HP6 - Midnight Magic!

Hedwig & Suzy
Originally uploaded by peachicken.

As the whole world knows, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince went on sale at midnight last night - we were there to witness the event. Tim and I jumped on the Hogwart's Express and went to the Barnes & Noble at Union Square in NYC (this same B&N hosted the Tori Amos booksigning in March - ahh yeah). Talk about marketing a book, B&N went all out for this one - and the event was completely free!

When you first walked in, you were immediately greeted by the Gryffindor portrait of "The Fat Lady" asking you for passwords, giving you access to four floors of fun. Broomsticks hung from the ceiling and the air was thick with magic. Thousands of kids dressed up like Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws, Gryffindors and Slytherins, all lined up for their chance to get an early peek at the new book. There were countless activities to keep the kids' attention until the midnight countdown (I was one of those kids!). On the second floor, in "Diagon Alley" we got our faces painted, made wands at Ollivander's Wand Shop, and drank potions (punch with pop rocks) from the Apothecary. On the third floor, "Hogwarts," we visited the Mess Hall for some refreshments and stopped by Divination class.

But the highlight of our visit was in the "Dark Forest" on the fourth floor. We stood amidst hundreds of other fans awaiting the arrival of Jim Dale, narrator of the Potter audio books. To me, Dale is the true voice of Harry Potter (and every other character!). He has won countless awards for his work with the Potter series, including a Tony Award for creating 134 distinct voices for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. He read favorite excerpts from his most memorable characters, such as Dobby, Mrs. Weasley, and Professor Sprout (bubotuber puss). At the end of the night, he also read an excerpt from the new book. What an amazing night!

As a librarian, the thing that struck me most about last night was the sheer amount and enthusiasm from kids of all ages waiting to read a book. That to me, is inspiring and convinces me that not all is lost! I know some people have serious problems with material that the Potter book addresses, but I'll save that for another post. (Food for Thought - moral ambiguity as a writers' tool to inspire reader involvement. Chew on that!)