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{{otheruses4|the fantasy series|the character|Harry Potter (character)|related topics|List of Harry Potter related topics|other uses|Harry Potter (disambiguation)}}


hi peolple this is a harry potter fan harry loves the simpsons! im also a fan of itzalwaysme on youtube im there biggest fan!!!! i love there vids. some people say there lame but there not. there awsome by the way harry is a model. oo yah!
{{Infobox Novel series
| name = Harry Potter
| books = ]<!-- "Harry Potter" originates from the UK, therefore, by ], we refer to books by their original UK titles; "Sorceror's Stone" ONLY applies to the US and not elsewhere in the English-speaking world, and Misplaced Pages is an English-language encyclopedia, not an American encyclopedia. So if you change this, you *will* be reverted --><br />]<br />]<br />]<br />]<br />]<br />]
| image =]
| image_caption =Complete set of the seven books<br /> of the "Harry Potter" series.
| author = ]
| country = {{flag|United Kingdom}}
| language = ]
| genre = ], ], ]
| publisher = ] (UK)<br />] (US) ] (CAN)
| pub_date = 30 June 1997 &ndash; 21 July 2007
| media_type = Print (] and ])<br />]
}}
'''''Harry Potter''''' is a ] ]s written by British author ]. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard ], together with ] and ], his friends from the ]. The central ] concerns Harry's struggle against the evil wizard ], who killed Harry's parents in his quest to conquer the ] and subjugate non-magical people (]) to his rule. Several successful ], video games and other themed merchandise have been based upon the series.

Since the 1997 release of the first novel '']'', which was retitled ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' in the United States, the books have gained immense popularity, critical acclaim and commercial success worldwide.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2996578.stm|title=Potter's place in the literary canon|publisher=]|last=Allsobrook |first=Dr. Marian|date=18 June 2003|accessdate=15 October 2007}}</ref> As of June 2008, the book series has sold more than 400 million copies and has been translated into 67 languages,<ref name="Translations for Harry Potter" /><ref name="boxofficemojo" /> and the last four books have consecutively set records as the fastest-selling books in history.

English-language versions of the books are published by ] in the United Kingdom, ] in the United States, ] in Australia, and ] in Canada. Thus far, the first six books have been made into ] by ], with the sixth, '']'', released on 15 July 2009.<ref name="date change">{{cite web|url=http://movies.tvguide.com/Movie-News/Harry-Potter-Changes-1005104.aspx|title=Coming Sooner: ''Harry Potter'' Changes Release Date|work=TVGuide.com|accessdate=15 April 2009}}</ref> The series also originated much tie-in merchandise, making the Harry Potter brand worth £15&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/movers_and_shakers/article3663197.ece|title=Business big shot: Harry Potter author JK Rowling|accessdate=14 July 2009}}</ref> The seventh book will be made into two movies released six months apart.

{{TOClimit|limit=3}}

==Plot==
{{see|Harry Potter universe}}
The novels revolve around ], an orphan who discovers that he is a wizard at the age of eleven.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2000/books/reviews/07/14/review.potter.goblet/|title=Review: Gladly drinking from Rowling's 'Goblet of Fire'|date=14 July 2000|publisher=CNN|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> Wizard ability is inborn, but children are sent to wizarding school to learn the magical skills necessary to succeed in the ].<ref name="muggle guide" /> Harry is invited to attend the boarding school called ]. Each book chronicles one year in Harry's life, and most of the events take place at Hogwarts.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.newsobserver.com/308/story/639602.html|title=Harry Potter, Hogwarts and Home|last=Frauenfelder|first=David|date=17 July 2007|publisher=The News & Observer Publishing Company |accessdate=29 September 2008}}</ref> As he struggles through adolescence, Harry learns to overcome many magical, social and emotional hurdles.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.southflorida.com/movies/sfe-potter-synopses,0,6711375.story|title=Plot summaries for the first five Potter books|last=Hajela|first=Deepti|date=14 July 2005|publisher=SouthFlorida.com|accessdate=29 September 2008}}</ref>

===Wizarding world===
Flashbacks throughout the series reveal that when Harry was a baby he witnessed his parents' murder by ] who was a dark wizard obsessed with ].<ref name="hp-stories">{{cite news|url=http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2007-07-19-potter-books_N.htm|title=The Harry Potter stories so far: A quick CliffsNotes review|publisher=''USA Today'' |accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> For reasons not immediately revealed, Voldemort's attempt to kill Harry rebounds.<ref name="hp-stories" /> Voldemort is seemingly killed and Harry survives with only a lightning-shaped mark on his forehead as a memento of the attack.<ref name="hp-stories" /> As its inadvertent saviour from Voldemort's reign of terror, Harry becomes a living legend in the wizard world. However, at the orders of his patron, the wizard ], the orphaned Harry is placed in the home of his unpleasant ] (non-wizard) relatives, who keep him safe but completely ignorant of his true heritage.<ref name="hp-stories" />

The first novel in the series, '']'', begins near Harry's 11th birthday. Half-] ] reveals Harry's history and introduces him to the ].<ref name="hp-stories" /> The world J. K. Rowling created is both completely separate from and yet intimately connected to the real world. While the ] of ] is an ] and the '']''’ ] a mythic past, the Wizarding world of ''Harry Potter'' exists alongside that of the real world and contains magical elements similar to things in the non-magical world. Many of its institutions and locations are in places that are recognizable in the real world, such as London.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2007/07/15/svharry15.xml&page=3|title=Harry Potter and the parallel universe|publisher=Telegraph.com|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> It comprises a fragmented collection of hidden streets, overlooked and ancient pubs, lonely country manors and secluded castles that remain invisible to the non-magical population of ]s.<ref name="muggle guide">{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/820551.stm|publisher=BBC|title=A Muggle's guide to Harry Potter|date=28 May 2004|accessdate=22 August 2008}}</ref>

With Hagrid's help, Harry prepares for and undertakes his first year of study at Hogwarts. As Harry begins to explore the magical world, the reader is introduced to many of the primary locations used throughout the series. Harry meets most of the main characters and gains his two closest friends: ], a fun-loving member of an ancient, large, happy, but hard-up wizarding family, and ], an obsessively bookish witch of non-magical parentage.<ref name="hp-stories"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=80|title=J K Rowling at the Edinburgh Book Festival|date=15 August 2004|publisher=J.K. Rowling.com|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> Harry also encounters the school's potions master, ], who displays a deep and abiding dislike for him. The plot concludes with Harry's second confrontation with Lord Voldemort, who in his quest for immortality, yearns to gain the power of the ].<ref name="hp-stories" />

The series continues with '']'' describing Harry's second year at Hogwarts. He and his friends investigate a 50-year-old mystery that appears tied to recent sinister events at the school. The novel delves into the history of Hogwarts and a legend revolving around the "Chamber of Secrets", the underground lair of an ancient evil. For the first time, Harry realizes that racial prejudice exists in the wizarding world, and he learns that Voldemort's reign of terror was often directed at wizards who were descended from Muggles. Harry is also shocked to learn that he can speak ], the language of snakes; this rare ability is often equated with the ]. The novel ends after Harry saves the life of Ron's younger sister, ], by destroying the diary in which Voldemort saved a piece of his soul (although Harry does not realize this until later in the series). The concept of storing part of one's soul inside of an object in order to prevent death is officially introduced in the sixth novel under the term ].<ref name="hp-stories"/>

The third novel, '']'', follows Harry in his third year of magical education. It is the only book in the series which does not feature Voldemort. Instead, Harry must deal with the knowledge that he has been targeted by ], an escaped murderer believed to have assisted in the deaths of Harry's parents. As Harry struggles with his reaction to the ]—dark creatures with the power to devour a human soul—which are ostensibly protecting the school, he reaches out to ], a ] teacher with a dark secret. Lupin teaches Harry defensive measures which are well above the level of magic generally shown by people his age. Harry learns that both Lupin and Black were close friends of his father and that Black was framed by their fourth friend, ].<ref name="hp-plot-azkaban">{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/1999/09/05/books/rowling-azkaban.html?ex=1222747200&en=c3365ba3baa3bf40&ei=5070|title=Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban|last=Maguire|first=Gregory|date=5 September 1999|publisher=''The New York Times''|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref>

