Uncorrected proof copy of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second U.S. title in the Harry Potter series, published by Scholastic in early 1999. This Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) is a pre-publication issue distributed to booksellers, editors, and reviewers ahead of the official release.
Approximately 3,000 U.S. ARCs were produced across the first three books in the series, with no proof copies issued for the later titles. The present ARC notes an anticipated first print run of 250,000 copies of the second novel in the series, underscoring the scarcity of this ARC. By comparison, the U.S. first edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone had a first print run of 30,000 copies, making this pre-publication format considerably scarcer than the first US printings of these two books.
A very good copy with light wear to the upper front corner of the spine, minor creasing to the covers, lightly bumped corners and minimal shelf wear . The first few pages show a very faint crease, otherwise clean, free from inscriptions, markings, or damage. Notably, the copy is free from the commonly encountered reading creases of the spine.
A scarce example of the second American pre-publication edition in the Harry Potter series.
