the ghost who teaches History) is telling his students the legend of the Chamber of Secrets and not McGonagal 
 - Lockhart is so much more unlikeable in the books than in the movies, he is so obsessed with Harry - he basically forces Harry to re-enact passages of his books with him and Harry has to pretend to be the monster - it is soooooooooo hilarious: "Nice loud howl, Harry [...] go on, Harry - higher than that - good" 
 - I loved how protective Fred & George were towards Harry in front of Wood because Wood (being the obsessed dork that he is) put so much pressure on Harry to catch the Golden Snitch that Harry didn't want the game to be interrupted because of the bewitched bludger and Fred & George were just pissed at Wood 
 - Neville broke my heart a little bit when he said that he is endangered of the monster inside the chamber because "everyone knows I'm half a squib." - I can't wait for his character to shine, he is my little baby 
 - Harry causing mayem in Snape's classroom so that Hermione can get the ingredients for the Polyjuice Potion without Snape's notice 
 - at the first Duelling Club meeting Hermione is paired with Milicent (the girl in whom she is trying to polyjuice herself later in the books) and Milicent is so aggressive that by the end of the first duel both of their wands are dropped and Milicent had Hermione in a headlock - I mean CAN YOU IMAGINE, again, I love book!Hermione's flaws 
 - "Scared, Potter?" - "You wish!" IS A FUCKING ORIGINAL BOOK QUOTE, all the good stuff is actually in the books - LOVEEE 
 - I love JKR's shameless foreshadowing, in conversation in which they talk about Tom Riddle and why he got an award for special services to the school, Ron just drops this (as a joke) "perhaps he [Tom Riddle] murdered Myrtle, that would have done everyone a favor." - I MEAN JKR I KNOW WHAT YOU DID thERE 
 - how could I forget about Gilderoy fucking Lockhart initiating Valentine's day at Hogwarts and sending carts out to students - and Ginny sending Harry the most ridiculous love poem ever 
 - Hermione signing up for all the classes for their 3rd year - omg the foreshadowing is just too real with JKR (can't wait for timeturner action in book 3) 
 - Why does nobody hear the Basilisk hissing though? I mean it's clear that they can't understand what he is saying in Parselmouth but they should still be able to hear the hissing like why is only Harry aware of the noise? 
 - The line at which I teared up: "You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who asked for it." - DAMN STRAIGHT 
 - Hagrid gets expelled and sent to freaking Azkaban - I mean I never siriously (pun intended) thought about it but spending even a week in Azkaban most have deep influences on one's character 
 - Aragog: "I came from a distant land. A traveller gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg." - A TRAVELLER AKA NEWT FUCKING SCAMANDER? Headcanon accepted 
 - McGonagal shedding a tear when she thinks that Harry and Ron are alone in the curridors because they wanna visit Hermione 
 - Harry used (one of his) first Expelliarmus Charms on Lockhart and it worked - like how weak is Lockhart's game :D 
 - Tom Riddle mentions that 13 year old Hagrid used to go off to the Forbidden Forest to wrestle with trolls - ICONIC 
 - Dumbledore used to be the Transfiguration teacher - I honestly don't know why he stopped teaching I mean he sure as hell isn't doing a lot for being the Headmaster 
 - Foreshadowing game LEVEL 1000000: "Voldemort put a bit of himself in me?" - "It certainly seems so." - LIKE HOW THIS WOMAN IS A GENIUS 
 - Lucius Malfoy doesn't try to Avada Kedavra Harry - I mean thank God, that part of the movie makes noooo fucking sense - like WHY did they put that in there 
 - Harry doesn't hide the sock in the journal he basically pushes his smelly sock onto Lucius because he know he will throw it away immediately - clever boy ! :D 
 - The victory feast at the end of the book is super spontaneous and everyone shows up in their pyjamas - this is ma school man :D 
 Things that made me THINK whilst reading: 
 - How many students are there in Hogwarts? It sure as hell seemed like Harry only has 4 other boys in Gryffindor in his grade (that would make 5 boys and 5 girls per house per grade: 10 x 4 x 7 = 280 students???) 
 - it is super badass that the Quidditch teams have mixed gender and the girls are allowed to play with the boys even at Elite level 
 - WHY DID DUMBLEDORE HIRE LOCKHART??? I mean come on I know the job's not that popular but Dumbledore could have taught it himself - I am just thinking about the poor 5th years who had to take their O.W.L.s that year or the 7th graders who were graduating and probably failing because of Lockhart 
 - The inter-house relationships are just sooo weak at Hogwarts and it makes me fucking sad - I mean Harry and Ron didn't even know where the Slythering common room was - I mean does nobody have friends who are from a different house - why can't Gryffindors chill in other common rooms as well? It makes no fucking sense 
 - Racism in HP and how Squibs and House Elves gets treated and are seen as inferior