Harry Potter series: Britain's spy agency alerted books' publisher to possible online leaked copy - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Harry Potter series: Britain's spy agency alerted books' publisher to possible online leaked copy Updated April 11, 2016 13:54:18 Map: United Kingdom Usually concerned with top secret matters affecting national security, Britain's eavesdropping spy agency GCHQ was also on the lookout for leaks of a yet-to-be-published Harry Potter book, its publisher has revealed. Shortly before the publication of one of the volumes in JK Rowling's seven-part wizarding saga, publisher Nigel Newton received an unexpected phone call. "I remember the British spy eavesdropping station GCHQ rang me up and said 'we've detected an early copy of this book on the internet'," Mr Newton told the ABC's Conversations program in an interview last week , which gained attention in Britain on Sunday. "I got him to read a page to our editor and she said 'no, that's a fake'," said Mr Newton, founder and chief executive of publishing house Bloomsbury, which published the Harry Potter series.

A spokesman for GCHQ said: "We do not comment on our defence against the dark arts," in reference to a subject taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in which pupils learn how to defend themselves and fight back against the evil deeds of Dark Wizards. Nigel Newton's publishing house, Bloomsbury, was at the centre of the phenomenon and immense fortune generated by JK Rowling's series. Listen to his interview on Conversations with Richard Fidler. He said it was lucky that they had "many allies", describing the spies as "good guys" and those trying to ruin the plot of the book as "the enemies". The incident appears to represent the absolute fever pitch surrounding the books at that time, with Mr Newton adding the publishers had a number of security measures in place — including guard dogs and stationed security at printing houses. "It was completely mad [the demand for the books] and we were in the eye of the storm," Mr Newton said. "I remember Jo Rowling phoning me once after she delivered a new book and saying, 'please, Nigel, will you release the name of the title because I have people outside searching my trashcan looking for bits of paper'.

"At that time we had to go into a complete security lockdown because people were trying to steal the manuscript." Photo: Author JK Rowling said people were going through her rubbish for clues on the book's plot. (Reuters: Suzanne Plunkett ) Mr Newton recalled another breach when a security guard fired blank rounds at a journalist while trying to sell stolen copies of the book to the media. He also described one incident where Sun newspaper sent a journalist with an attache case full of 5,000 pounds in notes to circle the printing factory at Clay's, Bungee and Suffolk. "They offered a worker this money if he would go in and make a copy," he said. The publishing house, described by Mr Newton as the midwives for the series, regarded keeping the plot secret as very important. "It's one of the reasons that people read it all at once," he said. "[After] a midnight launch, most of the kids had read the book by the next day." First book draws readers into this other world: Newton Mr Newton recalled the time before the first book was published, when the manuscript had been rejected by 12 other publishers. Unaware of these rebuffs, Bloomsbury signed the author without hesitation.

"It's not a good selling point [to say] 'here, nobody else wants it but we're scraping the bottom of the barrel so we'll have you," he joked. Photo: Fans lined up for the launch of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. (ABC TV) His colleagues in the children's division did not have a lot of books on the list, so they had a look at the book. "They all sat on beanbags at the top of the 21st century box building in Soho square... and they passed each page around from this one copy they had," Mr Newton said. "They all got so excited that they photocopied the material and rolled it up in a scroll and tied it up with ribbon and filled it with M&M chocolates and gave it to the eight or so of us in the editorial committee. "What they were trying to say to us was that this book will win the Smarties Prize, which is the greatest prize in the world for children's literature." I'd never seen anything like it, in the response to the book so it became clear at one point that the sky was going to be the limit.

Publisher Nigel Newton Mr Newton conceded that it was very important that the character, Harry Potter, was an orphan because "he is having to fend for himself". "In a way, that first book draws children readers into this other world of Hogwarts where they're separate from the adults and they have their own way of making life work for them," he said. "[It is] also a very frightening world with forces of evil pitted against forces of ultimate good, but it's about the friendships that are formed, the camaraderie of small groups of friends within the bigger school, and it's also funny — there's humour in it." The book was published in July 1997 and Mr Newton said by Christmas it had sold 30,000 copies. "[It] was pretty extraordinary for a children's novel," he said. "I think I took a bet with our sales director that we could sell 100,000 copies by the following Christmas, which we did, and then I took the bet that we could sell a million copies by the following Christmas.

"I'd never seen anything like it … in the response to the book so it became clear at one point that the sky was going to be the limit." ABC/Reuters First posted April 11, 2016 13:29:16 Top Stories Harry Potter | Harry Potter books and resources - Bloomsbury © Bloomsbury Publishing 2014. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc Registered in England No. 1984336 Registered Office: 50 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3DP. Tel: +44(0)20 7631 5600, Fax: +44 (0)20 7631 5800 Harry Potter and the Magic Stock; A Children's Book Series Helps Rejuvenate a British Publisher - The New York Times The New York Times Business Day |Harry Potter and the Magic Stock; A Children's Book Series Helps Rejuvenate a British Publisher Search Continue reading the main story You've read the books. You may even see the movie. Now, behold the stock.