===Voldemort returns===
During Harry's fourth year of school, detailed in '']'', Harry unwillingly participates in the ], a dangerous magical contest with the young foreign witches and wizards of visiting schools.<ref name="hp-plot-goblet">{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/23/books/rowling-goblet.html?ex=1222747200&en=6a7b0d89257dcebb&ei=5070|title=Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire|last=King|first=Stephen|date=23 July 2000|publisher=''The New York Times''|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> Harry attempts to discover who has forced him to compete in the tournament, and why.<ref name="hp-plot-goblet2">{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/23/books/rowling-goblet.html?pagewanted=2&ei=5070&en=6a7b0d89257dcebb&ex=1222747200|title=Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 2|last=King|first=Stephen|date=23 July 2000|publisher=''The New York Times''|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> An anxious Harry is guided through the tournament by Professor Alastor Moody, who is the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. The point at which the mystery is unravelled marks the series' shift from foreboding and uncertainty into open conflict as the children are growing up. The novel ends with the resurgence of Voldemort and the death of a student (Cedric Diggory)

In the fifth book, '']'', Harry must confront the newly resurfaced Voldemort. In response to Voldemort's reappearance, Dumbledore re-activates the ], a secret society which works from Sirius Black's dark family home to defeat Voldemort's minions and protect Voldemort's targets, including Harry. The Order includes many of the adults Harry trusts, including Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, and members of the ], but also some surprising members. Good and the dark characters are not so obvious. Despite Harry's description of Voldemort's recent activities, the ] and many others in the magical world refuse to believe that Voldemort has returned.<ref name="hp-phoenix-plot">{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/13/books/review/rowling-phoenix.html?ex=1222747200&en=c19fb010046d89c7&ei=5070|title=Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix’ |date=13 July 2003|publisher=''The New York Times''|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref>

In an attempt to counter and eventually discredit Dumbledore, who along with Harry is the most prominent voice in the Wizarding World attempting to warn of the Dark Lord's return, the Ministry appoints ] as the High Inquisitor of Hogwarts. She transforms the school by a dictatorial regime and refuses to allow the students to learn ways to defend themselves against dark magic.<ref name="hp-phoenix-plot" /> Harry forms a secret study group to teach his classmates the higher-level skills of Defense Against the Dark Arts that he has learned. The novel introduces Harry to ], an airy young witch with a tendency to believe in oddball ]. An important prophecy concerning Harry and Voldemort is revealed,<ref name="Ivory Tower 1">{{cite book|last=A. Whited|first=Lana.|title=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon|publisher=University of Missouri Press|year=2004|isbn=9780826215499|page=371}}</ref> and Harry discovers that he and Voldemort have a painful connection, allowing Harry to view some of Voldemort's actions telepathically. In the novel's climax, Harry and his school friends face off against Voldemort's ], who include the rich and arrogant Malfoy family. The timely arrival of members of the Order of the Phoenix saves the children's lives and allows many of the Death Eaters to be captured and imprisoned.<ref name="hp-phoenix-plot" />
In their sixth year, in '']'', the protagonists have passed their OWL-levels and start on their specialist NEWT courses. Voldemort is leading another wizarding war, which has become so violent that even Muggles have noticed some of its effects. Although Harry and friends are relatively protected from that danger at Hogwarts, they are subject to all the difficulties of adolescence. At the beginning of the novel, he stumbles upon an old potions textbook filled with annotations and recommendations signed by a mysterious writer, the Half-Blood Prince.<ref name="harry-potter-prince">{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/16/books/16choc.html?pagewanted=all|title=Harry Potter Works His Magic Again in a Far Darker Tale |last=Kakutani|first=Michiko|date= 16 July 2005|publisher=''The New York Times''|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> While the shortcuts written in the book help Harry to excel at potions, he eventually learns to mistrust the anonymous writer's spells.
Harry also takes private tutoring with Albus Dumbledore, who shows him various memories concerning the early life of Voldemort. These reveal that Voldemort's soul is splintered into a series of ]es, evil enchanted items hidden in various locations.<ref name="harry-potter-prince" /> Harry's snobbish adversary, Draco Malfoy, attempts to attack Dumbledore, and the book culminates in the killing of Dumbledore by Professor Snape.

'']'', the last book in the series, begins directly after the events of the sixth book. Voldemort has completed his ascension to power and gains control of the Ministry of Magic. Harry, Ron, and Hermione drop out of school so that they can find and destroy Voldemort's remaining horcruxes. To ensure their own safety as well as that of their family and friends, they are forced to isolate themselves. As they search for the horcruxes, the trio learn details about Dumbledore's past, as well as Snape's true motives.

The book culminates in the Battle of Hogwarts. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, in conjunction with members of the Order of the Phoenix and many of the teachers and students, defend Hogwarts from Voldemort, his Death Eaters, and various ]. Several major characters are killed in the first wave of the battle and Voldemort resumes his intention to kill Harry. In an effort to save the survivors, Harry surrenders himself but the battle resumes as the parents of many Hogwarts students, residents of the nearby village ] and other magical creatures arrive to reinforce the Order of the Phoenix. With the last horcrux destroyed, Harry finally faces Voldemort. Harry offers the Dark Lord a chance at remorse, but Voldemort ignores this and attempts to kill Harry one final time; resulting in Voldemort's death by his own hand. An epilogue describes the lives of the surviving characters and the effects on the wizarding world.

===Supplementary works===
{{seealso|J. K. Rowling#Philanthropy|l1=J. K. Rowling: Philanthropy}}

Rowling has expanded the ''Harry Potter universe'' with several short books produced for various charities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6903111.stm|title=How Rowling conjured up millions|publisher=BBC|accessdate=7 September 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alibris.com/search/books/qwork/1198169/used/Comic%20Relief%20:%20Quidditch%20through%20the%20ages|title=Comic Relief : Quidditch through the ages|publisher=Albris|accessdate=7 September 2008}}</ref> In 2001, she released '']'' (a purported Hogwarts textbook) and '']'' (a book Harry read for fun). Proceeds from the sale of these two books benefitted the charity ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comicrelief.com/stuff-to-buy/harrys-books/the-money/|title=The Money|publisher=Comic Relief|accessdate=25 October 2007}}</ref> In 2007, Rowling composed seven handwritten copies of '']'', a collection of fairy tales that is featured in the final novel, one of which was auctioned to raise money for the Children's High Level Group, a fund for mentally disabled children in poor countries. The book was published internationally on 4 December 2008.<ref>{{cite web|title=
JK Rowling Fairy Tales To Go On Sale For Charity|work=ANI|year=2008|url=http://living.oneindia.in/insync/2008/harry-potter-jk-rowling-charity-020808.html
|accessdate=2 August 2008}}</ref><ref name="fetches">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7142656.stm|title=JK Rowling book fetches £2&nbsp;m|date= 13 December 2007|publisher=BBC|accessdate=13 December 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html?docId=1000137983|title=Amazon purchase book|publisher=Amazon.com Inc|accessdate=14 December 2007}}</ref> Rowling also wrote an 800-word ] in 2008 as part of a fundraiser organised by the bookseller ].<ref>{{cite web|title=Rowling pens Potter prequel for charities|author=Williams, Rachel |year=2008|publisher='']''|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/may/29/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling|}} Retrieved on 31 May 2008.</ref>

==Structure and genre==
{{seealso|Harry Potter influences and analogues}}

The ''Harry Potter'' novels fall within the genre of ]; however, in many respects they are also ]s, or ] novels.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0OON/is_1_24/ai_107896944|title=Wizards and wainscots: generic structures and genre themes in the Harry Potter series|last=Anne Le Lievre|first=Kerrie|year=2003|publisher=CNET Networks, Inc., a CBS Company|accessdate=1 September 2008}}</ref> They can be considered part of the British children's ] genre, which includes ]'s '']'', '']'' and the '']'' series, and ] '']'' novels.<ref name="Harry Potter Boarding">{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/563232.stm|title=Harry Potter makes boarding fashionable |year=1999|publisher=BBC|accessdate=1 September 2008}}</ref> The ''Harry Potter'' books are predominantly set in ], a fictional British boarding school for wizards, where the curriculum includes the use of ].<ref name="Harry Potter Boarding" /> In this sense they are "in a direct line of descent from ]'s '']'' and other Victorian and Edwardian novels of ] life".<ref>{{cite book|last=Ellen Jones|first=Leslie|title=J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=2003|accessdate=9 September 2005|isbn=978-0313323409|page=16}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=A. Whited|first=Lana.|title=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon|publisher=University of Missouri Press|year=2004|isbn=9780826215499|page=28}}</ref> They are also, in the words of ], "shrewd mystery tales",<ref name="Wild About Harry">{{cite news|publisher=''The New York Times''|title=Wild About Harry|date= 23 July 2000}}</ref> and each book is constructed in the manner of a ]-style ] adventure. The stories are told from a ] point of view with very few exceptions (such as the opening chapters of '']'' and '']'' and the first two chapters of '']'').

