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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is the third book in the Harry Potter series of children's books by J. K. Rowling. The book was published in July 8, 1999. A film based on the book was released on May 31st, 2004, in the United Kingdom (released early due to popular demand) and June 4th in the United States and many other countries.

For twelve long years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black. Convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he was said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord, Voldemort.

Now he has escaped, leaving only two clues as to where he might be headed: Harry Potter's defeat of You-Know-Who was Black's downfall as well. And the Azkaban guards heard Black muttering in his sleep, "He's at Hogwarts... he's at Hogwarts."

Harry Potter isn't safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends. Because on top of it all, there may well be a traitor in their midst.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Harry's life at the Dursleys takes a horrible turn when his Aunt Marge comes to stay. Harry is well aware of the Hogwarts prohibition on students doing magic outside of school, but her cruel insults toward his parents so enrage him that he unintentionally and unconsciously "blows her up" (makes her expand in size) and she floats away on her own hot air.

Harry runs away from the Dursleys and is picked up by the Knight Bus; en route to London he learns that a criminal named Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban. Harry is found but—to his bewilderment—not punished by the Ministry of Magic for blowing up his aunt.

Harry soon learns why: Sirius Black is believed to be after him, and the Ministry of Magic seems more concerned about his safety. The school is now protected by the Dementors of Azkaban to prevent Black from getting onto the grounds. The mystery deepens as Harry discovers that Black has mysterious ties with his own parents and their death at the hands of Lord Voldemort.

The story takes an unexpected turn when Harry finds that Sirius Black was innocent and wrongly sent to Azkaban. The real criminal is Peter Pettigrew, who is believed dead at the hands of Sirius Black. It was Pettigrew who betrayed Harry's parents to Lord Voldemort, and later killed a number of Muggles in an incident for which he framed Sirius Black and faked his own death. Pettigrew is an animagus, a wizard who can take the form of a particular animal at will, and has really spent the last twelve years disguised as Ron's rat, Scabbers.

Pettigrew gets away and the Ministry refuses to believe Harry, Ron and Hermione's tale. Dumbledore does, and they sneak Sirius to freedom on the back of a hippogriff.

Rumors

One of the many rumours on the internet relating to points brought up in this book is the possibility of time travel recurring, on which J. K. Rowling has declined to comment

This theory is often mentioned together with an old speculation regarding a curious statement in earlier editions of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets which describes Voldemort as the last remaining ancestor of Salazar Slytherin, rather than descendant, thus implying a quite convoluted scenario of Voldemort having travelled back in time to give birth to his own lineage. This oddity has been corrected in almost all subsequent editions, however, and is probably just a misprint that slipped past the editors.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
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? Once again, Rowling has created a mystery that will have children and adults cheering, not to mention standing in line for her next book. Fortunately, there are four more in the works. (Ages 9 and older) --Karin Snelson

From Publishers Weekly
Rowling proves that she has plenty of tricks left up her sleeve in this third Harry Potter adventure, set once again at the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. Right before the start of term, a supremely dangerous criminal breaks out of a supposedly impregnable wizards' prison; it will come as no surprise to Potter fans that the villain, a henchman of Harry's old enemy Lord Voldemort, appears to have targeted Harry. In many ways this installment seems to serve a transitional role in the seven-volume series: while many of the adventures are breathlessly relayed, they appear to be laying groundwork for even more exciting adventures to come. The beauty here lies in the genius of Rowling's plotting. Seemingly minor details established in books one and two unfold to take on unforeseen significance, and the finale, while not airtight in its internal logic, is utterly thrilling. Rowling's wit never flags, whether constructing the workings of the wizard world (Just how would a magician be made to stay behind bars?) or tossing off quick jokes (a grandmother wears a hat decorated with a stuffed vulture; the divination classroom looks like a tawdry tea shop). The Potter spell is holding strong. All ages.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-8-Isn't it reassuring that some things just get better and better? Harry is back and in fine form in the third installment of his adventures at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His summer with the hideous Dursley family is cut short when, during a fit of quite understandable rage, he turns his Aunt Marge into an enormous balloon and then runs away. Soon, it becomes quite apparent that someone is trying to kill him; even after Harry is ensconed in the safety of fall term at Hogwarts, the attacks continue. Myriad subplots involving a new teacher with a secret, Hermione's strangely heavy class schedule, and enmity between Ron's old rat, Scabbers, and Hermione's new cat, Crookshanks, all mesh to create a stunning climax. The pace is nonstop, with thrilling games of Quidditch, terrifying Omens of Death, some skillful time travel, and lots of slimy Slytherins sneaking about causing trouble. This is a fabulously entertaining read that will have Harry Potter fans cheering for more.
Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The New York Times Book Review, Gregory Maguire
...the heartiest and best of children's literature.

