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''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' is a
fantasy novel Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fa ...
written by British author
J. K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The ser ...
and the seventh and final novel of the main ''
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at Ho ...
'' series. It was released on 21 July 2007 in the United Kingdom by
Bloomsbury Publishing Bloomsbury Publishing plc is a British worldwide publishing house of fiction and non-fiction. It is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index. Bloomsbury's head office is located in Bloomsbury, an area of the London Borough of Camden. It has a U ...
, in the United States by Scholastic, and in Canada by
Raincoast Books Raincoast Books is a Canadian book distribution and wholesale company. Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Raincoast was founded by Mark Stanton and Allan MacDougall in 1979 as a consignment wholesaler that shared overhead, warehouse space and ...
. The novel chronicles the events directly following ''
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores th ...
'' (2005) and the final confrontation between the wizards
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at Ho ...
and
Lord Voldemort Lord Voldemort ( , in the films) is a sobriquet for Tom Marvolo Riddle, a Character (arts), character and the main antagonist in J. K. Rowling's series of ''Harry Potter'' novels. The character first appeared in ''Harry Potter and the Ph ...
. ''Deathly Hallows'' shattered sales records upon release, surpassing marks set by previous titles of the ''Harry Potter'' series. It holds the
Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
for most novels sold within 24 hours of release, with 8.3 million sold in the US and 2.65 million in the UK. Reception to the book was generally positive, and the book won the 2008 Colorado Blue Spruce Book Award, and the American Library Association named it the "Best Book for Young Adults". A film adaptation of the novel was released in two parts: ''
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1 ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1'' is a 2010 fantasy film directed by David Yates from a screenplay by Steve Kloves. The film is the first of two cinematic parts based on the 2007 novel ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows ...
'' in November 2010 and '' Part 2'' in July 2011.


Plot


Background

Throughout the six previous novels in the series, the main character
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at Ho ...
has struggled with the difficulties of adolescence along with being famous as the only person ever to survive the Killing Curse. The curse was cast by Tom Riddle, better known as
Lord Voldemort Lord Voldemort ( , in the films) is a sobriquet for Tom Marvolo Riddle, a Character (arts), character and the main antagonist in J. K. Rowling's series of ''Harry Potter'' novels. The character first appeared in ''Harry Potter and the Ph ...
, a powerful evil wizard who murdered Harry's parents and attempted to kill Harry as a baby, due to a prophecy which claimed Harry would be able to stop him. As an
orphan An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...
, Harry was placed in the care of his
Muggle In J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series, a Muggle () is a person who lacks any sort of magical ability and was not born in a magical family. Muggles can also be described as people who do not have any magical blood inside them. It differs fr ...
(non-magical) relatives
Petunia Dursley The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
and
Vernon Dursley The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
, with their son
Dudley Dursley The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
. In '' The Philosopher's Stone'', Harry re-enters the wizarding world at age 11 and enrols in
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series and serves as a m ...
. He befriends fellow students
Ron Weasley Ronald Bilius Weasley is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' fantasy novel series. His first appearance was in the first book of the series, ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', as the best friend of Harry Potter ...
and
Hermione Granger Hermione Jean Granger ( ) is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series. She first appears in the novel ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' (1997), as a new student on her way to Hogwarts. After Harry and Ron ...
and is
mentor Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...
ed by the school's headmaster,
Albus Dumbledore Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series. For most of the series, he is the headmaster of the wizarding school Hogwarts. As part of his backstory, it is revealed that he is ...
. He also meets Professor
Severus Snape Severus Snape is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series. He is an exceptionally skilled wizard whose sarcastic, controlled exterior conceals deep emotions and anguish. A Professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft ...
, who dislikes and bullies him. Harry fights Voldemort several times while at school as the wizard tries to regain a physical form. In ''
Goblet of Fire A chalice (from Latin 'mug', borrowed from Ancient Greek () 'cup') or goblet is a footed cup intended to hold a drink. In religious practice, a chalice is often used for drinking during a ceremony or may carry a certain symbolic meaning. R ...
'', Harry is mysteriously entered in the
Triwizard Tournament ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fourth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, a wizard in his fourth year at Hogwarts ...
, which he discovers is a trap designed to allow the return of Lord Voldemort to full strength. In '' Order of the Phoenix'', Harry and several of his friends face off against Voldemort's followers, the
Death Eaters The Death Eaters are characters featured in the ''Harry Potter'' series of novels and films. They are a radical group of wizards and witches, led by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who seek to purify the wizarding community by eliminating wiza ...
. In '' Half-Blood Prince'', Harry learns that Voldemort has divided his soul into several parts, creating " Horcruxes" from various unknown objects to contain them. In this way, he has ensured his immortality as long as at least one of the Horcruxes still exists. Two of these had already been destroyed: a diary destroyed by Harry in ''
Chamber of Secrets Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series and serves as a ma ...
'' and a ring destroyed by Dumbledore shortly before the events of ''Half-Blood Prince''. Dumbledore takes Harry along in an attempt to destroy a third Horcrux, Slytherin's
locket A locket is a pendant that opens to reveal a space used for storing a photograph or other small item such as a lock of hair. Lockets are usually given to loved ones on holidays such as Valentine's Day and occasions such as christenings, wedding ...
. However, the Horcrux had been taken by an unknown wizard, and upon their return, Dumbledore is ambushed and disarmed by
Draco Malfoy Draco Lucius Malfoy is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series. He is a student in Harry Potter's year belonging in the Slytherin house. He is frequently accompanied by his two cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Go ...
. Draco cannot bring himself to kill Dumbledore, so Snape kills him instead.


