Release Party for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince Barnes & Noble at Unions Square July 15, 2005 Written by Keith C. Smith Photographed by Jowy Romano

Something strange was in the air at the Union Square Barnes & Noble. The moon was bright and the atmosphere was misty; something magical was brewing. The cause of all the excitement was the well known fact that at the stroke of midnight, J. K. Rawling’s newest novel, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, was being released.

I entered the store at 6 p.m. and was instantly overwhelmed by the sheer mass of fans. Over two thousand people packed the store, many dressed in black robes and carrying wands and other magical paraphernalia. Some simply wore the hallmark glasses of the title character. Almost all of them had reserved a copy of the book months in advance. In fact, enough people reserved the book to make it bestseller months before its actual release.

After I went upstairs, I certainly realized the extent of the Potter fandom. The entire floor had been transformed into “Diagon Ally” (a location in the books where magical merchants peddled their supplies and potions). Signs pointed to the various events and giveaways.

At a sign that read "Apothecary,” I ran into Professor Snape (a character from the books). Snape was enjoying a glowing, smoking concoction. “Have a drink,” he said in a sinister voice. “It won’t turn you into a frog or anything…” Reluctantly, I took a glass and drank. Despite the looks of it, it tasted a lot like pineapple juice.

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you report about to"> what's up for today! New York Cool: In this Issue   Up another flight of stairs I found the divinations chamber. It looked like a scene out of Lawrence of Arabia. People were sprawled on large red cushions and were being entertained by dancing women. Behind them, astrologers, tarot readers and plain old fortune tellers gave visitors a portent of their future. I asked a gypsy with long earrings and colorful robes about the future of my career. “You have a long, dark path to follow ahead of you,” she said. “Gee, thanks…” I said and headed to the top floor. I guess the gypsy was right. The top floor was called “The Dark Forest.” Pillars were turned into trees as forest spirits mingled with the people. The main events of the night took place on this top floor: a magic show; a video message from Rawling; and a reading from the not yet released book by the man who voices the audio books, Jim Dale. The performance by Dale was filled with stirring descriptions and eccentric voices and the crowd hung on every word. They cringed with fear and laughed as the characters came to life, channeled by Dale through the use of his voice. Fortune Teller   Serving Snape's Concoction Finally, the countdown began. At 11:59 p. m. the atmosphere turned into a New Years Eve party. The entire population of the store counted away the final sixty seconds until midnight, when everyone exploded into a cheering festival as people were called by their numbers (given earlier in the day) to pick up their copies of the coveted book. Officials at Barnes & Noble estimate that their worldwide stores sold over one hundred copies per second for the first forty eight hours after the release of the book. That totals over seventeen million sales. With only one more book left in the series and an ever-increasing fan base, Potter fans expect the final book’s release to inspire an even larger celebration of literature and magic.

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