| "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." |
Author Joanne
Kathrine Rowling
Harry Potter's magic has
touched a huge audience of all ages all over the world. In America, there are
nearly 80 million books in print, and each title has been on The New
York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller
lists. The fifth title, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, has
already broken records with its first print run of 6.8 million copies and a
second print run of an additional 1.7 million copies, a figure unprecedented for
any book.
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 honours. 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 and
according to Publishers Weekly is "the fastest-selling book in
history."
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 170
million books sold, the books have been translated into 55 languages and
distributed in over 200 countries. Each of the first four books are currently 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 two children.
To find out more about the author go to www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author