Overview

Following Dumbledore's death, Voldemort has taken effective control of the
Ministry of Magic The Ministry of Magic is the government of the Magical community of Britain in J. K. Rowling's Wizarding World, headed by an official entitled the Minister for Magic. The magical government in Britain is first mentioned in ''Harry Potter and t ...
. Meanwhile, Harry is about to turn seventeen and will lose his deceased mother's protection. Members of the Order of the Phoenix relocate the Dursleys, and prepare to move Harry to the Burrow by flying him there, using Harry's friends as decoys. Death Eaters attack them upon departure, and in the ensuing battle, "Mad-Eye" Moody and
Hedwig Hedwig may refer to: People and fictional characters * Hedwig (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Grzegorz Hedwig (born 1988), Polish slalom canoeist * Johann Hedwig, (1730–1799), German botanist * Romanus Adol ...
are killed while George Weasley is wounded. Voldemort arrives to kill Harry, but Harry's wand fends him off on its own. Harry, Ron, and Hermione prepare to hunt down Voldemort's four remaining Horcruxes. They each are given an object in Dumbledore's will: a
Golden Snitch Quidditch is a fictional sport invented by author J.K. Rowling for her fantasy book series ''Harry Potter''. It first appeared in the novel ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' (1997). It is a dangerous but popular sport played by wit ...
for Harry, a Deluminator for Ron, and ''
The Tales of Beedle the Bard ''The Tales of Beedle the Bard'' is a book of children's stories by the author J. K. Rowling. There is a storybook of the same name mentioned in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', the last book of the ''Harry Potter'' series. The book ...
'', for Hermione. They are also bequeathed the Sword of Godric Gryffindor, but the Ministry prevents them from receiving it. During Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour's wedding, the Ministry falls to Voldemort; Death Eaters attack the wedding reception. The trio flee to 12 Grimmauld Place,
Sirius Black Sirius Black is a character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series. Sirius was first mentioned briefly in ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' as a wizard who lent Rubeus Hagrid a flying motorbike shortly after Lord Voldemort killed ...
's family home he left to Harry. They learn that Sirius's late brother, Regulus, stole the Horcrux locket and hid it in the house. It was later stolen by Mundungus Fletcher. House-elf Kreacher locates Fletcher, who says the locket was taken by
Dolores Umbridge Dolores Jane Umbridge is a fictional character from the ''Harry Potter'' series created by J.K. Rowling. Umbridge is the primary antagonist of the fifth novel of ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' and has been stationed at Hogwart ...
. The trio infiltrate the Ministry and steal the locket from Umbridge, but Grimmauld Place is compromised in their escape. They hide in the forest, unable to destroy the locket and with no further leads. The locket's dark nature affects Ron, and he abandons the group. Harry and Hermione learn about Dumbledore's past with dark wizard,
Gellert Grindelwald The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
. They travel to Godric's Hollow, Harry's birthplace, where they are attacked by Nagini. They escape, but Harry's wand is damaged. One night, a doe Patronus guides Harry to a pond containing Gryffindor's sword. When Harry tries to recover it, the locket around his neck nearly kills him. Ron, guided back by the Deluminator, saves him and destroys the locket with the sword. In Dumbledore's book, Hermione identifies a symbol also worn by
Luna Lovegood Luna Lovegood is a fictional character in the ''Harry Potter'' book series by J. K. Rowling. She first appears in '' Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'', where she is described as having straggly, waist-length dirty-blond hair and a daz ...
's father
Xenophilius Lovegood The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
. When they visit him, he tells them of the mythical Deathly Hallows: the
Elder Wand An elder is someone with a degree of seniority or authority. Elder or elders may refer to: Positions Administrative * Elder (administrative title), a position of authority Cultural * North American Indigenous elder, a person who has and t ...
, an unbeatable wand; the Resurrection Stone, which can summon the dead; and an infallible Invisibility Cloak. Xenophilius acts strangely, and the trio realize Luna has been captured. Xenophillius summons Death Eaters to catch them in exchange for Luna's freedom, but the three escape. Harry deduces that Voldemort is hunting the Elder Wand, which had passed to Dumbledore after he defeated Grindelwald. Harry also deduces that his Invisibility Cloak is the third Hallow, and his Snitch contains the Resurrection Stone. The trio are captured and taken to
Malfoy Manor J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' universe contains numerous settings for the events in her fantasy novels. These locations are categorised as a dwelling, school, shopping district, or government-affiliated locale. Dwellings The Burrow The We ...
. Bellatrix tortures Hermione, believing they stole Gryffindor's sword from her Gringotts vault. With help from
Dobby Rhyan Clapham, known by his stage name Dobby (stylised as DOBBY), is a Filipino-Aboriginal Australian musician. He describes himself as a "drapper", a contraction of rapper and drummer, although he also plays other instruments and is also a compo ...
the house-elf, they escape to Bill and Fleur's cottage along with fellow prisoners, including the goblin Griphook. During the escape, Bellatrix kills Dobby. Harry has a vision of Voldemort stealing the Elder Wand from Dumbledore's tomb. The trio decide to break into Bellatrix's vault, believing another Horcrux is there. With Griphook's help, they break in, retrieve Hufflepuff's cup, and escape, though Griphook steals Gryffindor's sword in the process. Harry has a vision of Voldemort being informed of the heist and deciding to check his Horcruxes, thus revealing the remaining ones to Harry: Nagini, and one hidden at Hogwarts. The trio enter Hogwarts with help from Dumbledore's brother Aberforth. Voldemort, alerted to Harry's whereabouts, mounts an assault on Hogwarts. The teachers and students mobilize to defend the school. Ron and Hermione destroy Hufflepuff's cup with