For months now, the phenomenon of the publishing world has been Harry Potter, the magical English schoolboy chronicled in three best-selling fiction books that currently occupy the three top slots on the New York Times best-seller list -- with a staggering five million hard-cover and three million paperbacks in print in the United States alone. Since 1997, additionally, the books have sold 2.2 million copies in the English-speaking world outside the United States, from Britain to Canada to Australia, making them best sellers from London to Melbourne. Beneath this well-publicized literary storm, though, there is another, less-told tale of publishing near misses and a shrewd call by a medium-size British house, Bloomsbury Publishing P.L.C., which not only brought Harry Potter into print but has also brought investors flocking to its stock. After other publishers passed up the adventures of the tousle-haired schoolboy wizard, Bloomsbury was the first book publisher on either side of the Atlantic to seize on the stories and their creator, J. K. Rowling. And the stock market, not known for literary sensitivity, has fallen under the spell.

First floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1994 at 105 pence, Bloomsbury shares had languished within a few pence of that price ever since -- until last spring. Then the Harry Potter phenomenon gathered steam, and Bloomsbury's shares took off like Harry's magic broomstick, closing on Friday at 456.5 pence ($7.62), a 176 percent rise since April 30. Continue reading the main story Not bad results from an initial investment of $3,300 in 1996, which is the advance Bloomsbury paid for the first Harry Potter book, published the following year as ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.'' Who could have predicted back then that by the time ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,'' the third book in the series, went on sale in Britain last July, just before school vacation, booksellers would feel compelled to delay the released until 3:45 P.M. so that children would not play hooky to snap up the first editions.

Advertisement Continue reading the main story Although the greater marketing might of the publisher of the United States editions, the Scholastic Corporation, has undoubtedly helped stoke Potter fever, Bloomsbury has benefited from being able to release the British editions a few months before the American versions. Many American children and their parents, in fact, know Harry and his fellow students at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the British versions they have bought over the Internet -- books that use different art, different typography and in some cases different spelling and vocabulary than their American cousins. (With the first book, for example, the ''Philosopher's Stone'' in the British title was changed to ''Sorcerer's Stone,'' for the American release.) Bloomsbury, with annual revenue last year of less than $25 million, is but a fraction the size of Scholastic, which had sales of more than $1.1 billion last year. And Scholastic's stock price has shown scant sign of a Potter levitation; the shares, which closed on Friday at $47.94, are actually below their high for the year of $58.75 on Jan. 6.

But for Bloomsbury, the series' runaway success has been nothing less than a coup -- for the editors who first spotted Ms. Rowling's talent, and for the company's 44-year-old chief executive, Nigel Newton. It was Mr. Newton who set up Bloomsbury with four partners and $2.65 million in venture capital just 13 years ago and has since advanced steadily in the staid world of British publishing. Quite apart from publishing the Harry Potter series, Mr. Newton, a dual citizen of Britain and the United States, has helped created another potential money-spinner: the Encarta World English Dictionary, produced with the software giant Microsoft. Mr. Newton approached Microsoft in 1991, proposing a joint CD-ROM and bound-book dictionary project. The $48 book version, which Bloomsbury released in August, has already sold 400,000 copies, according to the company, which expects the dictionary to generate some $68 million in sales over the next decade. Mr.

Newton's bold, entrepreneurial management style has won him strong support from the institutional investors that hold about a quarter of Bloomsbury's shares, according to Louise Barton, a media analyst with the brokerage firm of Investec Henderson Crosthwaite. ''They could be vulnerable'' to a takeover, Ms. Barton said, ''but there would be strong support for the management from the institutions.'' Written partly in cafes when the author, Ms. Rowling, was on welfare as a single mother, the first book in the Harry Potter series was initially rejected by a series of leading British publishing houses. In fact, Ms. Rowling had trouble even finding an agent to represent her. ''She sent three chapters,'' Christopher Little, her agent, recalled of her over-the-transom submission in 1995. ''We don't do children's books, so it was lying in the slush pile. It must have been at the top because you pick up from the top. And so it got read. There was something that was so exciting that we wanted her on an exclusive basis.'' Even with Mr. Little representing the book, though, at least four more major British publishers rejected it.

Then, an editor at Bloomsbury scanned the opening page and began to read on, passing chapters as they were read to colleagues around the office. The company made its offer the next day. Advertisement Continue reading the main story The feeling, Mr. Newton said, was that ''we have just bought the most extraordinary book.'' In the United States, where Ms. Rowling is currently on a book-signing tour that is drawing crowds of children and adults, more than a half-dozen publishers joined the bidding when Mr. Little offered the first book to American publishers in 1997, after it was released in Britain. Scholastic's Levine/Scholastic imprint beat out a group that included Hyperion, Putnam and Random House with a bid of $105,000. Jean Feiwel, publisher of the Scholastic Book Group in New York, recalled the gamble: ''The auction went pretty high for a book that was going well in England but hadn't broken any box-office records. And it wasn't clear that the success would translate across the ocean.'' Time Warner's Warner Brothers, meanwhile, signed a separate deal for an unspecified amount for movie and merchandising rights.

The film is set to appear in 2001. Ms. Rowling herself has said she will produce a book a year until the series is complete -- seven books, one for each of Harry's years at the Hogwarts boarding school, with the next one due out next July. Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up Privacy Policy Both Bloomsbury and Scholastic say they expect to publish the entire series, although neither would disclose its financial arrangements with Ms. Rowling. But already, Mr. Little said, the book's earnings for the author are ''well into the seven figures, not yet in eight figures.'' And, with four more books in the offing, some critics have forecast that the tales will enter the pantheon of children's books alongside the works of C. S. Lewis and other enduring classics. Arthur A.

