Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Release Date Announced

Croakyvoice writes "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling, the seventh and final book in the best-selling series, has been scheduled for release at 12:01 a.m. on July 21, 2007, Scholastic announced today." A deluxe edition for collectors and enthusiasts is also planned with a simultaneous release.

Comments

Gotta give her credit

[edwardpickman]

All jokes aside it's impressive accomplishment to go from a single mother on the dole to the most successful author of all time and she's still relatively young. The big question really has to be what next?

Re:Gotta give her credit

[koreth]

Or, perhaps, that it does, and the people who say that are often trying to convince themselves that it's okay their finances are a mess?

Re:Gotta give her credit

[dr_dank]

The Harry Potter series may not be Ulysses, but it did weave a tapestry of fantasy that not only appealed to a wide range of readers, but also grew with the kids that they were primarily aimed at. The protagonist went from having normal adolescent troubles being the most of his worries to being thrust into adulthood to face a showdown with a frightfully powerful antagonist and his followers. Green Eggs and Ham, this ain't.

All this aside, when has there been this much hoopla over a book in recent times? People will camp out in front of stores for the latest game consoles, hottest movies, etc, but its truely unique to see that kind of reception for a book. Instead of rotting their brains in front of the tv sets, kids are exercising their imaginations with these books and *gasp* even picking up other books along the way. Kids who may not have otherwise gotten into reading for pleasure have been introduced to it from reading Harry Potter.

If this is "catering to the lowest common denominator", then I say we need much more of it.

Re:Gotta give her credit

[NMerriam]

She's the literary Britney Spears.

In their own times, so were Charles Dickens and William Shakespeare. Don't even get me started on Dumas.

The only question is whether the story and craft appeals across generations, which Harry Potter seems to do very well so far.

Re:Gotta give her credit

[daviddennis]

i have enjoyed reading her books.

I have never, at any point, enjoyed the "music" created by Britney Spears.

The fact that people ranging from kids to Slashdotters to more or less typical adults have enjoyed the books seems like an excellent tribute to their quality. It's very hard writing something a general audience enjoys. In particular, very few science fiction/fantasy authors have done it.

I think fans of SF/fantasy should be congratulating her on her success instead of trying to cut her down.

The general public sometimes shows surprisingly decent taste. This is one of these times.

D

Re:Gotta give her credit

[miyako]

I suggest you read books 5 and 6, and to a lesser extent 4. What you point out is pretty heavily used in the first three books, and a bit in book 4 as well. By the end of book 4 and during 5 and 6 however, things definitely begin to change. Harry still wins for the most part, but it becomes less about serendipity and hidden powers, and more about paying the price for good. There is a scene early on in book 6 where harry confronts malfoy, and ends up petrified on the floor with a broken nose from malfoy stomping his face in. Not to mention the deaths of Sirius and Dumbledore.

Re:Gotta give her credit

[GospelHead821]

I agree with your assessment that the Harry Potter books are juvenile fiction, but they are also a refreshing deviation from the spineless stories that have passed for juvenile fiction for years. They are, furthermore, entertaining enough to be enjoyable light reading for adults. Although they may be targeted at adolescents, they appeal to a larger audience, which is a noteworthy attribute. In my opinion, the Harry Potter books are a model of quality juvenile fiction. They are literary enough and bold enough that they are likely to inspire readers to continue reading even after they've grown out of juvenile fiction. Previously, I was of the opinion that most juvenile fiction set kids up for disappointment when they found failure, death, and other unhappy endings in more adult fiction.

Ma-Fi???

[Wilson_6500]

We already have a genre for "Magic Fiction."

Fantasy.

Re:Live Blogging from B&N

[Firehed]

Oh that's just so wrong. I bet he'd go for Starbuck though. Actually, probably Boomer, seeing that he had a thing for Asians :)

Re:Regardless of the release date

[porcupine8]

I've honestly never seen an honest-to-god HP spoiler. Where do you find them? There's always tons of speculation, but the only real info is whatever JKR releases on her site - which is rarely to never anything really useful. There were some supposed "spoilers" of Dumbledore's death, but there were just as many sites saying it was going to be Hagrid (or one of several other characters).

Re:Sci Fi

[1u3hr]

And WTF is the idea of linking to a random gaming forum for this "news"?

The publisher's press release is here. Why does Slashdot indulge people who cut and paste from a primary source to their lousy site/blog/forum/Piquepaille to get clicks? Aside from the clicks, it often gets distorted and cut to the submitter's agenda, or just cluelessness.

Re:missed opportunity

[maxume]

Great. All we need is 363 more terrorist attacks and nobody will be able to do anything anymore for fear of not being sensitive enough.

Re:Sci Fi

[jmorris42]

> And WTF is the idea of linking to a random gaming forum for this "news"?

Can I get an AMEN?

It needs to be a rule that only primary sources get linked. That means a blog can't be linked unless the primary content of interest to the /. crowd is the actual creative output of the blogger and not some asshole's opinion about a link to a primary source. Commentary from random assholes is what SLASHDOT is for. Lets not get all circular with slashdot posting a link to a forum talking about a blog post that said something interesting about a piece on a newspaper's website about a piece of proposed legislation on some congressman's website. The potential for a huge circlejerk here is massive.

Besides, when the article links to a site with comment posting discussion should be taking place on that site, not slash. So Hey, Taco! Why the hell do you want to drive those valuable comments (pageviews) to another site? Huh?

Re:Sci Fi^H^H^H^H^H FANTASY!!!

[rblancarte]

AMEN.

This is my biggest problem w/ people posting their own works. Because while maybe they have some good stuff to contribute, I know they are really just looking for people to get clicks on their page.

And overall, I think the official release on site or any of the numerous sites that cover this would have done better.

And why no props for JK Rowling herself?

RonB

Re:Cue spoiler t-shirts.

[miyako]

Actually, it's the last book because since the beginning of the series, she planned on making 1 book for each of the seven years at Hogwarts.
I don't think that it's fair to criticize the fans of the series. There are certainly people who are fans of the series who are young, or who are older and not well read, but there are also many people who are well read and can appreciate the stories.
As for the comments regarding the plotlines being predictable, the series does make use of a number of themes that are common to the fantasy genre, and certainly in retrospect it is easy to see how the plot has followed those common themes. I think this applies especially to the large thematic arches of the series. There are, however, surprising and interesting subplots that can be enjoyed.
The thing is though, even these subplots are not exceptionally intricate, and I do not think that the series is meant to be read like a standard mystery or thriller, where you spend the book trying to figure out who done it, where, how and why. The series isn't really about telling a new story and trying to figure that story out. I think that the real strength of the series is it's implementation of common fantasy themes. To use the cliche`, it's about the journey, not the destination. Reading the Harry Potter series is about seeing how these traditional events unfold in a certain time and place. The author understand that, and focuses on those elements of the story- creating a vibrant living world with three-dimensional characters and exploring how these recurring themes effect them and the world they live in.
It is perfectly fair to not like the series, but don't completely dismiss it or the people who enjoy it.

Re:Cue spoiler t-shirts.

[David Horn]

With the greatest possible respect, you Sir, are a moron. The vast majority of people find Harry Potter an enjoyable read - primarily because they're not approaching it expecting War and Peace and looking to criticise. Bear in mind that it's got millions of kids reading, and for that alone the Harry Potter series is priceless and JK Rowling deserves to be applauded.