basilisk In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk ( or ) is a legendary reptile reputed to be a serpent king, who causes death to those who look into its eyes. According to the ''Naturalis Historia'' of Pliny the Elder, the basilisk of Cyrene is ...
fangs from the
Chamber of Secrets Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series and serves as a ma ...
. Harry discovers that Ravenclaw's
diadem A diadem is a type of Crown (headgear), crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty. Overview The word derives from the Ancient Greek, Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", fr ...
is the Horcrux. The trio find the diadem in the
Room of Requirement Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' series and serves as a ma ...
but are ambushed by Draco, Crabbe and
Goyle The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
. Crabbe attacks them using a cursed fire, but fails to control it; the fire kills him and destroys the diadem. Meanwhile, many are killed in Voldemort's assault, including
Remus Lupin Remus John Lupin is a fictional character in the ''Harry Potter'' book series written by J. K. Rowling. He first appears in ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. Lupin remains in the s ...
,
Nymphadora Tonks The Order of the Phoenix is a secret organisation in the ''Harry Potter'' series of fiction books written by J. K. Rowling. Founded by Albus Dumbledore to fight Lord Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, the Order lends its name to the ...
, and
Fred Weasley Fred and George Weasley are fictional characters in the ''Harry Potter'' book series written by J. K. Rowling. The characters are the identical twin brothers of the Weasley family, making them the older brothers to Ron and Ginny and friends ...
. Voldemort feels the Elder Wand is not performing as expected. Believing that Snape, having killed Dumbledore, is its true master, Voldemort murders Snape. Harry arrives as Snape dies, and Snape passes him memories to view in the Pensieve. They reveal Snape loved Harry's mother and acted as a
double agent In the field of counterintelligence, a double agent is an employee of a secret intelligence service for one country, whose primary purpose is to spy on a target organization of another country, but who is now spying on their own country's organ ...
against Voldemort. He had watched over the trio, conjuring the doe Patronus. It is also revealed that Dumbledore was dying after mishandling the ring Horcrux, and had planned his "murder" at Snape's hands. Harry also learns that he is an unintentional Horcrux, unbeknownst to Voldemort, and must die at Voldemort's hands to render him mortal. Harry gives himself up, instructing
Neville Longbottom Neville Longbottom is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' book series. He is described as a round-faced Gryffindor student in the central character Harry Potter's year. Throughout the series, Neville is often portrayed as a ...
to kill Nagini. On the way, he uses the Resurrection Stone within the Snitch to reunite with his parents and other deceased loved ones. He drops the stone as he meets Voldemort, who casts the Killing Curse on him. Harry awakens in a dreamlike location resembling King's Cross and is greeted by Dumbledore. He explains that Voldemort's original Killing Curse left a fragment of his soul in Harry, causing their connection. The latest Killing Curse destroyed that soul fragment, allowing Harry to return to life or to "go on". Harry returns to life and feigns death. Voldemort calls for a truce at Hogwarts and demands their surrender. Neville, however, pulls Gryffindor's sword from the Sorting Hat and kills Nagini. The battle resumes, with
Molly Weasley The Order of the Phoenix is a secret organisation in the ''Harry Potter'' series of fiction books written by J. K. Rowling. Founded by Albus Dumbledore to fight Lord Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, the Order lends its name to the ...
killing Bellatrix, and Harry revealing himself to Voldemort and engages him in final battle. He explains that the Elder Wand's loyalty transfers upon the defeat, not the killing, of its former master. Draco, not Snape, had been the Elder Wand's master, having disarmed Dumbledore before Snape killed him. Having disarmed Draco at Malfoy Manor, Harry now commands the Elder Wand. Voldemort casts the Killing Curse at Harry, but the spell rebounds, killing Voldemort. Harry then uses the Elder Wand to repair his original wand before returning the Elder Wand to Dumbledore's tomb. He keeps his Invisibility Cloak, and lets the Resurrection Stone remain lost. The Wizarding World returns to peace. ;Epilogue Nineteen years later, the main characters are seeing their children off to Hogwarts. Harry and Ginny have three children: James Sirius, Albus Severus, and Lily Luna. Ron and Hermione have two children,
Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
and Hugo. Harry's godson
Teddy Lupin The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles ...
is found kissing Bill and Fleur's daughter Victoire; Draco and his wife are sending off their son
Scorpius Scorpius is a zodiac constellation located in the Southern celestial hemisphere, where it sits near the center of the Milky Way, between Libra to the west and Sagittarius to the east. Scorpius is an ancient constellation that pre-dates the Gr ...
. Albus is departing for his first year, and worries he will be placed in Slytherin. Harry reassures him, telling his son of Snape's bravery, and that the Sorting Hat could account for his wishes. As his scar has not hurt in 19 years, the narrator concludes that "all was well".