From Kirkus Reviews
The Harry Potter epic (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) continues to gather speed as Harry enters his third year at the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry and does battle with the traitor behind his parents' deaths. Besides coping with the usual adversaries - sneering classmate Draco Malfoy, evocatively-named Potions Master Snape - the young wizard-in-training has a new worry with the escape of Sirius Black, murderous minion of archenemy Lord Voldemort, from the magicians' prison of Azkaban. Folding in subplots and vividly conceived magical creatures, Azkaban's guards, known as dementors, are the very last brutes readers would want to meet in a dark alley. With characteristic abandon, Rowling creates a busy backdrop for Harry as she pushes him through a series of terrifying encounters and hard-fought games of Quidditch, on the way to a properly pulse-pounding climax strewn with mistaken identities and revelations about his dead father. The main characters and the continuing story both come along so smartly (and Harry at last shows a glimmer of interest in the opposite sex, a sure sign that the tides of adolescence are lapping at his toes) that the book seems shorter than its page count: have readers clear their calendars if they are fans, or get out of the way if they are not. (Fiction. 10-13) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Book Description
Harry Potter has to sneak back to Hogwarts, after accidentally inflating his horrible Aunt Petunia. But once there everyone is whispering about a prizoner who has escaped from the famous wizard prizon, Azkaban. His name is Sirius Black, and as a follower of Lord Voldemort he is determined to track Harry Potter down -- even if it means laying siege to the very walls of Hogwarts!
--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Card catalog description
During his third year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter must confront the devious and dangerous wizard responsible for his parents' deaths.

From the Inside Flap
Running time: 11 hrs., 48 mins.

For twelve long years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black. Convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he was said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord, Voldemort.

Now he has escaped, leaving only two clues as to where he might be headed: Harry Potter's defeat of You-Know-Who was Black's downfall as well. And the Azkban guards heard Black muttering in his sleep, "He's at Hogwarts...he's at Hogwarts."

Harry Potter isn't safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends. Because on top of it all, there may well be a traitor in their midst.--This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

About the Author
J.K. Rowling was a struggling single mother when she wrote the beginning of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, on scraps of paper at a local cafe. But her efforts soon paid off, as she received an unprecedented award from the Scottish Arts Council enabling her to finish the book. Since then, the debut novel has become an international phenomenon, garnering rave reviews and major awards, including the British Book Awards Chidren's Book of the Year and the Smarties Prize. Ms. Rowling lives in Edinburgh with her daughter.

Performer Bio: The New York Times hailed Jim Dale as "The Toast of Broadway" in his title role in the musical Barnum. He has a long list of credits on the stage and in film and was nominated for an Oscar for writing the lyrics for Georgy Girl.--This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Product Details

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books (October 1, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN: 0439136350
Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds

In-Print Editions: Paperback | Library Binding | Hardcover (Large Print) | Audio Cassette (Unabridged) | Audio CD (Unabridged) | All Editions

This is the 3rd item in The Harry Potter Series.

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