In the middle of each book, Harry struggles with the problems he encounters, and dealing with them often involves the need to violate some school rules—the penalties, in case of being caught out, being disciplinary punishments set out in the Hogwarts regulations (in which the ''Harry Potter'' books follow many precedents in the boarding school ]).<ref name="Harry Potter Boarding" /> However, the stories reach their climax in the ], near or just after ], when events escalate far beyond in-school squabbles and struggles, and Harry must confront either ] or one of his followers, the ], with the stakes a matter of life and death–a point underlined, as the series progresses, by one or more characters being killed in each of the final four books.<ref name="Harry Potter Last Adventure" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2006/06/26/rowling-potter-deaths.html|title=Two characters to die in last 'Harry Potter' book: J.K. Rowling|year=2006|publisher=CBC|accessdate=1 September 2008}}</ref> In the aftermath, he learns important lessons through exposition and discussions with ] and ] ].

In the final novel, '']'', Harry and his friends spend most of their time away from Hogwarts, and only return there to face Voldemort at the ].<ref name="Harry Potter Last Adventure">{{cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1637886_1637891,00.html|title=Harry Potter's Last Adventure|last=Grossman|first=Lev|publisher=Time Inc|accessdate=1 September 2008}}</ref> Completing the bildungsroman format, in this part Harry must grow up prematurely, losing the chance of a last year as a pupil in a school and needing to act as an adult, on whose decisions everybody else depends—the grown-ups included.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6910106.stm|title=Press views: The Deathly Hallows |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|accessdate=22 August 2008}}</ref>

==Themes==
According to Rowling, a major theme in the series is ]: "My books are largely about death. They open with the death of Harry's parents. There is Voldemort's obsession with conquering death and his quest for ] at any price, the goal of anyone with magic. I so understand why Voldemort wants to conquer death. We're all frightened of it."<ref>{{cite web|author=Geordie Greig|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/01/10/nrowl110.xml|title='There would be so much to tell her...'|publisher=]|accessdate = 4 April 2007|date=11 January 2006}}</ref>

Academics and journalists have many other interpretations of themes in the books, some more complex than others, and some including ]. Themes such as ], oppression, survival, and overcoming imposing odds have all been considered as prevalent throughout the series.<ref name="Greenwald2005">{{cite journal|last=Greenwald|first=Janey|title=Understanding Harry Potter: Parallels to the Deaf World|journal=The Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education|volume=10|issue=4|pages=442–450|year=2005|doi=10.1093/deafed/eni041|pmid=16000691|month=Fall|last2=Greenwald|first2=J|issn=1081-4159|url=http://jdsde.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=16000691|format=Free full text}}</ref> Similarly, the theme of making one's way through adolescence and "going over one's most harrowing ordeals—and thus coming to terms with them" has also been considered.<ref name="Duffy2002">{{cite journal|last=Duffy|first=Edward|title=Sentences in Harry Potter, Students in Future Writing Classes|journal=Rhetoric Review|volume=21|issue=2|year=2002|pages=177|doi=10.1207/S15327981RR2102_03}}</ref> Rowling has stated that the books comprise "a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to ]" and that also pass on a message to "question authority and... not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2007/10/20/j-k-rowling-at-carnegie-hall-reveals-dumbledore-is-gay-neville-marries-hannah-abbott-and-scores-more|title=J. K. Rowling at Carnegie Hall|work=The Leaky Cauldron|publisher= The Leaky Cauldron|accessdate=21 October 2007|year=2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7053982.stm|title=JK Rowling outs Dumbledore as gay|accessdate=21 October 2007|date=21 October 2007|work=BBC News|publisher=]}}</ref>

While the books could be said to comprise many other themes, such as power/abuse of power, ], ], and free choice, they are, as J.K. Rowling states, "deeply entrenched in the whole plot"; the writer prefers to let themes "grow organically", rather than sitting down and consciously attempting to impart such ideas to her readers.<ref name="Mzimba, Lizo, moderator. Interview with ] and J.K. Rowling">{{cite news|url=http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/2003/0302-newsround-mzimba.htm|publisher= Quick Quotes Quill|title=Mzimba, Lizo, moderator. Interview with Steve Kloves and J.K. Rowling|date=February, 2003|accessdate=28 July 2008}}</ref> Along the same lines is the ever-present theme of adolescence, in whose depiction Rowling has been purposeful in acknowledging her characters' sexualities and not leaving Harry, as she put it, "stuck in a state of permanent pre-pubescence".<ref name="Favourite chapter">{{cite news
|url=http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/1999/0299-guardian-carey.htm|publisher=Quick-Quote-Quill |title=About the Books: transcript of J.K. Rowling's live interview on Scholastic.com|date=16 February 1999|accessdate=28 July 2008}}</ref> Rowling said that, to her, the moral significance of the tales seems "blindingly obvious." The key for her was the choice between what is right and what is easy, "because that ... is how ] is started, with people being ] and taking the easy route and suddenly finding themselves in deep trouble."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2000/1000-vancouversun-wyman.htm|first=Wyman|last=Max|title="You can lead a fool to a book but you cannot make them think": Author has frank words for the religious right|publisher=The Vancouver Sun (British Columbia)|date=26 October 2000 |accessdate=28 July 2008}}</ref>

==Origins and publishing history==
In 1990, J. K. Rowling was on a crowded train from ] to London when the idea for Harry suddenly "fell into her head". Rowling gives an account of the experience on her website saying:<ref name="Harry falls into author's head">{{cite web|publisher=JKRowling.com|url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/biography.cfm|title=Biography|first= J. K.|last=Rowling|accessdate=21 May 2006|year=2006}}</ref>

{{quote|"I had been writing almost continuously since the age of six but I had never been so excited about an idea before. I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who did not know he was a wizard became more and more real to me."}}

Rowling completed ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' in 1995 and the ] was sent off to several prospective ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eitb24.com/new/en/B24_57676/entertainment/FACTBOX-Final-Harry-Potter-book-set-for-release/|title=Final Harry Potter book set for release|date=15 July 2007|publisher=]|accessdate=21 August 2008}}</ref> The second agent she tried, Christopher Little, offered to represent her and sent the manuscript to Bloomsbury. After eight other publishers had rejected ''Philosopher's Stone'', Bloomsbury offered Rowling a £2,500 advance for its publication.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc.| url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_22/b3935414.htm| title=Nigel Newton | first=John| last=Lawless| accessdate = 9 September 2006|year=2005}}</ref><ref name= "Ivory Tower 2">{{cite book|last=A. Whited|first=Lana.|title=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a Literary Phenomenon|publisher=University of Missouri Press|year=2004|isbn=9780826215499|page=351|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=iO5pApw2JycC&pg=PA351}}</ref> Despite Rowling's statement that she did not have any particular ] in mind when beginning to write the ''Harry Potter'' books, the publishers initially targeted children aged nine to eleven.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.newsobserver.com/308/story/637623.html|title=The magic years|last=Huler|first=Scott|publisher=The News & Observer Publishing Company|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> On the eve of publishing, Rowling was asked by her publishers to adopt a more ] ] in order to appeal to the male members of this age group, fearing that they would not be interested in reading a novel they knew to be written by a woman. She elected to use J. K. Rowling (Joanne Kathleen Rowling), using her grandmother's name as her second name because she has no ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1349288/Harry-Potter-and-the-mystery-of-J-Ks-lost-initial.html|title=Harry Potter and the mystery of J K's lost initial|last=Savill|first=Richard|date=21 June 2001|publisher=Telegraph.com|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref><ref name="Ivory Tower 2" />

''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' was published by ], the publisher of all ''Harry Potter'' books in the United Kingdom, on 30 June 1997.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/820885.stm|title=The Potter phenomenon|date= 18 February 2003|publisher=BBC|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> It was released in the United States on 1 September, 1998 by ]—the American publisher of the books—as ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'',<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/07022007/news/nationalnews/wild_about_harry_nationalnews_.htm|title=Wild about Harry|publisher=NYP Holdings, Inc.|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> after Rowling had received ]105,000 for the American rights—an unprecedented amount for a children's book by a then-unknown author.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/21/business/web21interview.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1|title=A Brief Walk Through Time at Scholastic|last=Rozhon|first=Tracie|publisher=''The New York Times''|date=21 April 2007|accessdate = 21 April 2007|page=C3}}</ref> Fearing that American readers would not associate the word "philosopher" with a magical theme (although the ] is alchemy-related), Scholastic insisted that the book be given the title ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' for the American market.

The second book, ''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' was originally published in the UK on 2 July 1998 and in the US on 2 June, 1999.<ref name="Harry Potter UK Release Dates">{{cite news|url=http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/235354|title=A Potter timeline for muggles|date=14 July 2007|publisher='']''|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref><ref name="Harry Potter US&nbsp;— Scholastic">{{cite web|url=http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/books/author/index.htm|title=Harry Potter: Meet J.K. Rowling|publisher=Scholastic Inc|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' was then published a year later in the UK on 8 July 1999 and in the US on 8 September 1999.<ref name="Harry Potter UK Release Dates" /><ref name="Harry Potter US&nbsp;— Scholastic" /> ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' was published on 8 July 2000 at the same time by ] and ].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2000/jul/19/jkjoannekathleenrowling|title=Speed-reading after lights out|date=19 July 2000|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' is the longest book in the series at 766 pages in the UK version and 870 pages in the US version.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C03EFDC163CF937A25754C0A9659C8B63|title=Harry Potter and the Internet Pirates|publisher=''The New York Times''|accessdate=21 August 2008}}</ref> It was published worldwide in English on 21 June 2003.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2003/jan/16/harrypotter.books|title=Harry Potter and the hottest day of summer|last=Cassy|first=John|date=16 January 2003|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' was published on 16 July 2005, and it sold 9 million copies in the first 24 hours of its worldwide release.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4113663.stm|title=July date for Harry Potter book |date=21 December 2004|publisher=BBC|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6912529.stm|title=Harry Potter finale sales hit 11&nbsp;m |publisher=BBC News|accessdate=21 August 2008}}</ref> The seventh and final novel, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', was published 21 July 2007.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6320733.stm|title=Rowling unveils last Potter date |date=1 February 2007|publisher=BBC|accessdate=27 September 2008}}</ref> The book sold 11 million copies in the first 24 hours of release, breaking down to 2.7 million copies in the UK and 8.3 million in the US.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6912529.stm|title=Harry Potter finale sales hit 11&nbsp;m |date=23 July 2007|publisher=BBC|accessdate=20 August 2008}}</ref>

===Translations===
{{main|Harry Potter in translation}}
The series has been translated into 67 languages,<ref name="Translations for Harry Potter">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7649962.stm|title=Rowling 'makes £5 every second' |date=3 October 2008|publisher=]|accessdate=17 October 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/jun/18/harrypotter.artsandentertainment|title=Harry Potter breaks 400m in sales|date=18 June 2008|publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited|accessdate=17 October 2008}}</ref> placing Rowling among the most translated authors in history.<ref>{{cite web|title=Guinness World Records: L. Ron Hubbard Is the Most Translated Author|author=KMaul|url=http://www.kirkusreviews.com/kirkusreviews/tbs_landing.jsp|publisher=The Book Standard|year=2005|accessdate=19 July 2007}}</ref> The first translation was into ], as many words and concepts used by the characters in the novels may have been misleading to a young American audience.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uta.fi/FAST/US1/REF/potter.html|title=Differences in the UK and US Versions of Four Harry Potter Books |date=21 January 2008|publisher=FAST US-1|accessdate=17 August 2008}}</ref> Subsequently, the books have seen translations to diverse languages such as ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. The first volume has been translated into ] and even ],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~loxias/harry_potter.htm|title=Harry Potter in Greek|last=Wilson |first=Andrew|year=2006|publisher=Andrew Wilson |accessdate=28 July 2008}}</ref> making it the longest published work in Ancient Greek since the novels of ] in the 3rd century AD.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://playalicious.com/reference/news/greek_harry.html|title=Harry Potter? It's All Greek to Me|last=Castle|first=Tim|date=2 December 2004|publisher=Reuters|accessdate=28 July 2008}}</ref>

Some of the translators hired to work on the books were quite well-known before their work on ''Harry Potter'', such as ], who oversaw the Russian translation of the series' fifth book. The ] translation of books two to seven was undertaken by ], a popular literary critic and cultural commentator.<ref>{{cite web|title=Not lost in translation: Harry Potter in Turkish |last=Güler |first=Emrah |url=http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=29054|year=2005|publisher=''The Turkish Daily News''|accessdate = 9 May 2007}}</ref> For reasons of secrecy, translation can only start when the books are released in English; thus there is a lag of several months before the translations are available. This has led to more and more copies of the English editions being sold to impatient fans in non-English speaking countries. Such was the clamour to read the fifth book that its English language edition became the first English-language book ever to top the bestseller list in France.<ref>{{cite news|author=Staff Writer|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/world/newsid_3036000/3036350.stm|publisher=BBC|title=OOTP is best seller in France&nbsp;— in English!|date=1 July 2003|accessdate=28 July 2008}}</ref>

===Completion of the series===
In December 2005, Rowling stated on her web site, "2006 will be the year when I write the final book in the ''Harry Potter'' series."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/12/27/showbuzz/index.html?iref=newssearch|title=Rowling gearing up for final 'Potter'|date=27 December 2005|publisher=CNN|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> Updates then followed in her ] chronicling the progress of '']'', with the release date of 21 July 2007. The book itself was finished on 11 January 2007 in the ], ], where she scrawled a message on the back of a bust of ]. It read: "J. K. Rowling finished writing ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' in this room (652) on 11 January 2007."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/6324289.stm|title=Potter author signs off in style|publisher=BBC|date=2 February 2007}}</ref>

Rowling herself has stated that the last chapter of the final book (in fact, the epilogue) was completed "in something like 1990".<ref name="last chapter">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/5119836.stm|title="Rowling to kill two in final book"|publisher=BBC|date=27 June 2006|accessdate=25 July 2007}}</ref><ref name="last chapter means epilogue">{{cite news|url=http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2001/1201-bbc-hpandme.htm|title="Harry Potter and Me"|date=28 December 2001|accessdate=12 September 2007|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> In June 2006, Rowling, on an appearance on the British ] '']'', announced that the chapter had been modified as one character "got a reprieve" and two others who previously survived the story had in fact been killed. On 28 March 2007, the cover art for the Bloomsbury Adult and Child versions and the Scholastic version were released.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bloomsbury.com/harrypotter/default.aspx?sec=2&sec2=1&sec3=7|title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at Bloomsbury Publishing|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/books/covers/art7.htm|title=Cover Art: Harry Potter 7|publisher=Scholastic|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref>

==Achievements==
===Cultural impact===
{{details|Harry Potter fandom}}
] in Newark, ] for the midnight release of '']'']]

