BRINGING BACK THE MAGIC HARRY POTTER'S BIGGEST FANS AWAIT `HALF-BLOOD PRINCE'.Byline: Sandra Barrera Staff Writer By now, Harry Potter fans have read and reread Verb 1. reread - read anew; read again; "He re-read her letters to him" read - interpret something that is written or printed; "read the advertisement"; "Have you read Salman Rushdie?" all five of J.K. Rowling's books about the orphaned boy wizard, from the first, ``Sorcerer's Stone,'' to the latest, ``Order of the Phoenix.'' ``We're reading them again so we can know what's happened and so we can know what's going to happen,'' says 11-year-old Jessica Palacios of La Crescenta. She'll know soon enough, as will millions of other readers who are counting down the seconds to the midnight Friday launch of ``Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,'' Rowling's sixth and darkest installment in what the author has planned as a seven-book series. Fans can celebrate the release at special events and midnight parties at select book stores and listen to Rowling read her latest book from Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is an ancient fortress which, from its position atop Castle Rock, dominates the sky-line of the city of Edinburgh, and is Scotland's second most visited tourist attraction, after the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow. in Scotland on the Barnes & Noble Web site (www.barnesandnoble.com) at 4:20 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time on Friday. As Pottermania works its magic on readers around the world, it also will be making literary history. And not just in the world of children's literature children's literature, writing whose primary audience is children. See also children's book illustration. The Beginnings of Children's Literature The earliest of what came to be regarded as children's literature was first meant for adults. . U.S. publisher Scholastic Inc. is shipping out an initial 10.8 million copies, 4 million more than 2003's ``Order of the Phoenix,'' and 9.5 million more than last year's best seller, ``My Life,'' by former President Bill Clinton. And while the book doesn't officially go on sale until 12:01 a.m. Saturday, preorders from Barnes & Noble Inc. and Amazon.com suggest it's already sold more than 1 million copies. ``There's just this massive interest in Harry Potter that it's become part of pop culture,'' says Marie DeVera, a 26-year-old clerk at the Mid-Valley Regional Branch Library in North Hills, where the boy wizard was on the tongues of young readers and movie fans alike. Warner Bros BROS Brothers BROS Benefits and Retirement Operations Section (King County, Washington) BROS Barnes and Richmond Operatic Society (London, UK) . will release its fourth ``Harry Potter'' movie, ``The Goblet of Fire,'' in November. Even those who have never read the books have some inkling about ``The Half-Blood Prince.'' ``I know who it is,'' teased 8-year-old Tristan Carson, who was at a library-sponsored magic show dressed in a blue wizard's cape and hat decorated with gold stars. ``It's bad to say. But since he's not real, I can say it. Voldemort, Lord Voldemort Lord Voldemort (IPA: /ˈvoʊldəmɔː/[1][2]) is a fictional character and the primary antagonist in the Harry Potter novel series written by British author J. K. Rowling. .'' Duke Vo, a soft-spoken 13-year-old from Granada Hills, had a different theory. ``I would guess the Half-Blood Prince is Harry Potter,'' he says, taking a break from Anne McCaffrey's ``Dragonsong,'' a children's fantasy novel. Rowling, however, has firmly stated that neither Harry nor Voldemort, the evil wizard who killed Harry's parents, is the ``Half-Blood Prince.'' Duke also speculated about some of the rumors that have surfaced in recent months, including whether Harry Potter will find romance. ``I think his best friends, Ron (Weasley) and Hermione (Granger), will pair up,'' Duke says. ``Harry will probably be lonely for a while.'' Victoria Benson, a 12-year-old visiting from Memphis, Tenn., says she has a hunch that it's Harry who will get together with Hermione. ``In the movie, they always have this connection, like when they're off on adventures that nobody knows about,'' she says. As for rumors that one of the characters may die, Victoria places her bets on Rubeus Hagrid, the gamekeeper and keeper of keys and grounds at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry wiz·ard·ry n. pl. wiz·ard·ries 1. The art, skill, or practice of a wizard; sorcery. 