Background


Franchise

''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', the first book in the series, was published by
Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mu ...
on 30 June 1997. The second book, ''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' was published on 2 July 1998. ''Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'' was then published a year later on 8 July 1999. ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' was published on 8 July 2000. ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' was published on 21 June 2003. ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' was published on 16 July 2005, and sold 9 million copies in the first 24 hours of its worldwide release.


Choice of title

The title of the book refers to three mythical objects featured in the story, collectively known as the " Deathly Hallows"—an unbeatable wand (the Elder Wand), a stone to bring the dead to life (the Resurrection Stone), and a cloak of invisibility. Shortly before releasing the title, J. K. Rowling announced that she had considered three titles for the book. The final title was released to the public on 21 December 2006, via a special Christmas-themed hangman puzzle on Rowling's website, confirmed shortly afterwards by the book's publishers. When asked during a live chat about the other titles she had been considering, Rowling mentioned ''Harry Potter and the Elder Wand'' and ''Harry Potter and the Peverell Quest''.


Rowling on finishing the book

Rowling completed the book while staying at the Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh in January 2007, leaving a signed statement on a marble bust of
Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travellers, thieves, merchants, and orator ...
in her room that reads "J. K. Rowling finished writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in this room (552) on 11 January 2007". In a statement on her website, she said, "I've never felt such a mixture of extreme emotions in my life, never dreamed I could feel simultaneously heartbroken and euphoric." She compared her mixed feelings to those expressed by
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
in the preface of the 1850 edition of ''
David Copperfield ''David Copperfield'' Dickens invented over 14 variations of the title for this work, see is a novel in the bildungsroman genre by Charles Dickens, narrated by the eponymous David Copperfield, detailing his adventures in his journey from in ...
'', "a two-years' imaginative task". "To which," she added, "I can only sigh, try seventeen years, Charles". She ended her message by saying "''Deathly Hallows'' is my favourite, and that is the most wonderful way to finish the series". When asked before publication about the forthcoming book, Rowling stated that she could not change the ending even if she wanted. "These books have been plotted for such a long time, and for six books now, that they're all leading a certain direction. So, I really can't". She also commented that the final volume related closely to the previous book in the series, ''
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores th ...
'', "almost as though they are two-halves of the same novel". She has said that the last chapter of the book was written "in something like 1990", as part of her earliest work on the series. Rowling also revealed she originally wrote the last words to be something like: 'Only those who he loved could see his lightning scar. Rowling changed this because she did not want people to think Voldemort would rise again and to say that Harry's mission was over.


Major themes


Death

In a 2006 interview, J. K. Rowling said that the main theme of the series is Harry dealing with death, which was influenced by her mother's death in 1990, from
multiple sclerosis Multiple (cerebral) sclerosis (MS), also known as encephalomyelitis disseminata or disseminated sclerosis, is the most common demyelinating disease, in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. This ...
.
Lev Grossman Lev Grossman (born June 26, 1969) is an American novelist and journalist who wrote ''The Magicians Trilogy'': '' The Magicians'' (2009), '' The Magician King'' (2011), and '' The Magician's Land'' (2014). He was the book critic and lead technolog ...
of ''Time'' stated that the main theme of the series was the overwhelming importance of continuing to love in the face of death.


Living in a corrupted society

Academics and journalists have developed many other interpretations of themes in the books, some more complex than others, and some including political subtexts. Themes such as normality, oppression, survival, and overcoming imposing odds have all been considered as prevalent throughout the series. Similarly, the theme of making one's way through adolescence and "going over one's most harrowing ordeals—and thus coming to terms with them" has also been considered. Rowling has stated that the books comprise "a prolonged argument for tolerance, a prolonged plea for an end to
bigotry Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...
" and that also pass on a message to "question authority and ... not assume that the establishment or the press tells you all of the truth". Some political commentators have seen J. K. Rowling's portrayal of the bureaucratised Ministry of Magic and the oppressive measures taken by the Ministry in the later books (like making attendance at Hogwarts School compulsory and the "registration of Mudbloods" with the Ministry) as an allegory criticising the state.


Christian allegories

The ''Harry Potter'' series has been criticised for supposedly supporting
witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have ...
and the
occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism ...
. Before publication of ''Deathly Hallows'', Rowling refused to speak out about her religion, stating, "If I talk too freely, every reader, whether 10 or 60, will be able to guess what's coming in the books".Granger, p. 86 However, many have commented on Christian allegories that appear in ''Deathly Hallows''. For example, Harry dies and then comes back to life to save mankind, like Christ. The location where this occurs is King's Cross. Rowling also stated that "my belief and my struggling with religious belief ... I think is quite apparent in this book", which is shown as Harry struggles with his faith in Dumbledore.Granger, p. 88 ''Deathly Hallows'' begins with a pair of epigraphs, one by
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...
leader
William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
and one from
Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...
' '' The Libation Bearers''. Of this, Rowling said "I really enjoyed choosing those two quotations because one is pagan, of course, and one is from a Christian tradition. I'd known it was going to be those two passages since '' Chamber'' was published. I always knew
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
if I could use them at the beginning of book seven then I'd cued up the ending perfectly. If they were relevant, then I went where I needed to go. They just say it all to me, they really do". When Harry visits his parents' grave, the biblical reference "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death" ( 1 Corinthians 15:26) is inscribed on the grave. The Dumbledores' family tomb also holds a biblical quote: "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also", which is from Matthew 6:21. Rowling states, "They're very British books, so on a very practical note Harry was going to find biblical quotations on tombstones ... utI think those two particular quotations he finds on the tombstones at Godric's Hollow, they sum up – they almost epitomise the whole series". ''Harry Potter''
pundit A pundit is a person who offers mass media opinion or commentary on a particular subject area (most typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport). Origins The term originates from the Sanskrit term ('' '' ), meaning "knowledg ...
John Granger John Granger is a speaker and writer whose principal focus is the intersection of literature, faith and culture. He is most well known as the author of several books analysing J.K. Rowling's ''Harry Potter'' novels. He writes a weblog called ''Ho ...
additionally noted that one of the reasons the ''Harry Potter'' books were so popular is their use of literary alchemy (similar to ''
Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...
'', C. S. Lewis's ''
Perelandra ''Perelandra'' (also titled ''Voyage to Venus'' in a later edition published by Pan Books) is the second book in the ''Space Trilogy'' of C. S. Lewis, set on the planet of Perelandra, or Venus. It was first published in 1943. Plot summary Phi ...
'' and
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian er ...
's ''
A Tale of Two Cities ''A Tale of Two Cities'' is a historical novel published in 1859 by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his 18-year-long imprisonment in the ...
'') and vision symbolism. In this model, authors weave allegorical tales along the
alchemical Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world ...
magnum opus A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...
. Since the medieval period, alchemical allegory has mirrored the passion, death and resurrection of Christ. While the entire series utilises symbols common in alchemy, the ''Deathly Hallows'' completes this cycle, tying themes of death, rebirth, and the Resurrection Stone to the principal motif of alchemical allegory, and topics presented in the first book of the series.


