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"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by the NumbersThe US publisher for the Harry Potter series, Scholastic, announced that more than 11.5 million copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh book in J. K. Rowling’s series, have been sold in the during its first ten days of release. The book, which sold more than 8.3 million copies during the first 24 hours of its release, also increased its total US print run to 14 million, up from the original 12 million copies Scholastic was slated to print prior to the publication. In the press release Scholastic said during the printing of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," 'the Company was able to print enough additional copies to be in position for re-supply following the launch. The additional copies brought the total number of the U.S. edition in print for the seventh book to 14 million.' As of this press release, "Deathly Hallows" holds eight places in the USA Today bestseller list and 'In the U.S. alone, there are currently 140 million copies of the seven Harry Potter books in print... To date, over 350 million copies of the seven books in the Harry Potter series have been sold worldwide.'On a related note, online retailer Amazon.com revealed the final numbers for pre-orders of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Worldwide, Amazon.com received more than 2.2 million pre-orders by midnight on July 20th surpassing the 1.5 million pre-orders the site took for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the previous record holder. A total of 1.4 million pre-orders came from the States, 1.3 million of which were delivered via Muggle post to readers across the country on July 21st.
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Stephen King on the Importance of J.K.RowlingIn a new and lengthy piece, author Stephen King has written a column for Entertainment Weekly, reflecting on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and in particular what J.K. Rowling has brought to children and reading. This article, which does contain spoilers for the final Harry Potter novel, first starts with a discussion of the spoilers and the early reviews which caused such a fury, with Mr. King noting:"The reviewers themselves were often great — Ms. Kakutani ain’t exactly chopped liver — but the very popularity of the books has often undone even the best intentions of the best critical writers. In their hurry to churn out column inches, and thus remain members of good standing in the Church of What’s Happening Now, very few of the Potter reviewers have said anything worth remembering." He then goes on to focus on how he feels part of the secret of the success of the novels should be attributed to both the growth and growing up of the characters, and the development of Jo as a writer herself. Mr. King writes at length on this subject as well as many others, finally concluding with Stephen King giving his thoughts on why writers like J.K. Rowling are important to children and reading. "I began by quoting Shakespeare; I’ll close with the Who: The kids are alright. Just how long they stay that way sort of depends on writers like J.K. Rowlinh, who know how to tell a good story (important) and do it without talking down (more important) or resorting to a lot of high-flown gibberish (vital). Because if the field is left to a bunch of intellectual Muggles who believe the traditional novel is dead, they’ll kill the damn thing. "It’s good make-believe I’m talking about. Known in more formal circles as the Ministry of Magic. J.K. Rowling has set the standard: It’s a high one, and God bless her for it." This issue of Entertainment Weekly is on newsstands now. More Big News...Follow Up: Teen Not to Face Criminal Charges in Illegal French "Deathly Hallows" Translation Case Emma Watson Confirms New Role in Movie for BBC One Teen Arrested for Posting Illegal French Translation of "Deathly Hallows" Online German "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" Cover Art Chosen "Order of the Phoenix" Box Office Totals Continue to Soar Emma Watson Updates Website, Gives Thoughts on "Deathly Hallows," OotP Premieres and More
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