In honor of the 17th Anniversary of the release of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the UK, all of the people working to publish Harry Potter and the Art of Spying are sharing their stories about the first time they read a Harry Potter book. If you’re a member of the Harry Potter fan family, share your story in the comments! We can’t wait to hear from you!
Art of Spying Authors
Lynn Boughey:
One Easter weekend (I think in 2003) when visiting the in-laws in Billings, Montana I found that I had nothing to read. My wife had a copy of Sorcerer’s Stone, which she had just read, and suggested that I read it. Desperate for something to read, I took it with me to the bedroom we were using and didn’t come out for about 5 hours. I found the story fun and interesting, though not yet fascinating. When asked what I thought by my wife after I finished it, I—the college professor and lawyer and long-time student of Shakespeare and reader of primarily classics —opined, “Not bad, but it’s still ‘fluff.’” But I was soon hooked! As soon as I could do, I purchased the next three and read them quickly in succession. So, by the evening of June 20, 2003, when Order of the Phoenix came out, there I was at midnight surrounded by kids half my age standing in line like all the others to get the newest book. I stayed up half the night reading and did little else that weekend until I had completed my favorite book of the series. My twin girls were only a month old at the time so I read many portions of the book to them in the evenings when they needed to get back to sleep. Perhaps that is why they are such great Potter fans now, at age eleven.
~Lynn
Stop back later today for Peter Earnest’s first memory of Harry Potter!
Amy Quale, Editor and Publisher for Wise Ink Creative Publishing
lynn