2. a. A power or effect that appears magical by its capacity to transform: . ``At first I thought Hermione was going to die,'' offers DeVera, the library clerk. ``But now I think that it may be (Albus) Dumbledore because it would have an impact on the readers.'' In search of clues, 10-year-old Amelia Palacios is getting reacquainted with ``Order of the Phoenix'' for a third time. She's got other reasons for cracking the book open again. ``It's just my favorite My Favorite is an independent synthpop band from Long Island, New York. They released two CDs: Love at Absolute Zero and Happiest Days of Our Lives. My Favorite broke up on September 14, 2005, when singer Andrea Vaughn left the band. book,'' says Amelia. ``I like it because there's lots of surprises and there's lots of adventure.'' Amelia and her big sister, Jessica, are voracious readers and have a large library of books at home. Their family owns the Once Upon a Time children's bookstore in Montrose, where the girls regularly recommend new releases to customers. Still, library clerk DeVera says there's no question about it: Harry Potter books have revolutionized kids' reading habits. ``Since I work at the circulation desk, I see all the books being checked out, and by the bindings, you can tell if they've been read or not,'' she says. ``Harry Potter definitely has.'' And is. Sandra Barrera, (818) 713-3728 sandra.barrera(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 21 photos, 2 boxes Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) The boy wizard returns in `The Half-Blood Prince' Jon Gerung/Staff Artist (2) Jim Pearce Jim Pierce is a member of the Queensland State Parliament. He represents the seat of Fitzroy. He is a backbencher in the Labor Government of Peter Beattie. References wears a wizard's garb at his recent magic show at the Mid-Valley Regional Branch Library in North Hills. (3) Tristan Carson, 8, who came in costume to the library magic show, thinks he knows the identity of the ``Half-Blood Prince'' in the upcoming Harry Potter book. Michael Owen
(4 -- color) ``Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' (September 1998) (5 -- color) ``Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' (June 1999) (6 -- color) ``Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' (September 1999) (7 -- color) ``Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' (July 2000) (8 -- color) ``Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' (June 2003) (9-- color) A RETURN TO THE WIZARDING WORLD (10 -- color) Harry Potter A teen wizard at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is the sworn enemy of Lord Voldemort. (11 -- color) Ron Weasley  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled due to vandalism. Ron, now a Gryffindor prefect prefect or praefect (both: prē`fĕkt), in ancient Rome, various military and civil officers. Under the empire some prefects were very important. The Praetorian prefects (first appointed 2 B.C. , is one of Harry's two best friends at Hogwarts. (12 -- color) Hermione Granger Hermione Jean Granger (first name pronounced IPA: /hɚˈmaɪəni/) is a fictional character in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. By far the smartest student of her year, Hermione is Harry's other best friend. (13 -- color) Albus Dumbledore Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is a fictional character within the Harry Potter series written by British author J. K. Rowling. He is the headmaster of the fictional wizarding school Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for the majority of the series and Most respected magician of his time; head of Hogwarts; the only wizard Voldemort actually fears. (14 -- color) Lord Voldemort Voldemort, the most heinous wizard of recent times, seeks to destroy Harry Potter. (15 -- color) Minerva McGonagall A professor at Hogwarts and the head of Harry Potter's Gryffindor House. (16 -- color) Severus Snape A professor at Hogwarts and head of Slytherin House, Snape detests Harry. (17 -- color) Rubeus Hagrid Hogwarts professor of the care of magical creatures is Harry's closest adult friend. (18 -- color) Lucius and Draco Malfoy Draco Malfoy is a fictional character in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. He is a Slytherin student in Harry Potter's year, and his house's most visible adolescent representative. Draco Malfoy Son of Voldemort ally Lucius Malfoy, Draco is Harry's most detested de·test tr.v. de·test·ed, de·test·ing, de·tests To dislike intensely; abhor. [French détester, from Latin d Hogwarts enemy. (19 -- color) Dudley Dursley The Dursleys Vernon, Petunia petunia, any plant of the genus Petunia, South American herbs of the family Solanaceae (nightshade family). The common garden petunias, planted also in window boxes, are all considered hybrids of white-flowered and violet-flowered species from Argentina. and son Dudley are Harry's nasty, nonmagical relatives. (20 -- color) Sirius Black Sirius Black is a fictional character in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Sirius Black was first mentioned briefly in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Wrongly accused escaped convict from Azkaban prison and Harry's godfather. (21) no caption (book: Harry Potter `The Half-Blood Prince') Box: (1) HARRY HAPPENINGS (2) A RETURN TO THE WIZARDING WORLD Source: Associated Press Jon Gerung/Staff Artist |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion