Harry Potter

1st Edition 'Harry Potter' book with author's notes up for auction

Blake — Wed, 22 May 2013 12:41:40 +0000

A first edition copy of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" that contains author J.K. Rowling's notes and original illustrations is going on sale at a charity auction.

The personal annotations from the bestselling author included comments on the process of writing and a section from an early draft of the novel. They also included a note on how the bestselling author came to create the game of Quidditch.

Thousands Line Up For Rare Rowling Appearance

Blake — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 11:38:59 +0000

"They remind me of my childhood the way music reminds you of things when you were younger," she said. "The reason we cling to these books isn't because they were fun and we grew up with them; we cling to them because of deeper themes, because of friendship and because of loyalty and because of human connections."

New Harry Potter Book?

Blake — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 18:59:11 +0000

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling isn’t ruling out return to wizarding world
.K. Rowling plans to return to writing for young people — and the author says she doesn’t rule out another book set in Harry Potter’s magical world.

Rowling became the world’s most successful living writer with her seven novels about a boy who discovers that he is a wizard and is pitched into battle against the forces of evil.

Rowling’s first book for adults, “The Casual Vacancy,” is being published Thursday, five years after the release of the last volume in the Potter saga.

Amazon, B&N make concessions for Potter ebooks

Bibliofuture — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 13:48:04 +0000

Amazon.com Inc and Barnes & Noble Inc unveiled Harry Potter e-books on Tuesday in deals that suggest the companies made big concessions with author J.K. Rowling for electronic access to the hit series.

Amazon said it struck a distribution deal with J.K. Rowling's new website pottermore.com.

Amazon customers can search for the Harry Potter e-books in the company's Kindle Store, but will be directed to the Pottermore Shop to register and buy them, then add the titles to their Kindle library, the company said.

Full article

Commentary by publishing consultant Mike Shatzkin about Amazon not being able to sell Potter ebooks directly.

Harry Potter e-books coming soon to schools and libraries

Blake — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 18:15:46 +0000

Harry Potter e-books coming soon to schools and libraries
Harry Potter e-books are coming to schools and libraries, at a date to be determined. OverDrive Inc., a leading distributor for the school and library markets, announced Monday that it has reached an agreement with J.K. Rowling's Pottermore website to make downloads of the seven Potter books available for students and library patrons

Little, Brown to publish J K Rowling's first adult novel

Blake — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 15:12:43 +0000

Little, Brown to publish J K Rowling's first adult novel

Little, Brown is publish J K Rowling’s first novel for adults worldwide in the English language, both in print and e-books.

David Shelley, publisher, Little, Brown, will be Rowling’s editor and will be responsible for publication in the UK with Michael Pietsch, executive vice-president of Little, Brown and Company, responsible for publication in the US. The book will be published by Hachette in Australia and in New Zealand and by Hachette’s companies and normal appointed agents for the English language in other markets.

Pottermore.com J.K. Rowling has mysterious new Potter website

Blake — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 20:47:47 +0000

The site, www.Pottermore.com, is a new project for the "Harry Potter" author, spokeswoman Rebecca Salt said Thursday. The site is "not a new book" and "not directly related" to the final Potter movie, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2," which comes out next month, she said.
"We aren't saying any more than that!" Salt said.

J.K. Rowling may allow Harry Potter e-books

Blake — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 19:19:24 +0000

J.K. Rowling may allow Harry Potter e-books
For J.K. Rowling to allow the Harry Potter books to appear in electronic format would be "akin to the Beatles allowing their music to be launched on iTunes," says one observer.
Rowling, who declined e-book deals for years, hinted that she’s likely to release digital versions of her bestselling books soon, making Harry Potter and his world of wizardry available on iPads and Kindles.

Young Potter Fan Raises Money for Hull Library

birdie — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 15:43:51 +0000

HULL, MA - Calliope Pina Parker is a sixth-grader who reads as many as 10 books a week and favors Harry Potter. She dresses as Potter characters for Halloween, plays Potter trivia with friends, and regularly revisits the series - all seven books and 4,167 pages.

Calliope is also an avid user of libraries, borrowing from across the region and frequenting branches throughout the South Shore on her way to and from school, ballet, and karate practice. So it came as a particular blow when budget cuts in Hull not only sheared the local library’s funding and hours but also cost the town its state certification last month.

“Now people from Hull can’t go to any other library,’’ said Calliope, whose card is no longer welcome at many other certified libraries.

Wanting to do something about it, the 11-year-old organized an all-day reading of the J.K. Rowling book that started it all, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.’’ Yesterday’s readathon and bake sale, with wizardly cupcakes and “magic wand’’ frosted pretzel rods, raised awareness about the library’s circumstances and collected money for the nonprofit Friends of the Hull Public Library.

Harry Potter tops poll of books to pass on

Blake — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:34:24 +0000

Harry Potter tops poll of books to pass on
JK Rowling's Harry Potter series has topped a poll of books British people would most like to pass on to the next generation to read.

The survey, commissioned to mark World Book Day, asked which best-selling book of the past decade people would give to young people.

It's J.K. Rowling's Turn to Get Sued

birdie — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 15:44:16 +0000

J.K. Rowling has been named in a lawsuit alleging she stole ideas for her wildly popular and lucrative "Harry Potter" books from another British author reports The Huffington Post.

The estate of the late Adrian Jacobs on Wednesday added Rowling as a defendant in a lawsuit it filed in June against Bloomsbury Publishing PLC for alleged copyright infringement, according to a statement released by the estate's representatives, who are based in Australia.

The lawsuit, filed in a London court, claims Rowling's book "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" copied substantial parts of Jacobs' 1987 book, "The Adventures of Willy the Wizard – No. 1 Livid Land." Jacobs' estate also claims that many other ideas from "Willy the Wizard" were copied into the "Harry Potter" books. Jacobs died in London in 1997.

"Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" is the fourth book in Rowling's series and was published in July 2000.

Maryland boasts at least 3 Harry Potters

Blake — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 18:16:53 +0000

The Sun said Maryland contains or recently contained many residents who share names with characters from the Harry Potter novels, including at least three men sharing the titular wizard's name, 16 women named Hermione, 3 men named Sirius, 13 Snapes and 15 Narcissas.

"Each time another book or movie comes out, the phone rings off the hook for about two months," Potter said. "It does get tiring. I'm seriously thinking of changing my listing in the phone book to 'H. Potter.'"

Keeping Up With Teens at the New Potter Movie

birdie — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:58:10 +0000

Anastasia posts on Y Pulse Blog: "At 37, apart from the sprinkling of parents accompanying their teens, I think we may have been the oldest people in the theater. My husband seemed proud that he stayed awake while the pierced, teen guy sitting next to him crashed midway through the movie. I would say the average age of the audience was 16-17 — "Harry Potter teens" — who have, like the stars of the films, grown up reading the books and watching the movies.

In a way I was jealous of these teens for having such a beloved series of books and being able to experience them on so many platforms — the movies, online fan communities and next year, the amusement park. Even though I read fantasy as a teen (A Wrinkle In Time, The Hobbit), there was no well-oiled multi-media/multi-platform machine in place to create a universe on the scale of Harry Potter.

My husband mused about how dark the series gets and wondered about the 8 or 9 year olds who are just starting the books now and whether parents let them read the whole series or wait for the later books with darker themes or wait to watch the later films on DVD. I have a feeling my YA librarian readers have lots of opinions on this one, but what struck me most about the audience last night was that they had grown up with the character of Harry Potter — and could now relate to all of the 16-17 year-old awkwardness around teen romance that offers most of the comic relief in "Half Blood Prince."

Harry Potter Publisher Bloomsbury Denies Plagiarism Claim

birdie — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 20:14:29 +0000

The worm has turned for author J. K. Rowling. Now she's been accused of plagiarism.

"The allegations of plagiarism made today, Monday 15 June 2009, by the Estate of Adrian Jacobs are unfounded, unsubstantiated and untrue," said a statement from Bloomsbury, which publishes Harry Potter in Britain.

"This claim is without merit and will be defended vigorously."

In an earlier statement, Jacobs' estate said that it had issued proceedings at London's High Court against Bloomsbury Publishing Plc for copyright infringement.

"The Estate is also seeking a court order against J.K. Rowling herself for pre-action disclosure in order to determine whether to join her as a defendant to the ... action," the statement read.

It named the estate's trustee as Paul Allen, and said that Rowling had copied "substantial parts" of "The Adventures of Willy the Wizard -- No 1 Livid Land" written by Jacobs in 1987. Reuters (Canada) reports.

Potter book fetches $19,120 at auction

Blake — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 11:51:26 +0000

Potter book fetches $19,120 at auction: soft-cover copy of the first Harry Potter book sold for $19,120 in a rare books auction in Dallas, the auction company said Sunday.