It’s been nine years and everyone is a little out of practice but it’s time to gear up for Harry Potter mania once again: The eighth story is about to hit the streets.
The circumstances are a little different from when “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” attracted massive crowds to midnight openings in 2007. “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is not part of the originally planned series, it’s a play, and it’s written by somebody other than J.K. Rowling.
The play — based on a new original story by Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne with the script written by Thorne — officially opens in London on Saturday, July 30 with the book (billed as the Special Rehearsal Edition Script) being released on Sunday, July 31.
The announcement last year stunned many who considered the Harry Potter series over. The unusual aspects of Harry Potter #8 have lead to uncertainty from libraries and bookstores about how to approach the new story and what the response will be from readers.
“I think a lot of people aren’t sure what to expect,” said Rachel Klein at Old Harbor Books. Still, the Sitka bookstore had 15 people already waitlisted for the book on July 7 and had ordered “a lot of copies for the store.” Old Harbor Books is planning on having a side table at the Sitka Library’s July 30 event and will open at 11 a.m. on Sunday to start selling copies.
“People are still excited for it because it’s a continuation of the series,” Klein said.
Juneau
Juneau’s Potter Party starts at 9 p.m. Saturday at Hearthside Books in the Nugget Mall. Enter through the freight door in the back — recast for the night in the role of Platform 9¾ — and prepare for a trivia tournament, coloring and game stations, and a Sorting Hat quiz custom-made by Hearthside employees.
The trivia tournament starts at 9:30 p.m. and will be divided into two segments with teams of 2-6 people. Prizes will go to the winner, the runner up and the best team name.
Also available will be Harry Potter-themed jewelry such as necklaces strung with Quidditch balls and House color-coded earrings, designed and assembled by Hearthside employee Elizabeth Ekins and manager Tori Weaver.
The book goes on sale at 12:01 a.m. Sunday, with dedicated lines for prepaid customers (there were 52 as of July 20) and preorder customers (66 so far) to keep it moving quickly.
“I don’t think it really matters if the book is any good or not, I think we’re all just going to enjoy prolonging our Harry Potter fandom,” Weaver said. “I think everyone’s just excited that the story is continuing at all and so we’ll take what we can get.”
It’s a sentiment Ekins echoed.
“It’s an excuse for all the people who love Harry Potter and who grew up with Harry Potter and who have had the Harry Potter experience to come together and hangout and celebrate that,” she said.
Sitka
Kids will be able to participate in a tabletop Quidditch tournament and scavenger hunt put on by the Sitka Public Library from 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday. Divided into Hogwart’s four houses — Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin — players will try to bounce a ping pong ball through three Quidditch hoops and into their opponent’s cup. Winners will get eternal glory and their names on the House Cup which will be displayed at the library. Registration was required.
Those who want to dress up can come be a part of the cheering section and Old Harbor Books will be there selling Harry Potter 1-7, themed items and puzzles.
The library is planning more events closer to the November 17 premiere of “Fantastic Books and Where to Find Them,” a movie based on a Hogwarts’ textbook and Rowling’s screenwriting debut. In the meantime, a book club has started due to re-interest in the series.
For more information, contact the library’s youth services director, Maite Lorente Rial at (907)747-4022 or at maite.lorente@cityofsitka.org.
Elsewhere in Southeast
Curious readers around Southeast should contact their bookstore or library about getting ahold of a copy.
Skaguay News Depot & Books will be open at 9 a.m. Sunday with copies of the book available. Sales manager Denise Welch said a decision not to hold a midnight opening was made after a low number of preorders — only 15 or so versus the 83 they had for “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” Welch said many customers didn’t seem to know about the book or had moved on from the Harry Potter fandom.
“We were told that was the last book,” she said.
Parnassus Books in Ketchikan will be open at noon Sunday but can’t guarantee they will have books on hand. “We hope to have dozens,” owner Charlotte Glover said. The books were ordered months ago but “it’s been our experience that we get it one day after.”
“We’re making every effort to have them just as fast as humanly possible,” she added.
Elsewhere in Ketchikan, Silly Munchkins is also hoping for an on-time delivery of their 20 copies. They are waiting on the book to announce details about a launch party sometime in the first week of August, check Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/sillymunchkins/) for updates. They open at noon on Sundays.
Sing Lee Alley Books & Gifts in Petersburg has been taking preorders and plans to have the book in stock. They open at 10 a.m. on Sundays.
In Haines, where the release date overlaps with the Southeast Alaska State Fair, the Babbling Book had ordered copies but wasn’t planning anything special.
“We’re curious how it will go ourselves,” said owner Tom Heywood.
About the book
From the publisher: “It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.
“While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.”