Levine, the Scholastic editor whose imprint is publishing the American Harry Potter editions, sees their success as ''the combination of a really great book getting a lot of attention and that's magic; even in this day and age, that can drive a business success.'' ''But it's not marketing magic,'' Mr. Levine said. ''It's the magic of writing and the magic of reading.'' For Bloomsbury, meanwhile, even if the Harry Potter publicity blizzard has obscured some of Bloomsbury's other achievements, the breakthrough has reinforced Mr. Newton's stated belief: In an age when book publishing is often an appendage of a media leviathan, there remains a place for smaller, independent outfits focused on literary fiction and reference works. ''Publishing is still a human-scale activity, no matter how large an entity you create around it,'' said Mr. Newton, whose company is based in an 18th-century house in London's raffish Soho district. ''So there's a very good argument for publishing being done by units that combine the sort of clout that we do have as publishers with flexibility, speed of decision making and the lack of bureaucratic layers.'' Mr.

Newton grew up in San Francisco, the son of an English father and American mother. He came to Britain at age 18 as an undergraduate at Cambridge University and has lived here virtually ever since. He worked in publishing at Macmillian and then Sidgwick & Jackson before starting Bloomsbury at the age of 31, where he scored an early success with Scott Turow's ''Presumed Innocent.'' Advertisement And he has been quick to embrace the trans-Atlantic, digital age -- not only with the Microsoft deal but also with an on-line book-selling service, Bloomsbury.com, and plans for a United States subsidiary, Bloomsbury USA. And what has all this meant for Bloomsbury's balance sheet? Earlier this month the company released figures for the first half of the year -- traditionally the least profitable period for publishers -- showing that it had narrowed its losses to $169,000, compared with a loss of $539,000 in last year's first half. First-half sales of $10.56 million were up 30 percent from the comparable period a year earlier.

The recent figures included the amortization of costs relating to some of the $4.62 million outlays from the Encarta deal with Microsoft and the development of two other big data base projects the company is keeping under wraps. Significantly, the first-half figures did not include the success of the third Harry Potter book, which was published in Britain on July 8 and released in the United States last month. Analysts now expect Bloomsbury to record a pretax profit for this calendar year of more than $4.1 million on sales of $29.7 million. That will include the year-end holiday season, when Mr. Newton is predicting huge sales, which he said he hoped would be buoyed by special cloth-bound editions of the Harry Potter books that are to retail for around $30 each, compared with about $18 for the current cardboard hard covers. Of course, the company is not solely dependent on Ms. Rowling. It has published best-selling work in Britain by pedigreed authors who include Nadine Gordimer, Michael Ondaatje, Margaret Atwood, David Guterson, Joanna Trollope, John Irving and Anna Pavord. ''Our interest is literary fiction and that's what we publish,'' Mr.

Newton said. ''And if you examine the best-seller lists of the past three years, it's quite clear that literary fiction is at the top of the heap.'' Ms. Barton, the Investec analyst, said Bloomsbury's stable of authors, as well as its Microsoft Encarta venture and other data base projects, would attract investors over the next few years. She rates the stock a buy. ''Harry Potter is only one factor,'' she said, but ''it's a high-profile factor.'' ''The City likes visibility,'' she said, referring to London's financial district. And no one is pretending that so much visibility -- buzz might be an even better word -- would have come to the company without that upstart wizard, Harry Potter. How (and Why) Harry Potter Nearly Didn't Get Published NZ Forest Native Birds Just ponder the following: What if Bloomsbury, the then small and very new publisher that eventually took on Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone after just about every other British publisher rejected it, hadnt existed?

In a rare personal interview with The Independent, Nigel Newton, the chairman of Bloomsbury Publishing, which started business in 1994, tells the story of how Joanne Rowlings agent called at the publishers cramped Soho Square office with sample chapters of Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone. Bloomsbury was just about the last chance for Rowling to get her book published. Newton told The Independent that he took the manuscript home but didnt read it, which certainly doesnt sound as though he had been given good reason to feel any enthusiasm for it. Instead, he gave it to his daughter Alice, then eight years old. Unfortunately, he didnt tell the newspaper his reasons for giving the manuscript to Alice instead of assessing it for himself. The Independent reports Newton as recalling: She came down from her room an hour later glowing, saying, Dad, this is so much better than anything else. She nagged and nagged me in the following months, wanting to see what came next. So Newton made out a cheque to Joanne Kathleen Rowling for £2,500. Apparently thats a normal advance for a first childrens book in the UK.

In New Zealand it is more like $200. The first print run was only 500, which clearly shows that Newton had absolutely no sales expectations for the book that had roused so much enthusiasm in his daughter. So why did Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone become such a huge seller? Here are some of my own conclusions. Ive discussed them elsewhere, but I see no harm in repeating them here. It was bound to happen sooner or later; children had been starved of fantasy for far too long. I myself couldnt find more than two titles in the mid-eighties for an 11-year-old fantasy-mad boy. I wasnt impressed, especially since the shelves of adult books positively groaned with fantasy titles. Rowling gives children absolutely everything they could possibly want: Humour, which isnt normally a big feature in fantasy of this type (for the plot of the Harry Potter series is every bit as dark as that of, say, Lord of the Rings) and humour is the number one preference of most children. Sometimes the humour feels out of place in the Harry Potter books.