Fans of the series were so eager for the latest series release that bookstores around the world began holding events to coincide with the midnight release of the books, beginning with the 2000 publication of ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. The events, commonly featuring mock sorting, games, ], and other ] have achieved popularity with Potter fans and have been highly successful in attracting fans and selling books with nearly nine million of the 10.8 million initial print copies of ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' sold in the first 24 hours.<ref name="Harry Potter casts spell at checkouts">{{cite news
|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article545338.ece|publisher=Times Online|title=Harry Potter casts spell at checkouts|date=18 July 2005|accessdate=29 July 2008|last=Freeman|first=Simon}}</ref><ref name="Potter book smashes sales records">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/4692093.stm|publisher=BBC
|title=Potter book smashes sales records|date=18 July 2005|accessdate=29 July 2008}}</ref> The series has also gathered adult fans, leading to the release of two editions of each ''Harry Potter'' book, identical in text but with one edition's cover artwork aimed at children and the other aimed at adults.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bloomsbury.com/harrypotter/default.aspx?sec=2|title=Harry Potter at Bloomsbury Publishing&nbsp;— Adult and Children Covers|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|accessdate=18 August 2008}}</ref> Besides meeting online through blogs, ]s, and fansites, ''Harry Potter'' super-fans can also meet at ''Harry Potter'' ]. The word ''Muggle'' has spread beyond its ''Harry Potter'' origins, used by many groups to indicate those who are not aware or are lacking in some skill. In 2003, ''Muggle'', entered the ] with that definition.<ref>{{cite web|title='Muggle' Redux in the Oxford English Dictionary|author= McCaffrey, Meg|url=http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA294413.html|date=1 May 2003|accessdate = 1 May 2007|publisher=School Library Journal}}</ref> The Harry Potter fandom has embraced podcasts as a regular, often weekly, insight to the latest discussion in the fandom. Both ] and ]<ref name=apple-enews>{{cite news|url=https://www.apple.com/enews/2005/09/08enews1.html|title=Book corner: Secrets of Podcasting|date=8 September 2005|accessdate=31 January 2007|publisher=]}}</ref> have reached the top spot of ] podcast rankings and have been polled one of the top 50 favourite podcasts.<ref name=pr-newswire-mc>{{cite news|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/11-08-2005/0004210790&EDATE=|title=Mugglenet.com Taps Limelight's Magic for Podcast Delivery of Harry Potter Content|date=8 November 2005|accessdate=31 January 2007|publisher=PR Newswire}}</ref>

After the success of the films and books, in Fall 2009 Universal announced it would create "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey" will be a high-tech ride at the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter." The Wizarding World of Harry Potter would be a new theme park area opening in spring 2010 at Universal Orlando Resort.<ref name=hppark>By Travis Reed, Associated Press "." September 15, 2009.</ref>

===Awards and honours===
The ''Harry Potter'' series have been the recipients of a host of awards since the initial publication of ''Philosopher's Stone'' including four Whitaker Platinum Book Awards (all of which were awarded in 2001),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/1556674.stm|title=Book honour for Harry Potter author|date=21 September 2001|publisher=BBC|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> three ]s (1997–1999),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7626896.stm|title=JK Rowling: From rags to riches|date=20 September 2008|publisher=BBC|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> two ] (1999 and 2001),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1360641.stm|title=Book 'Oscar' for Potter author|date=30 May 2001|publisher=BBC|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> the inaugural ] (1999),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/books/news/9907/16/harry/index.html|title=Harry Potter casts a spell on the world|date=18 July 1999|publisher=CNN|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> the ] (2006),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/books/author/index.htm|title=Meet J.K. Rowling|publisher=Scholastic|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> among others. In 2000, '']'' was nominated for Best Novel in the ] while in 2001, '']'' won said award.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25801212/|title=Moviegoers get wound up over ‘Watchmen’|date= 22 July 2008|publisher=MSNBC|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> Honours include a commendation for the ] (1997),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/823533.stm|title=Harry Potter beaten to top award|date= 7 July 2000|publisher=BBC|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> a short listing for the ] (1998), and numerous listings on the notable books, editors' Choices, and best books lists of the ], '']'', ], and '']''.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Arthur A. Levine Books|url=http://www.arthuralevinebooks.com/awards.asp|title=Awards|first=Arthur|last=Levine|accessdate=21 May 2006|date=2001–2005}}</ref>

===Commercial success===
{{seealso|List of best-selling books}}

The popularity of the ''Harry Potter'' series has translated into substantial financial success for Rowling, her publishers, and other ''Harry Potter'' related license holders. This success has made Rowling the first and thus far only ] author.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.forbes.com/2004/02/26/cx_jw_0226rowlingbill04.html|title=J. K. Rowling And The Billion-Dollar Empire|last=Watson|first=Julie|date=26 February 2004|publisher=Forbes|accessdate=3 December 2007}}</ref> The books have sold more than 400 million copies worldwide and have also given rise to the popular ]s produced by ], all of which have been highly successful in their own right with the first, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', ranking number five on the ] and the other five ''Harry Potter'' films each ranking in the top 25.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article2784397.ece|title=J.K. Rowling publishes Harry Potter spin-off|date=1 November 2007|publisher=Telegraph.com|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref><ref name="boxofficemojo">{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/|publisher=BoxOfficeMojo.com|title=All Time Worldwide Box Office Grosses|date=27 April 2008|accessdate=29 July 2008|date=1998–2008|publisher=Box Office Mojo, LLC.}}</ref> The films have in turn spawned eight video games and have led to the licensing of more than 400 additional Harry Potter products (including an ]) that have, as of 2005, made the Harry Potter brand worth an estimated ]4&nbsp;billion and J. K. Rowling a US dollar billionaire,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.forbes.com/lists/2007/10/07billionaires_Joanne-(JK)-Rowling_CRTT.html|title=The World's Billionaires:#891 Joanne (JK) Rowling|date=8 March 2007|publisher=Forbes|accessdate=29 July 2008}}</ref> making her, by some reports, richer than ].<ref name="J. K. Rowling Richer than the Queen">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2979033.stm|publisher=BBC|title=J. K. Rowling Richer than the Queen|date=27 April 2003|accessdate=29 July 2008}}</ref><ref name="Harry Potter Brand Wizard">{{cite news|url=http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jul2005/di20050721_060250.htm|publisher= ''Business Week''|title=Harry Potter Brand Wizard|date=21 July 2005|accessdate=29 July 2008}}</ref> However, Rowling has stated that this is false.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/3492060.stm|title=Rowling joins Forbes billionaires|publisher=BBC|accessdate=9 September 2008}}</ref>

The great demand for Harry Potter books motivated the '']'' to create a separate bestseller list for children's literature in 2000, just before the release of ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire''. By 24 June 2000, Rowling's novels had been on the list for 79 straight weeks; the first three novels were each on the hardcover bestseller list.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F01E0DD1730F937A15755C0A9669C8B63|title=The Times Plans a Children's Best-Seller List |last=Smith|first=Dinitia|date=24 June, 2000|publisher=The New York Times|accessdate=30 September 2008}}</ref> On 12 April 2007, ] declared that ''Deathly Hallows'' had broken its ] record, with more than 500,000 copies pre-ordered through its site.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/arts/2007/0413/potterh.html|title=New Harry Potter breaks pre-order record|date=13 April 2007|publisher=RTÉ.ie Entertainment|accessdate = 23 April 2007}}</ref> For the release of ''Goblet of Fire'', 9,000 ] trucks were used with no other purpose than to deliver the book.<ref name=ew-gof-midnight>{{cite news|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,276735_2,00.html|title=Wild About Harry|date=31 August 2005|publisher=ew.com|accessdate=4 March 2007|publisher='']''|last=Fierman|first=Daniel|quote=When I buy the books for my grandchildren, I have them all gift wrapped but one...that's for me. And I have not been 12 for over 50 years.}}</ref> Together, Amazon.com and ] pre-sold more than 700,000 copies of the book.<ref name=ew-gof-midnight/> In the United States, the book's initial printing run was 3.8&nbsp;million copies.<ref name=ew-gof-midnight/> This record statistic was broken by '']'', with 8.5&nbsp;million, which was then shattered by ''Half-Blood Prince'' with 10.8&nbsp;million copies.<ref name=cnn-hbp>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/books/07/14/harry.potter/index.html|title=Harry Potter hits midnight frenzy|date=15 July 2005|publisher=]|accessdate=15 January 2007}}</ref> 6.9&nbsp;million copies of ''Prince'' were sold in the U.S. within the first 24 hours of its release; in the United Kingdom more than two million copies were sold on the first day.<ref name=bbc-hbp-record>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_4700000/newsid_4701400/4701409.stm|title=Worksheet: Half-Blood Prince sets UK record|date=20 July 2005|publisher=BBC|accessdate=19 January 2007}}</ref> The initial U.S. print run for ''Deathly Hallows'' was 12&nbsp;million copies, and more than a million were pre-ordered through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6452987.stm|title=Record print run for final Potter|date=15 March 2007|publisher=BBC|accessdate=22 May 2007}}</ref>

==Criticism, praise, and controversy==
===Literary criticism===
]
Early in its history, ''Harry Potter'' received positive reviews. On publication, the first volume, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', attracted attention from the Scottish newspapers, such as '']'', which said it had "all the makings of a classic",<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps">{{cite book|last=Eccleshare|first=Julia|title=A Guide to the Harry Potter Novels|publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group|year=2002|isbn=9780826453174|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=cHjF5K2uVdsC&pg=PA10&dq=the+most+imaginative+debut+since+Roald+Dahl&sig=ACfU3U0iH-hqblVhP0MjtLQNpPGTsygQCA|page=10}}</ref> and '']'', which called it "Magic stuff".<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" /> Soon the English newspapers joined in, with more than one comparing it to ]'s work: '']'' rated it as "the most imaginative debut since Roald Dahl",<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" /> a view echoed by '']'' ("comparisons to Dahl are, this time, justified"),<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" /> while '']'' called it "a richly textured novel given lift-off by an inventive wit".<ref name="newspaper-reviews-hp-ps" />

Then ] said:
:"I have no great opinion of it. When so many adult critics were carrying on about the 'incredible originality' of the first Harry Potter book, I read it to find out what the fuss was about, and remained somewhat puzzled; it seemed a lively kid's fantasy crossed with a "school novel", good fare for its age group, but stylistically ordinary, imaginatively derivative, and ethically rather mean-spirited." <ref>http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2004/feb/09/sciencefictionfantasyandhorror.ursulakleguin </ref>

By the time of the release of the fifth volume, ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,'' the books began to receive strong criticism from a number of literary scholars. ] professor, literary scholar and critic ] raised criticisms of the books' literary merits, saying, "Rowling's mind is so governed by clichés and dead metaphors that she has no other style of writing."<ref>{{cite web|publisher=''The Boston Globe''|date=24 September 2003|url=http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2003/09/24/dumbing_down_american_readers/|title=Dumbing down American readers|first=Harold|last=Bloom|accessdate = 20 June 2006}}</ref> ] authored a '']'' op-ed article calling Rowling's universe a "], made up of patchworked derivative motifs from all sorts of ]&nbsp;... written for people whose imaginative lives are confined to TV cartoons, and the exaggerated (more exciting, not threatening) mirror-worlds of soaps, ] and celebrity gossip".<ref name="Harry Potter and the Childish Adult">{{cite news|publisher=''The New York Times''|title=Harry Potter and the Childish Adult|date=7 July 2003|accessdate=1 August 2008|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A02E4D8113AF934A35754C0A9659C8B63|first=A. S.|last=Byatt}}</ref>

The critic ] wrote in '']'' on his experience of judging '']'' for the ]. His overall view of the series was negative—"the Potter saga was essentially patronising, conservative, highly derivative, dispiritingly nostalgic for a bygone Britain", and he speaks of "pedestrian, ungrammatical prose style".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2000/jun/25/booksforchildrenandteenagers.guardianchildrensfictionprize2000|publisher=''The Observer''|title=Why Harry Potter does not cast a spell over me|date=25 June 2000|accessdate=1 August 2008|last=Holden|first=Anthony}}</ref>

By contrast, author ], while admitting that the series is "not what the poets hoped for", nevertheless goes on to say, "but this is not poetry, it is readable, saleable, everyday, useful prose".<ref name="Rowling books 'for people with stunted imaginations'">{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2003/jul/11/books.harrypotter|publisher=''The Guardian''|title=Rowling books 'for people with stunted imaginations'|date=11 July 2003|accessdate=1 August 2008|last=Allison|first=Rebecca}}</ref> The literary critic A. N. Wilson praised the Harry Potter series in '']'', stating: "There are not many writers who have JK’s Dickensian ability to make us turn the pages, to weep—openly, with tears splashing—and a few pages later to laugh, at invariably good jokes&nbsp;... We have lived through a decade in which we have followed the publication of the liveliest, funniest, scariest and most moving children’s stories ever written".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/children/article2139573.ece|title=Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling|last=Wilson|first=A. N.|date=29 July 2007|publisher=Times Online|accessdate=28 September 2008}}</ref> Charles Taylor of ], who is primarily a movie critic,<ref>{{cite web|year=2000|publisher=Salon.com|url=http://www.salon.com/col/bios/tayl/index.html|title=Salon Columnist|accessdate=3 August 2008}}</ref> took issue with Byatt's criticisms in particular. While he conceded that she may have "a valid cultural point—a teeny one—about the impulses that drive us to reassuring pop trash and away from the troubling complexities of art",<ref name="A.S. Byatt and the goblet of bile" /> he rejected her claims that the series is lacking in serious ] and that it owes its success merely to the childhood reassurances it offers. Taylor stressed the progressively darker tone of the books, shown by the murder of a classmate and close friend and the psychological wounds and ] each causes. Taylor also argued that ''Philosopher's Stone'', said to be the most lighthearted of the seven published books, disrupts the childhood reassurances that Byatt claims spur the series' success: the book opens with news of a ], for example.<ref name="A.S. Byatt and the goblet of bile">{{cite news| title=www.purevolume.com/rendermn|url=http://archive.salon.com/books/feature/2003/07/08/byatt_rowling/index.html|publisher=Salon.com|title=A. S. Byatt and the goblet of bile|date=8 July 2003|accessdate=3 August 2008|first=Charles|last=Taylor}}</ref>

] called the series "a feat of which only a superior imagination is capable", and declared "Rowling's punning, one-eyebrow-cocked sense of humour" to be "remarkable". However, he wrote that despite the story being "a good one", he is "a little tired of discovering Harry at home with his horrible aunt and uncle", the formulaic beginning of all seven books.<ref name="Wild About Harry" /> King has also joked that "Rowling's never met an adverb she did not like!" He does however predict that Harry Potter "will indeed stand time's test and wind up on a shelf where only the best are kept; I think Harry will take his place with ], ], ], and ] and this is one series not just for the decade, but for the ages."<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Guardian Unlimited| url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2006/dec/31/harrypotter.jkjoannekathleenrowling| title=JK Rowling:The mistress of all she surveys| first= Killian| last=Fox|date=31 December 2006|accessdate = 10 February 2007}}</ref>

===Social impacts===
Although ] named Rowling as a runner-up for its 2007 ] award, noting the social, moral, and ] she has given ],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1695388_1695436,00.html|title=Person of the Year 2007 Runners-Up: J. K. Rowling|date=23 December 2007|publisher=]|accessdate=23 December 2007}}</ref> cultural comments on the series have been mixed. '']'' book critic Ron Charles opined in July 2007 that the large numbers of adults reading the ''Potter'' series but few other books may represent a "bad case of cultural infantilism", and that the straightforward "good vs. evil" theme of the series is "childish". He also argued "through no fault of Rowling's", the cultural and marketing "hysteria" marked by the publication of the later books "trains children and adults to expect the roar of the coliseum, a ] experience that no other novel can possibly provide".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/13/AR2007071301730_pf.html| title=Harry Potter and the Death of Reading |date=15 July 2007| author= Charles, Ron | accessdate= 16 April 2008 | publisher= '']''}}</ref>

Librarian Nancy Knapp pointed out the books' potential to improve ] by motivating children to read much more than they would otherwise do
<ref name="Knapp2003InDefenseOfHP">{{cite journal
|last=Knapp|first=N.F.|date=2003|title=In Defense of Harry Potter: An Apologia|journal=School Libraries Worldwide
|publisher=International Association of School Librarianship|volume=9|issue=1|pages=78–91
|url=http://www.iasl-online.org/files/jan03-knapp.pdf|accessdate=14 May 2009
}}</ref> Agreeing about the motivating effects, Diane Penrod also praised the books' blending of simple entertainment with "the qualities of highbrow literary fiction", but expressed concern about the distracting effect of the prolific ] that accompanies the book launches.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Penrod|first=D|date=December 2001|title=The Trouble with Harry: A Reason for Teaching Media Literacy to Young Adults|journal=The Writing Instructor|publisher=Professional Writing Program at Purdue University|url=http://www.writinginstructor.com/penrod.html|accessdate=16 May 2009}}</ref>

Jennifer Conn used Snape's and Quidditch coach Madam Hooch's teaching methods as examples of what to avoid and what to emulate in clinical teaching, <ref>{{cite journal|last=Conn|first=J.J.|date=2002|title=What can clinical teachers learn from ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone''?|journal=Medical Education|volume=36|issue=12|pages=1176–1181|doi=10.1046/j.1365-2923.2002.01376.x}}</ref> and Joyce Fields wrote that the books illustrate four of the five main topics in a typical first-year ] class: "sociological concepts including ], ], and ]; stratification and ]; ]; and ]".<ref name="Fields2007HPSociologicalImagination">{{cite journal|last=Fields|first=J.W.|date=2007|title=''Harry Potter'', Benjamin Bloom, and the Sociological Imagination|journal=International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education|volume=19|issue=2|issn=1812-9129|url=http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/pdf/IJTLHE160.pdf|accessdate=15 May 2009}}</ref>

Jenny Sawyer wrote in the 25 July 2007 '']'' that the books represent a "disturbing trend in commercial storytelling and Western society" in that stories "moral center have all but vanished from much of today's ]&nbsp;... after 10 years, 4,195 pages, and over 375 million copies, J. K. Rowling's towering achievement lacks the cornerstone of almost all great children's literature: the hero's moral journey". Harry Potter, Sawyer argues, neither faces a "moral struggle" nor undergoes any ethical growth, and is thus "no guide in circumstances in which right and wrong are anything less than black and white".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0725/p09s02-coop.html| title=Missing from 'Harry Potter"&nbsp;– a real moral struggle | author= Sawyer, Jenny | accessdate= 16 April 2008 | publisher= '']''|date=25 July 2007}}</ref> On the other hand Emily Griesinger described Harry's first passage through to ] as an application of faith and hope, and his encounter with the Sorting Hat as the first of many in which Harry is shaped by the choices he makes. She also noted the "deeper magic" by which the self-sacrifice of Harry's mother protects the boy throughout the series, and which the power-hungry ] fails to understand.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Griesinger|first=E.|date=2002|title=Harry Potter and the "deeper magic": narrating hope in children's literature|journal=Christianity and Literature|volume=51|issue=3|pages=455–480|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb049/is_3_51/ai_n28919307/|accessdate=15 May 2009}}</ref>

In a 8 November 2002 '']'' article, Chris Suellentrop likened Potter to a "trust-fund kid whose success at school is largely attributable to the gifts his friends and relatives lavish upon him". Noting that in Rowling's fiction, magical ability potential is "something you are born to, not something you can achieve", Suellentrop wrote that Dumbledore's maxim that "It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities" is hypocritical, as "the school that Dumbledore runs values native gifts above all else".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.slate.com/?id=2073627| title=Harry Potter: Fraud | author= Suellentrop, Chris
| accessdate= 16 April 2008 | publisher= '']''|date=8 November 2002}}</ref> In an 12 August 2007 '']'' review of ''The Deathly Hallows'', however, ] praised Rowling for "unmooring" her "English school story" from literary precedents "bound up with dreams of wealth and class and snobbery", arguing that she had instead created "a world of youthful democracy and diversity".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/12/books/review/Hitchens-t.html?_r=1&pagewanted=2&oref=slogin| title=The Boy Who Lived | author= Hitchens, Christopher| accessdate= 1 April 2008 | publisher= ''The New York Times''|date=12 August 2007|page=2}}</ref>

===Controversies===
{{main|Legal disputes over the Harry Potter series|Religious debates over the Harry Potter series|Politics of Harry Potter}}

The books have been the subject of a number of ], stemming either from claims by American Christian groups that the magic in the books promotes witchcraft among children, or from various conflicts over copyright and trademark infringements. The popularity and high ] of the series has led Rowling, her publishers, and ] ] to take legal measures to protect their copyright, which have included banning the sale of ''Harry Potter'' imitations, targeting the owners of websites over the "Harry Potter" ], and suing author ] to counter her accusations that Rowling had plagiarised her work.<ref>{{cite web|title=SScholastic Inc, J.K. Rowling and Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P, Plaintiffs/Counterclaim Defendants, -against- Nancy Stouffer: United States District Court for the Southern District of New York|url=http://www.eyrie.org/~robotech/stouffer.htm|date=17 September 2002|accessdate=12 June 2007|publisher=ICQ}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Warner Brothers bullying ruins Field family Xmas|author= McCarthy, Kieren|url=http://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/12/21/warner_brothers_bullying_ruins_field/ |year=2000|publisher=]|accessdate=3 May 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/film/2092661.stm|publisher=BBC|title=Fake Harry Potter novel hits China|date=4 July 2002|accessdate=11 March 2007}}</ref> Various religious conservatives have claimed that the books promote witchcraft and are therefore unsuitable for children,<ref>{{cite web|title=Opinion Roundup: Positive About Potter|author= Olsen, Ted|url=http://www.cesnur.org/recens/potter_010.htm|publisher=Cesnur.org|accessdate=6 July 2007}}</ref> while a number of critics have criticised the books for promoting various political agendas.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Tolkien's Timeless Tale |author=Bonta, Steve |journal=The New American |accessdate=3 May 2007 |date=28 January 2002 |volume=18 |issue=2}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/rod_liddle/article2116237.ece|title=Hogwarts is a winner because boys will be sexist neocon boys|last=Liddle|first=Rod|date= 21 July 2007|publisher='']''|accessdate=17 August 2008}}</ref>

The books also aroused controversies in the literary and publishing worlds. In 1997 to 1998 '']'' won almost all the UK awards judged by children, but none of the children's book awards judged by adults,<ref name="Eccleshare2002GuidePublishing">{{cite book|last=Eccleshare|first=J.|title=A guide to the Harry Potter novels|publisher=Continuum International|date=2002|pages=7–14|chapter=The Publishing of a Phenomenon|isbn=0826453171|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=cHjF5K2uVdsC&pg=PA10&lpg=PA10&dq=%22a+hugely+entertaining+thriller%22+Rowling+%22a+first-rate+writer+for+children%22+scotsman&source=bl&ots=C8WEs225CK&sig=GQJNqV1B42WkXiAtC_vKRMdL0ZY&hl=en&ei=4FkNSqGZDc7RjAfn3-y8Bg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#PPA7,M1|accessdate=15 May 2009}}</ref> and Sandra Beckett suggested the reason was ] towards books that were popular among children.<ref name="Beckett2008Crossover" /> In 1999 the winner of the ] children's division was entered for the first time on the shortlist for the main award, and one judge threatened to resign if '']'' was declared the overall winner; it finished second, very close behind the winner of the poetry prize, ]'s translation of the ] ] '']''.<ref name="Beckett2008Crossover">{{cite book|last=Beckett|first=S.L.|title=Crossover Fiction|publisher=Taylor & Francis|date=2008|pages=112–115|chapter=Child-to-Adult Crossover Fiction|isbn=041598033X|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=9ipnQ2ryU7IC&pg=PA114&lpg=PA114&dq=%22Harry+Potter+and+the+Philosopher%27s+Stone%22+book+sales+bestseller&source=bl&ots=y60dgCgiv5&sig=wyy_OZen6BmtfZ5rjUStp_ga-2U&hl=en&ei=JYAOSsLTA9PRjAf0-7WyCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10#PPA111,M1|accessdate=16 May 2009}}</ref>

