"I am an extraordinarily lucky person, doing what I love best in
the world. I'm sure that I will always be a writer. It was wonderful enough just
to be published. The greatest reward is the enthusiasm of the
readers."
Harry Potter's magic has touched a huge
audience of all ages all over the world. In America, there are over 103 million
books in print, and each title has been #1 on The New York Times, USA
Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. The sixth title,
HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE, set a new world record for a first
printing, with 10.8 million copies hitting stores on July 16, 2005.
J. K.
Rowling has won the Hugo Award, the Bram Stoker Award, the Whitbread Award for
Best Children's Book, a special commendation for the Anne Spencer Lindbergh
Prize, and a special certificate for being a three-year winner of the Smarties
Prize, as well as many other honors. She has been a featured guest on "60
Minutes," "The Today Show," and "Larry King Live." Rowling has also been named
an Officer of the British Empire.
Rowling first thought of Harry while
riding a train back in 1990. "Harry just strolled into my head fully formed."
She worked on the book for several years, finding quiet moments while her
daughter napped. Several publishers turned down the finished manuscript before
one took interest.
In 1998, HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE was
published in the United States, kicking off Harry-mania. Suddenly, kids were
reading again, and their parents wanted to read the same books! The second and
third books were published in the spring and fall of 1999.
On July 8,
2000, the release of HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE became a major
celebration, with bookstore events occurring at midnight nationwide. The book
sold an unprecedented three million copies in the first 48 hours of release,
winning the title of "fastest-selling book in history" --- a title later claimed
by HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX when it was released on June 21,
2003.
Warner Bros. enjoys certain rights in respect to all the Harry
Potter books and has exercised its option to create films on all of those that
have been published to date. With over a quarter of a billion books sold, the
books have been translated into 61 languages and distributed in over 200
countries. All five books have appeared on bestseller lists in the United
States, Britain, and around the globe.
Joanne Rowling was born in
Chipping Sodbury near Bristol, England. After she graduated from Exeter
University, she found work as a secretary, and later spent time teaching English
in Portugal before moving to Edinburgh, Scotland, with her daughter. She
currently resides in Scotland with her husband and three children.
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