For example, its hard to imagine powerful wizards putting up with staircases that change direction willy-nilly while someone is using them! But its definitely funny that the wizards cant seem to do anything about it. So are the ghosts that inhabit the castle, all the portraits that can move and talk; and so on. Extreme empowerment of the child reader. Harry starts off as a downtrodden, ill-treated, unwanted child who suddenly finds he is someone so important that people address him as Mister and even bow to him. Few authors empower the child reader as strongly as this. Its irresistible. Plenty of spine-chilling events. If there is one thing that rivals humour in childrens reading preferences, its scary stories. Lots of magic. While childrens writers of fantasy are always being exhorted to go easy on the magic, this is because of editorial prejudice. Either Joanne Rowling hadnt read such advice, or simply ignored it. Most published fantasy books dont provide enough magic for most child readers. You need a fifth reason? Come on, give me a break!

Another question to consider is why all those editors rejected Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, and why even Nigel Newton would almost certainly have done so but for his daughters pester power, as he himself called it. Among the (ostensible) reasons for rejection were too conventional, too long, too weird or too old-fashioned. As if any of these things matter to the audience for which Rowling wrote Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone! They just want a good story, for goodness sake! More serious are the following: The book is slow to start. Even young readers who went on to become staunch Harry Potter fans admitted this in the beginning. They probably wouldnt admit it now, of course. The attention of the editor needs to be grabbed as quickly as possible; preferably with the opening sentence, but certainly before the end of the first page. The first page of Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone is all what writers call telling instead of showing. My guess is editors would particularly dislike the opening sentence, though I had no problem with it myself.

The book doesnt start where it should: with Harry, or inside Harrys head. In a book for children the main character should be introduced either at the beginning of the book or very near it. The characters we meet at the start of the book are ones with which few readers could identify. They are far from likeable. Having fat people (especially a fat boy) depicted as unbelievably nasty would definitely be a turn-off for many editors. For a start, its a fact that a fat boy is more likely to be the victim of a bully rather than being the bully. I would like to add that none of these points really worried me; Im simply guessing they may have worried all those editors who rejected the book. (The last article I read on this subject stated that 12 publishers rejected it.) Most likely Nigel Newton did at least glance at the first page and was also turned off by whatever bothered the other editors. Now, the only burning question I have that still needs an answer is how did Rowling manage to get an agentnever mind such a prestigious onewithout having the obligatory bait of a publishing contract with which to bash him over the nose?

Incidentally, its surprising how many editors of childrens books seem to dislike all the things children adore. In one of the electronic newsletters to which I subscribe, a writer with many published titles for children wrote that some of the most effective words to put in a childrens fiction title are secret, mystery, magic, witches, wizards, ghosts, dragons, naughty and rude. She was, of course, referring to these words being ones that would most attract a child reader; the sight of any one of them in a title in the slush pile is more likely to spur an editor into sending a rejection without even glancing at the manuscript. The writer concerned, by the way, would be careful to keep any of these words out of her own titles. Being firmly focused on making a career of writing for children, she writes only what publishers want. What publishers of childrens fiction want and what children want couldnt be more differentfor the most part, anyway. © L A Barker Enterprises Rare "Harry Potter" Books - MuggleNet Find and Purchase Rare Books Here Have you ever wondered how to tell if your Harry Potter book is rare and worth a lot of money?

Well, this section on MuggleNet will explain all the intricacies associated with the rare Harry Potter books, from the first editions to the misprints and covers associated with each. We will also tell you what to look for when reviewing a signed Harry Potter book from the author, J.K. Rowling. Books that are signed by the stars of the film franchise really add no to very little value to the book. Which Harry Potter book is the “Holy Grail” of them all? If you guessed a first edition Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone that was published by Bloomsbury on June 30, 1997, then you are correct. That particular book is exceptionally valuable to the tune of somewhere between $30,000 and $55,000 as there were just 500 original printings. Journalist Nick Reynolds of the Daily Telegraph newspaper interviewed a new children’s author by the name of Joanne Rowling about a children’s book shortly after Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was released in the UK. Immediately after interviewing the new author, Mr. Reynolds went back to his office, skimmed through the new book, and tossed it into the trash.

Imagine how he feels today! Use the below listed tabs on the books and find out if your book is rare or valuable. Source of information: Abe Books , First Edition Books , eBay The Basics The book’s PRINT NUMBER is the most valuable key for identifying a collectible book. Everyone who is thinking about collecting books should know how to interpret this number. It is found at the bottom of the publisher’s page, which located just before the title page in most books. The first set of numbers in the line indicate the print number for that particular book, which is indicated by the lowest number in the set. The second set of numbers indicates what year the book was published, once again indicated by the lowest number in the set. Therefore, the number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0/0 01 02 03 indicates a FIRST PRINTING printed in 2000.

(This would be found in a 1/1 (First Edition/First Printing) US Goblet of Fire, for example.) The UK editions of Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix use the term “FIRST EDITION” on the publisher’s page to denote 1/1 copies. There is also a condition known as a state, whereby something about the book or dust jacket was changed during a print run. In order to be a TRUE FIRST EDITION, a book must be FIRST EDITION/FIRST PRINTING and (if applicable) FIRST STATE. The US Trade Editions One of the easiest sets to collect are the US trade editions. By “trade edition,” we mean those books which were meant for mass distribution in the US. This also refers to the books which include the “First Edition” denotation on the publisher’s page (the page with all the printing information and numbers). First, let’s discuss the hardback books. The first thing you should know about the US books is that as of this point in time they ALL say “First Edition” on the publisher’s (or copyright) page facing the title page. Additionally, the US printed more books in each run than did the UK.

Therefore, just about the only editions with any financial value are first printings and signed editions. [The exception to this is the Sorcerer’s Stone, which had a small initial print run of 30,000. First printings are worth from $500 to $2,500, and early printings of this book do have some value (starting at about $50).] The really nice thing about the US editions is that you can collect a fine set of books which includes an early print of the Sorcerer’s Stone and 1/1 copies of all the other books for about $350, if you shop carefully. Although their value should increase, they will probably never be tremendously valuable. There were simply too many printed. However, they are affordable and make a wonderful gift for yourself or a special Harry Potter fan. You can own or give a piece of literary history without making a huge investment. Please take a moment to note that any US hardback Harry Potter book which has only black boards and NO diamond imprint (“boards” are composed of the front and back hard covers and spine) is a BOOK CLUB COPY – and nowhere near as valuable as those books with the appropriate two-color, diamond pattern boards.

Similarly, any US dustjacket which does NOT have raised foil covering the “Harry Potter” section of the book title belongs to a BOOK CLUB book. The Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets were the only US editions to have multiple states in the first printing. The Sorcerer’s Stone has TWO states of the 1/1. The very first books printed had a review from a British publication, The Guardian, on the back of the dust jacket. Although there are other differences, this quote alone will distinguish the first state. The second state has a review from an American publication, Publisher’s Weekly. The book behind either of these dust jackets would NOT have the number 1 on its spine. If it does have the number 1 present, someone has put a newer book inside and older dust jacket. The first state is considerably more valuable than the second state. The first state in fine condition routinely costs well over $1,500. The second state in similar condition costs $500 and up. The US Chamber of Secrets had THREE states of the 1/1. The first state has NO number 2 on the spine NOR the dust jacket.

The second state introduces the number 2 on the dust jacket and spine, and the third state shows a price increase from $17.95 to $19.95 on the jacket. Always check both book and dust jacket! You may find that someone has placed the dust jacket from a valuable book around one which is not worth as much. The first state of this book is far more collectible than either of the other states. According to the back of the Advanced Reader’s Copy of the Sorcerer’s Stone, there were a total of only 30,000 1/1 copies printed. We have no information on how many were in each state, but the first state is more desirable and seems to be much more rare. There were a total of 250,000 1/1 copies of The Chamber of Secrets printed. We have no information on how many were in each state, but once again the first state is far more desirable.

There were 500,000 1/1 copies of the Prisoner of Azkaban, 1,000,000 1/1 copies of the Goblet of Fire, and over 6,000,000 1/1 copies of the Order of the Phoenix. Now, a few quick comments on the US soft cover books. There are now several editions of the soft cover books out. The first edition has Mary GrandPré’s artwork on the cover and is oversized, for children. They do not currently have any extraordinary value other than providing the pleasure of owning a set of 1/1 Harry Potter books. You can usually obtain a full set of 1/1 paperback editions for less than $150, if you shop carefully. The UK Trade Editions If your thirst for collecting is not quenched by the US editions, there are many countries which publish their own editions of the Harry Potter books (Canada, Australia, Spain, Japan, Russia, Wales, etc.). However, unsurprisingly, the crown jewels reside in the UK. These books are more expensive than their US counterparts.

Not only are they from “the country of origin,” but they are also far more rare than their US cousins. Consequently, the early UK editions are very expensive. 1/1 copies of the first three books may cost anywhere from $800 to well over $15,000 (in the case of the ultra-rare Philosopher’s Stone). However, the Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix may be found for $50 and $35, respectively. There are also “Children” and “Adult” copies of these books. The covers are the only difference, and the Children’s copies are generally more collectible. For that reason, we will discuss them below. The UK version of a “book club edition” is the “Ted Smart Edition.” Although these books do have some value, they are not nearly as valuable as the true trade editions. They are identified on the publisher’s page thus, “Printed for The Book People.” Also, the dust jacket of a “Ted Smart Edition” may have ordering information on the back cover. Likewise, the “Large Print Editions” were printed for libraries and are not nearly as valuable as the trade editions.

Many sellers sell Ted Smart and Large Print Editions without clearly identifying them as the less valuable volumes, so make certain you get clarification from them if you have any questions whatsoever. They are easily spotted, as the words “Large Print Edition” appear in the black band located on the bottom of the cover. Exercise caution when purchasing and make certain you are getting the edition you want. Unlike the US trade editions, there is currently only one UK trade edition which has multiple states. The Prisoner of Azkaban 1/1 has THREE states. The first state listed the copyright to Joanne Rowling, rather than J.K. Rowling. There is also dropped text in this state, but the copyright alone will indicate it is a first state. The second state corrects the copyright to J.K. Rowling, lists Clays St. Ives as the printer, and has no ads in the rear. The third state does not mention a printer and has ads at the rear of the book. There is a VAST difference in the value between these states. In fine condition, the first state routinely costs over $1,500. The second and third state in similar condition bring $150 to $500.

The 1/1 Goblet of Fire is often advertised as a first state and errors within the pages are quoted. (For example, “James exits Harry’s wand first, followed by Lily.”) Actually, these errors existed throughout the entire first printing and there is only one state of this book. The Philosopher’s Stone 1/1 is VERY rare. There were 200 soft cover and 300 hardback books printed at the same time. They are very expensive ($4,000 and up depending on condition). They were issued without a dust jacket. Early printings may be obtained for $400 and up depending on condition and print number. The third printing was historically significant as the first printing which included a dust jacket. To the best of our knowledge, there were 10,150 1/1 copies of the Chamber of Secrets, 10,000 1/1 copies of the Prisoner of Azkaban (500 of those were first state), and 1,000,000 1/1 copies of the Goblet of Fire.

About 1/3 of the UK Goblet of Fire books were printed at Omnia Books in Scotland. The remainder were printed by Clays of London which is the printer of for all other UK editions. The Omnia copies may be a bit more valuable since there are fewer of them. We have not confirmed information on the number of copies in the two 1/1 versions of the UK trade Order of the Phoenix, but can safely say it was over 1,000,000 copies. The same is true if the number of copies in the two 1/1 versions of the UK trade Half-Blood Prince. Collecting 1/1 copies of the UK paperbacks makes a nice alternative to their very expensive hardback cousins. There are now several editions of the soft cover books out. The first editions were printed in 1997 through 2003 and are the most collectible. They cost between $20 and $200 each, with the early books being the most expensive. The 1/1 soft cover Philosopher’s Stone is beyond reach for most of us. It was released concurrently with the hardback edition and only 200 copies were in the first printing.

However, with careful shopping, a good early edition may be purchased for $500-$3,000, depending on condition. Another great option for the collector who wants to own first edition UK books is purchasing ex-library copies. These are books which once resided in libraries or school libraries in the UK. After leaving service, they are sold in library sales or removed while libraries are being updated. They are usually a bit beat up, but they are quite affordable and appear on eBay occasionally. Recently, I was able to purchase 2 UK paperbacks, an early Philosopher’s Stone and a first printing Chamber of Secrets, WITH JKR’s signature from a gentleman who helped clean out a school library. They came with stickers on them which certify them to be “Signed by the Author.” I bought both of them for only $200. Yes, they are a bit ragged, BUT the signatures are 100% correct and I like to think that JKR would love the fact that dozens of children enjoyed Harry’s adventures through these books. Many early UK Potter books went to libraries. It is part of the history of Harry.

So if you are looking for affordable, collectible books, take a look at ex-library books and see if they are for you. Make sure you also look for the stamp that says the book was properly withdrawn from circulation. Celebratory Editions (which have been released with each movie) have foil stars on their covers. They are less valuable, but do make a nice set. You should be able to find them for about $10.00 each. The second editions were all published in 2004 and feature new cover designs. You should be able to pick up the complete set of 1/1 books for $50 to $80. The first edition trade soft covers do hold more value than their US counterparts, as there were far fewer printed. The celebratory and second editions do not currently have any extraordinary value other than providing the pleasure of owning a set of 1/1’s. Collectors and Deluxe Editions There are collector’s editions of all the Harry Potter books available in both the UK and the US. The UK Deluxe Editions are quite lovely and make wonderful, reasonably priced gifts for fans. They are bound in cloth boards with the cover from the UK book in the center of the front cover.

They also feature J.K. Rowling’s signature in gold, gild-edged pages, and a sewn-in silk bookmark. The 1/1 copies of these books are quite rare and are priced from $65 to $1,500. The Prisoner of Azkaban is especially rare and is usually priced between $1,500 and $2,000. There were only 7,000 copies printed. There were 12,000 copies of the 1/1 Philosopher’s Stone and 17,000 of the 1/1 Chamber of Secrets printed. As with the trade editions, there were significantly more 1/1 copies of the Goblet of Fire (30,000 to 35,000) and Order of the Phoenix printed, making them significantly less valuable. The term “First Edition” is used on the publisher’s page of both the Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix to indicate a true first edition. Misinformation on these print numbers was widely disseminated among booksellers. It incorrectly identified these books as more rare than they actually are.

Please make sure you are aware that the higher numbers listed here come from the publisher, Bloomsbury Books, and should be accurate. Later impressions generally reach £10. The US Collector’s Editions are a little less desirable to me, personally. (You may disagree.) The Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets are made of a pressed leather material. The Sorcerer’s Stone does have a great drawing of Harry by J.K. Rowling in the front of the book. There were 100,000 copies of each printed and to my knowledge there was no second printing. I had heard that Scholastic planned on printing the Prisoner of Azkaban and Goblet of Fire in successive Novembers. However, I have not heard anything within the past year to indicate that they are following through on that plan. Additionally, the US Deluxe Edition of Order of the Phoenix does not look like the Collector’s Editions. It is not leather bound, but has a special dust jacket with more GrandPré artwork on it (depicting Grimmauld Place) and comes housed in a nice slip case.

Proofs and Advanced Reading Copies (ARCs) Proofs were released to editors and reviewers in the UK prior to publication of the first three Harry Potter books. They contain numerous errors which were remedied before the first printing and feature release information on the rear cover. These proofs were very limited in number (I’ve heard anywhere from 50 to 200 copies) and many were damaged or thrown away. Therefore, they are quite rare and quite valuable. A Proof Copy of the Philosopher’s Stone in good condition will generally cost over $6,000. The Chamber of Secrets will cost over $3,000, as will The Prisoner of Azkaban. These books have soft covers. As far as I know, only the CoS featured a proof dust jacket wrapped around it. The US equivalent of proofs are ARCs. They were also printed prior to the first three books. There were between 3,000 and 5,000 of each printed, making them far more rare than any US trade edition. They generally cost between $200 and $1,000 each, depending on title and condition.

"Harry Potter and the Philosopher‘s Stone" - The Holy Grail Hardcover first edition first printings of this 1997 book have become the ‘Holy Grail’ for Potter collectors. If you find one in the attic, then you’ve hit the jackpot. Only 500 were published and 300 went to libraries. The main characteristics of a 1997 first edition first issue are a print line that reads 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 and the crediting of “Joanne Rowling” not JK, and lacks a space between Thomas Taylor and the copyright date (“Taylor1997” rather than “Taylor 1997”). Issued simultaneously in both hardcover and paperback, the copyright page for both books are identical. The copyright page lists the ISBN for both books (0 7475 3274 5 Paperback, and 0 7475 3269 9 Hardback). The hardcover has pictorial laminated boards, and was issued without dust jacket. Dust jackets were introduced on the third printing.

Bloomsbury has stated that 500 hardcovers were produced in the first printing. The hardcover is more desirable than the paperback. The cover price is printed on the back of both books – £10.99 for the hardcover and £4.99 for the paperback. Both hardcover and paperback has a quote by Wendy Cooling on the front cover. The first Australian edition was also published by Bloomsbury. It has a full number line and looks similar to the first UK edition. However it lacks the Wendy Cooling quote on the front cover, and it was issued with a dust jacket. The first Canadian edition was published by Raincoast Books in Vancouver. It looks similar to the UK edition, but there are several small differences including a different quote on the cover and Raincoast on the spine. The Ted Smart edition also looks like the true first edition, but it lacks the Wendy Cooling quote on the cover, it says “Ted Smart” on the spine, and it says “This edition produced for The Book People Ltd 1998” on the copyright page.

The Large Print Edition was published by Bloomsbury in 2001 it also looks similar to the true first, but it says “Large Print Edition” in the place of the Cooling quote, and the copyright page states: “This edition first published in Great Britain in 2001.” The first printings of both the paperback and the hardcover has a typographical error on page 53 where “1 wand” is repeated (as the first item and last item) on the “Other Equipment” list. This error is present on all UK first printings, and on other very early printings. It has also been observed on early printings of the Canadian first edition, which was likely produced from the Bloomsbury printing proofs. The error is not found on any of the US editions. There is another error that is also present on early printings where “highchair” is found on the first line of page 8. It was eventually changed to “high chair”. It can be found on early UK and Canadian printings, but is not on any US printing. Neither of the two errors are technically first edition points, because they exist on all first editions and on some early printings.

A handful of advance proof copies are available from $7,500 to $13,500. Prices for Australian first editions vary between $200 and $2000. The first editions of the deluxe edition from 1999 are also desirable with prices from $450 to $2,500. Paperback first editions of the Philosopher’s Stone are also quite scare and attract four-figure price-tags – sometimes five figures if in excellent condition. So…How do you tell whether your copy, which may look very similar to the one pictured above, is really a valuable first edition? To be a first edition, in either hard or soft cover, there are four very important issue points, all of which your book must have: 1. The publisher must be listed as Bloomsbury at the bottom of the title page. See photo below: 2. The latest date listed in the copyright information must be 1997. 3. The print line on the copyright page must read “10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1”, ten down to one, exactly. The lowest figure in the print line indicates the printing.

(For instance, if your copy has “20 19 18 17”, it’s a less valuable seventeenth printing.) You may have been told that you have a first printing if the copyright is in the name of “Joanne Rowling”, but that’s not true. All early printings of this title have the same copyright statement. This is what the whole back of the title page should look like: 4. On page 53, in the list of school supplies that Harry receives from Hogwarts, the item “1 wand” must appear twice, once at the beginning and once at the end. This mistake was corrected in the second printing of the book. If your book meets all these requirements then congratulations, you have a first edition! Do Judge a Book by Its Back Cover - By Peter Kenneth Do Judge A Book By Its Back Cover (Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone) By Peter Kenneth As collectors and fans of the Harry Potter books, it is important to be informed and cautious when making purchases.

As Mad-Eye Moody warns, “Constant vigilance!!” While vigilance is important when purchasing all books, this article will address the specific concerns related to the unethical handling and sale of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Unethical conduct occurs when a forger obtains two books: a paperback first printing and a hardcover second printing. The copyright page and page 53 (see first printing issue points) are then removed from the paperback first printing and are placed into the hardcover second printing. With this maneuver, the forger is able to present a counterfeit hardcover first printing. It is common for hardcover first printing copies to sell for $25,000.00 to $50,000.00. Unfortunately, in this situation, the forger has invested approximately $7,000.00 in two authentic editions and then created a false hardcover first printing that brings a sizable, yet dishonest profit. Misconduct also occurs when the forger removes the cover of a worn paperback first printing of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and then replaces it with the cover of a second, third, fourth, or fifth paperback printing of the book.

The forger has created a good condition counterfeit first printing and, in doing so, has increased their profit from $1,000.00 to $5,000.00. In my search to validate that these mishandlings have occurred, I discovered two important printing errors. These errors now serve as a roadblock to forgers and provide an easy method to identify existing forgeries. With this knowledge and in using these authentication tools, it is clear that there are many counterfeit “first printings” that have slipped through eBay, auction houses, and private sales as falsely identified authentic first printings. Prior to my discovery of these additional first printing issue points, it was believed that the first two hardcover printing covers were identical and that the first five paperback printing covers were identical, which made the discussed unethical handling of these books possible. The truth, however, is that there are two errors on the back cover of both the hardcover and paperback first printings.

The first error is a misspelling of the word Philosopher’s, which appears as “Philospher’s.” The second error is the switching of the words Witchcraft and Wizardry, which appear as “Wizardry and Witchcraft.” These two additional issue points are helpful tools in maintaining constant vigilance and monitoring integrity in the world of buying, selling, and trading of the first printing of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. In the case of this first printing, may you always judge this book by its back cover.

First Printing Issue Points Copyright page: The number line on the copyright page reads: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 The full name, Joanne Rowling, is printed The cover illustration copyright is printed as Thomas Taylor1997 with no space between Taylor and 1997 Book: The phrase “1 wand” is listed twice on the “Other Equipment” list found on page 53 Front cover: The cover includes a quote that reads “A terrific read and a stunning first novel” Wendy Cooling Back cover: Amazon.com: Customer Discussions: British version of Harry Potter books British version of Harry Potter books Sort: Oldest first | Newest first Showing 1-22 of 22 posts in this discussion Initial post: Aug 18, 2007 6:25:52 PM PDT Pics says: I am interested in buying all of the Harry Potter books (which I already have from the US) but from the British version. I understand there are minor changes in cover pictures or wording.

I too am interested in buying the british versions here is the link In reply to an earlier post on Aug 20, 2007 9:17:28 AM PDT Last edited by the author on Aug 20, 2007 9:18:47 AM PDT Jeffrey Lozito says: There are minor differences: the covers are all different; the title of the first book is different for the British version (The Philosopher's Stone vs. The Sorcerer's Stone); there are also many, many minor wording differences between the two editions (a lot of the British terms and phrases are replaced with American equivalents). Here's a website that will go over all of the major (and minor) differences between the two editions for you: ferences.html If you're really interested in buying the British editions, the easiest way is to buy from a Canadian store or dealer. Canada sells only the British version, and it's closer to the US and easier and cheaper to ship from Canada than from the UK. I myself read the British editions (my wife is Canadian and buys the Canadian books), and loved the British phrasings, etc.

In reply to an earlier post on Aug 23, 2007 6:02:09 PM PDT [Deleted by the author on Dec 22, 2008 4:30:39 AM PST] In reply to an earlier post on Aug 27, 2007 5:40:25 AM PDT Last edited by the author on Aug 27, 2007 5:51:15 AM PDT obsidianic says: "From what some of my British friends tell me the adult versions are also longer with more detail after the 4th or 5th book." This is the first that I've heard that there's different content in the Adult Editions. I would ask them for specifics before believing them, such as quoted text.

edit// The Bloomsbury FAQ seems a bit out of date, but they didn't mention anything about the Adult Editions having extra text: "The fifth book will also be published simultaneously in both an adult and children's hardback format (the adult format featuring a black and white cover)." - ault.asp?sec=6 (General Queries, page two) (Wow, there were only 500 hardcovers originally printed for the Philosopher's Stone!) Lance Lust says: Why does George Lucas come to mind? I did notice continuity errors throughout the series, so I guess it's not so bad to be going back over them with a fine tooth comb, but I just wonder if the changes will include those mistakes I noticed, or maybe the ones I saw weren't mistakes at all, just character development? One of my biggest gripes was with the Sirius Black character from book 4 to 5. In the 4th book he tells Ron that Hermione is correct about how house elves are treated, but then he goes and treats Kreacher like a blast ended screwt. This is off topic, but does anyone have trouble with the scroller while trying to type posts?

When I get a certain length the scroll bar jumps up away from what I'm trying to type. Anyone have that problem, and anyone know how to correct that? Bloomsbury Publishing | Harry Potter Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia Share Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you’ve made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. This article is not part of the Harry Potter universe . This article covers a subject that is part of the real world, and thus should not be taken as a part of the Harry Potter universe. Logo of Bloomsbury Publishing Bloomsbury is the publisher of the Harry Potter series in (British) English language. They were the first publisher out of eleven other publishers to accept J. K. Rowling 's books in 1997 . Over the last decade it has grown a lot bigger, and Bloomsbury won the Publisher of the Year in 1999 and again in 2000, primarily because of the Harry Potter series . Bloomsbury maintains an official website for the Harry Potter series.

Question: The Harry Potter series of books was published by which British publisher?
Answer: Bloomsbury