In 2000, shortly before publication of '']'', the previous three ''Harry Potter'' books topped the '']'' fiction best-seller list and a third of the entries were children's books. The newspaper created a new children's section cover splits children's sections, including both fiction and non-fiction, and initially counting only hardback sales. The move was supported by publishers and booksellers.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Smith|first=D.|date=24 June 2000|title=The Times Plans a Children's Best-Seller List|journal=The New York Times Book|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2000/06/24/books/the-times-plans-a-children-s-best-seller-list.html|accessdate=16 May 2009}}</ref> In 2004 '']'' further split the children's list, which was still dominated by ''Harry Potter'' books into sections for series and individual books, and removed the ''Harry Potter'' books from the section for individual books.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://papercuts.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/01/ten-years-later-harry-potter-vanishes-from-the-best-seller-list/|title=Ten Years Later, Harry Potter Vanishes From the Best-Seller List|last=Garner|first=D.|date=1 May 2008|publisher='']''|accessdate=16 May 2009}}</ref> The split in 2000 attracted condemnation, praise and some comments that presented both benefits and disadvantages of the move.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.salon.com/mwt/feature/2000/08/16/bestseller/index.html|title=A list of their own|last=Bolonik|first=K.|date=16 August 2000|publisher=Salon.com|accessdate=16 May 2009}}</ref> '']'' suggested that, on the same principle, ] should have created a separate "]" list in 1964 when the ] held the top five places in its list, and ] should have created a separate game-show list when '']'' dominated the ].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Corliss|first=R.|date=July. 21, 2000|title= Why 'Harry Potter' Did a Harry Houdini |journal=]|url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,50554,00.html|accessdate=16 May 2009}}</ref>

==Films==
{{seealso|Harry Potter (film series)}}

In 1998<ref name="Books: Cover Stories At the Frankfurt Book Fair">{{cite news |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/books-cover-stories-at-the-frankfurt-book-fair-1177247.html|publisher=''The Independent''|title=Books: Cover Stories At the Frankfurt Book Fair |date=10 October 1998|accessdate=18 July 2009}}</ref>, Rowling sold the film rights of the first four ''Harry Potter'' books to ] for a reported £1&nbsp;million ($1,982,900).<ref name="WiGBPd About Harry">{{cite news |url=http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2000/0700-austfinrev-bagwell.html|publisher='']''|title=WiGBPd About Harry|date=19 July 2000|accessdate=26 May 2007}}</ref> Rowling demanded the principal cast be kept strictly British, nonetheless allowing for the inclusion of many Irish actors such as the late ] as Dumbledore, and for casting of French and ]an actors in '']'' where characters from the book are specified as such.<ref name="Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone">{{cite news|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2001/nov/16/jkjoannekathleenrowling|publisher=Guardian Unlimited|title=Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone|date=16 November 2001|accessdate=26 May 2007}}</ref> After many directors including ], ], ], and ] were considered, ] was appointed on 28 March, 2000 as director for '']'' (titled "''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone''" in the United States), with Warner Bros. citing his work on other family films such as '']'' and '']'' as influences for their decision.<ref name=columbus>{{cite news|url=http://uk.movies.ign.com/articles/034/034098p1.html|title=Chris Columbus to Direct Harry Potter|accessdate=8 July 2007|date=28 March 2000|publisher=IGN|author= Linder, Bran}}</ref> After ],<ref>{{cite news|url=http://movies.warnerbros.com/pub/movie/releases/harrycast.html|publisher=Warner Brothers|title=Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson bring Harry, Ron and Hermione to life for Warner Bros. Pictures: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone"|date=21 August 2000|accessdate=26 May 2007}}</ref> filming began in October 2000 at ] and in London itself, with production ending in July 2001.<ref name=greg>{{cite web|url=http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/comingsoon.html|title=Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)|accessdate=30 May 2007|author=Schmitz, Greg Dean |publisher=]}}</ref> ''Philosopher's Stone'' was released on 14 November, 2001. Just three days after ''Philosopher's Stone's'' release, production for '']'', also directed by Columbus began, finishing in summer 2002. The film was released on 15 November 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1807858489/info|title=Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)|publisher=Yahoo! Inc|accessdate=18 August 2008}}</ref>

Chris Columbus declined to direct '']'', only acting as ]. Mexican director ] took over the job, and after shooting in 2003, the film was released on 4 June 2004. Due to the fourth film beginning its production before the third's release, ] was chosen as the director for '']'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://movies.ign.com/articles/433/433108p1.html|title=Goblet Helmer Confirmed|publisher=]|date=11 August 2003|accessdate=29 July 2007}}</ref> released on 18 November 2005. Newell declined to direct the next movie, and British television director ] was chosen for '']'', which began production on January 2006,<ref>{{cite news|title='Phoenix' Rising|date=6 April 2007|page=28|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20016352,00.html|last=Daly|first=Steve|publisher='']''|accessdate=1 April 2007}}</ref> and was released on 11 July 2007. Yates also directed '']'',<ref name=yates-director-scifi>{{cite news|url=http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=41338|title=Yates Confirmed For Potter VI|date=3 May 2007|publisher=Sci Fi Wire|accessdate=3 May 2007|last=Spelling|first=Ian}}</ref> which was released on 15 July 2009.<ref name="date change">{{cite web|url=http://movies.tvguide.com/Movie-News/Harry-Potter-Changes-1005104.aspx|title=Coming Sooner: ''Harry Potter'' Changes Release Date|work=TVGuide.com|accessdate=15 April 2009}}</ref><ref name="release-date-hbp-film">{{cite web|url=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/harry-potter-half-blood-prince-moves/story.aspx?guid={F4F52B7F-D1B1-4DC0-BF8A-AD0D9252BE7A}&dist=hppr|title=Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince|date=14 August 2008|publisher=Market Watch|accessdate=17 August 2008}}</ref> In March 2008, Warner Bros. announced that the final instalment of the series, '']'', would be filmed in two segments, with part one to be released in November 2010 and part two in July 2011. Production of both parts is underway, with Yates returning to direct. <ref>{{cite web|title=Final 'Harry Potter' book will be split into two movies|date=13 March 2008|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-potter13mar13,1,5626063.story|publisher=''Los Angeles Times''|accessdate=13 March 2008}}</ref>
The ''Harry Potter'' films have been top-rank ] hits, with five of the six on the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/world/|title=All Time Worldwide Box Office Grosses|publisher=]|accessdate=29 July 2007}}</ref>

Opinions of the films are generally divided among fans, with one group preferring the more faithful approach of the first two films, and another group preferring the more stylised character-driven approach of the later films.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/movies/a64205/harry-potter-books-vs-films.html|title=Harry Potter: Books vs films|publisher=digitalspy.co.uk|accessdate=7 September 2008}}</ref> Rowling has been constantly supportive of the films,<ref name=jk-on-ps-film>{{cite web|url=http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/specials/potter/0,12405,184807,00.html|title=Potter Power!|publisher=]|accessdate=31 May 2007}}</ref><ref name=jk-on-poa-film>{{cite news|url=http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2004-05-27-potter-movie-book_x.htm|title=New 'Potter' movie sneaks in spoilers for upcoming books|date=27 May 2004|accessdate=31 May 2007|publisher='']''|last=Puig|first=Claudia}}</ref><ref name=jk-on-gof-film>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_4410000/newsid_4415400/4415454.stm|title=JK 'loves' Goblet Of Fire movie|date=7 November 2005|accessdate=31 May 2007|publisher=BBC ]}}</ref> and evaluated ''Order of the Phoenix'' as "the best one yet" in the series. She wrote on her web site of the changes in the book-to-film transition, "It is simply impossible to incorporate every one of my storylines into a film that has to be kept under four hours long. Obviously films have restrictions novels do not have, constraints of time and budget; I can create dazzling effects relying on nothing but the interaction of my own and my readers’ imaginations".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/faq_view.cfm?id=94 |title=How did you feel about the POA filmmakers leaving the Marauder’s Map’s background out of the story? (A Mugglenet/Lexicon question) |publisher=J. K. Rowling|last=Rowling |first=J. K. |accessdate=6 September 2008}}</ref>

==Audiobooks==
The Harry Potter books have all been released on unabridged audiobook. The UK versions are read by ] and the US versions are read by ]. Dale is also the narrator for the special features disc on the DVDs.

==References==
{{reflist|3}}

==External links==
{{portal}}
{{wikibooks|Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter}}
{{wikiquote}}
{{commons|Category:Harry Potter|Harry Potter}}
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Revision as of 23:26, 28 September 2009

hi peolple this is a harry potter fan harry loves the simpsons! im also a fan of itzalwaysme on youtube im there biggest fan!!!! i love there vids. some people say there lame but there not. there awsome by the way harry is a model. oo yah!