Release


Marketing and promotion

The launch was celebrated by an all-night book signing and reading at the
Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history scientific collection, collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, Fungus, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleon ...
in London, which Rowling attended along with 1,700 guests chosen by ballot. Rowling toured the US in October 2007, where another event was held at
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th and 57th Streets. Designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill and built b ...
in New York City with tickets allocated by sweepstake. Scholastic, the American publisher of the Harry Potter series, launched a multimillion-dollar "There will soon be 7" marketing campaign with a "Knight Bus" travelling to 40 libraries across the United States, online fan discussions and competitions, collectible bookmarks, tattoos, and the staged release of seven ''Deathly Hallows'' questions most debated by fans. In the build-up to the book's release, Scholastic released seven questions that fans would find answered in the final book: # Who will live? Who will die? # Is Snape good or evil? # Will Hogwarts reopen? # Who ends up with whom? # Where are the Horcruxes? # Will Voldemort be defeated? # What are the Deathly Hallows? J. K. Rowling arranged with her publishers for a poster bearing the face of the missing British child
Madeleine McCann Madeleine Beth McCann (born 12 May 2003) is a British missing person who disappeared from her bed in a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, on the evening of 3 May 2007, at the age of 3. ''The Daily Telegraph'' described the disappear ...
to be made available to book sellers when ''Deathly Hallows'' was launched on 21 July 2007, and said that she hoped that the posters would be displayed prominently in shops all over the world. After it was announced that the novel would be released on 21 July 2007,
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
soon said that the film adaptation of ''
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix ''Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fifth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter's struggles through his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Wit ...
'' would come out shortly before the novel's release, on 13 July 2007, making many people proclaim that July 2007, was the month of ''Harry Potter''.


Spoiler embargo

Bloomsbury invested £10 million in an attempt to keep the book's contents secure until 21 July, the release date. Arthur Levine, US editor of the ''Harry Potter'' series, denied distributing any copies of ''Deathly Hallows'' in advance for press review, but two US papers published early reviews anyway. There was speculation that some shops would break the embargo and distribute copies of the book early, as the penalty imposed for previous instalments—that the distributor would not be supplied with any further copies of the series—would no longer be a deterrent.


Online leaks and early delivery

In the week before its release, a number of texts purporting to be genuine leaks appeared in various forms. On 16 July, a set of photographs representing all 759 pages of the US edition was leaked and was fully transcribed prior to the official release date. The photographs later appeared on websites and
peer-to-peer Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer n ...
networks, leading Scholastic to seek a
subpoena A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...
in order to identify one source. This represented the most serious security breach in the Harry Potter series' history. Rowling and her lawyer confirmed that there were genuine online leaks. Reviews published in both ''
The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...
'' and ''The New York Times'' on 18 July 2007, corroborated many of the plot elements from this leak, and about one day prior to release, ''The New York Times'' confirmed that the main circulating leak was real. Scholastic announced that approximately one-ten-thousandth (0.0001) of the US supply had been shipped early — interpreted to mean about 1,200 copies. One reader in Maryland received a copy of the book in the mail from DeepDiscount.com four days before it was launched, which evoked incredulous responses from both Scholastic and DeepDiscount. Scholastic initially reported that they were satisfied it had been a "human error" and would not discuss possible penalties; however, the following day Scholastic announced that it would be launching legal action against DeepDiscount.com and its distributor, Levy Home Entertainment. Scholastic filed for damages in Chicago's Circuit Court of Cook County, claiming that DeepDiscount engaged in a "complete and flagrant violation of the agreements that they knew were part of the carefully constructed release of this eagerly awaited book." Some of the early-release books soon appeared on
eBay eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became a ...
, in one case being sold to ''
Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' for US$250 from an initial price of US$18.


Price wars and other controversies

Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...
, along with several other UK supermarkets, having already taken pre-orders for the book at a heavily discounted price, sparked a price war two days before the book's launch by announcing they would sell it for just £5 a copy. Other retail chains then also offered the book at discounted prices. At these prices the book became a
loss leader A loss leader (also leader) is a pricing strategy where a product is sold at a price below its market cost to stimulate other sales of more profitable goods or services. With this sales promotion/marketing strategy, a "leader" is any popular artic ...
. This caused uproar from traditional UK booksellers who argued they had no hope of competing in those conditions. Independent shops protested loudest, but even
Waterstone's Waterstones, formerly Waterstone's, is a British book retailer that operates 311 shops, mainly in the United Kingdom and also other nearby countries. As of February 2014, it employs around 3,500 staff in the UK and Europe. An average-sized Wa ...
, the UK's largest dedicated chain bookstore, could not compete with the supermarket price. Some small bookstores hit back by buying their stock from the supermarkets rather than their wholesalers. Asda attempted to counter this by imposing a limit of two copies per customer to prevent bulk purchases. Philip Wicks, a spokesman for the UK Booksellers Association, said, "It is a war we can't even participate in. We think it's a crying shame that the supermarkets have decided to treat it as a loss-leader, like a can of baked beans." Michael Norris, an analyst at Simba Information, said: "You are not only lowering the price of the book. At this point, you are lowering the value of reading." In
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malays ...
, a similar price war caused controversy regarding sales of the book. Four of the biggest bookstore chains in Malaysia, MPH Bookstores,
Popular Bookstore Popular Holdings Limited, more commonly known as just Popular or colloquially as the Popular Bookstore, is a Singaporean multinational bookstore chain. Aside from Singapore, it also has subsidiaries in countries such as Canada, China (including ...
s, Times and Harris, decided to pull ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' off their shelves as a protest against
Tesco Tesco plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues an ...
and
Carrefour Carrefour () is a French multinational retail and wholesaling corporation headquartered in Massy, France. The eighth-largest retailer in the world by revenue, it operates a chain of hypermarkets, groceries stores and convenience stores, which ...
hypermarket A hypermarket (sometimes called a hyperstore, supercentre or superstore) is a big-box store combining a supermarket and a department store. The result is an expansive retail facility carrying a wide range of products under one roof, including ...
s. The retail price of the book in Malaysia was MYR 109.90, while the hypermarkets
Tesco Tesco plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues an ...
and
Carrefour Carrefour () is a French multinational retail and wholesaling corporation headquartered in Massy, France. The eighth-largest retailer in the world by revenue, it operates a chain of hypermarkets, groceries stores and convenience stores, which ...
sold the book at MYR 69.90. The move by the bookstores was seen as an attempt to pressure the distributor
Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Shabbat Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...
. Trade and Industry Minister
Eli Yishai Eliyahu "Eli" Yishai ( he, אליהו "אלי" ישי, born 26 December 1962) is an Israeli politician. A former leader of Shas, he represented the party in the Knesset from 1996 until 2015, also holding several ministerial posts, including bei ...
commented "It is forbidden, according to Jewish values and Jewish culture, that a thing like this should take place at 2 am on Saturday. Let them do it on another day." Yishai indicated that he would issue indictments and fines based on the Hours of Work and Rest Law.


Editions

''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' was released in hardcover on 21 July 2007 and in paperback in the United Kingdom on 10 July 2008 and the United States on 7 July 2009. In SoHo, New York, there was a release party for the American paperback edition, with many games and activities. An "Adult Edition" with a different cover illustration was released by Bloomsbury on 21 July 2007. To be released simultaneously with the original US hardcover on 21 July with only 100,000 copies was a Scholastic deluxe edition, highlighting a new cover illustration by Mary GrandPré. In October 2010, Bloomsbury released a "Celebratory" paperback edition, which featured a foiled and starred cover. Lastly, on 1 November 2010, a "Signature" edition of the novel was released in paperback by Bloomsbury.


Translations

As with previous books in the series, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' has been translated into many languages. The first translation to be released was the Ukrainian translation, on 25 September 2007 (as ''Гаррі Поттер і смертельні реліквії'' – ''Harry Potter i smertel'ni relikviji''). The Swedish title of the book was revealed by Rowling as ''Harry Potter and the Relics of Death'' (''Harry Potter och Dödsrelikerna''), following a pre-release question from the Swedish publisher about the difficulty of translating the two words "''Deathly Hallows''" without having read the book. This is also the title used for the French translation (''Harry Potter et les reliques de la mort''), the Spanish translation (''Harry Potter y las Reliquias de la Muerte''), the Dutch translation (''Harry Potter en de Relieken van de Dood''), the Serbian translation (''Хари Потер и реликвије смрти'' – '' Hari Poter i relikvije smrti'') and the Brazilian Portuguese translation (''Harry Potter e as Relíquias da Morte''). The first Polish translation was released with a new title: ''Harry Potter i Insygnia Śmierci'' – ''Harry Potter and the Insignia of Death''. The
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been d ...
translation ''Harry Potter aur Maut ke Tohfe'' (), which means "Harry Potter and the Gifts of Death", was released by Manjul Publication in India on 27 June 2008. The Romanian version was released on 1 December 2007 using the title (''Harry Potter și Talismanele Morții'').


Reception


Critical response

''
The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...
'' critic, Mary Carole McCauley, noted that the book was more serious than the previous novels in the series and had more straightforward prose. Furthermore, reviewer Alice Fordham from ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fo ...
'' wrote that "Rowling's genius is not just her total realisation of a fantasy world, but the quieter skill of creating characters that bounce off the page, real and flawed and brave and lovable". Fordham concluded, "We have been a long way together, and neither Rowling nor Harry let us down in the end". ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' writer
Michiko Kakutani Michiko Kakutani (born January 9, 1955) is an American writer and retired literary critic, best known for reviewing books for ''The New York Times'' from 1983 to 2017. In that role, she won the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 1998. Early life ...
agreed, praising Rowling's ability to make Harry both a hero and a character that can be related to. ''Time'' magazine's
Lev Grossman Lev Grossman (born June 26, 1969) is an American novelist and journalist who wrote ''The Magicians Trilogy'': '' The Magicians'' (2009), '' The Magician King'' (2011), and '' The Magician's Land'' (2014). He was the book critic and lead technolog ...
named it one of the Top 10 Fiction Books of 2007, ranking it at No. 8, and praised Rowling for proving that books can still be a global mass medium. Novelist
Elizabeth Hand Elizabeth Hand (born March 29, 1957) is an American writer. Life and career Hand grew up in Yonkers and Pound Ridge, New York. She studied drama and anthropology at The Catholic University of America. Since 1988, Hand has lived in coastal Ma ...
criticised that "... the spectacularly complex interplay of narrative and character often reads as though an entire trilogy's worth of summing-up has been crammed into one volume." In a starred review from ''
Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...
'', the reviewer said, "Rowling has shown uncommon skill in playing them with and against each other, and also woven them into a darn good bildungsroman, populated by memorable characters and infused with a saving, irrepressible sense of fun". They also praised the second half of the novel, but criticised the epilogue, calling it "provocatively sketchy". In another review from ''The Times'', reviewer Amanda Craig said that while Rowling was "not an original, high-concept author", she was "right up there with other greats of children's fiction". Craig went on to say that the novel was "beautifully judged, and a triumphant return to form", and that Rowling's imagination changed the perception of an entire generation, which "is more than all but a handful of living authors, in any genre, have achieved in the past half-century". In contrast, Jenny Sawyer of ''
The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles in electronic format as well as a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 as a daily newspaper ...
'' said that, "There is much to love about the Harry Potter series, from its brilliantly realised magical world to its multilayered narrative", however, "A story is about someone who changes. And, puberty aside, Harry doesn't change much. As envisioned by Rowling, he walks the path of good so unwaveringly that his final victory over Voldemort feels, not just inevitable, but hollow". In ''The New York Times'',
Christopher Hitchens Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British-American author and journalist who wrote or edited over 30 books (including five essay collections) on culture, politics, and literature. Born and educated in England, ...
compared the series to World War Two-era English boarding school stories, and while he wrote that "Rowling has won imperishable renown" for the series as a whole, he also stated that he disliked Rowling's use of
deus ex machina ''Deus ex machina'' ( , ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; English "god out of the machine") is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function ...
, that the mid-book camping chapters are "abysmally long", and Voldemort "becomes more tiresome than an
Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., ...
villain". Catherine Bennett of ''The Guardian'' praised Rowling for putting small details from the previous books and making them large in ''Deathly Hallows'', such as Grindelwald being mentioned on a Chocolate Frog Card in the first book. While she points out "as her critics say, Rowling is no Dickens", she says that Rowling "has willed into a fictional being, in every book, legions of new characters, places, spells, rules and scores of unimagined twists and subplots".
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
criticised the reactions of some reviewers to the books, including McCauley, for jumping too quickly to surface conclusions of the work. He felt this was inevitable, because of the extreme secrecy before launch which did not allow reviewers time to read and consider the book, but meant that many early reviews lacked depth. Rather than finding the writing style disappointing, he felt it had matured and improved. He acknowledged that the subject matter of the books had become more adult, and that Rowling had clearly been writing with the adult audience firmly in mind since the middle of the series. He compared the works in this respect to ''
Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...
'' and ''
Alice in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (commonly ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English novel by Lewis Carroll. It details the story of a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world of anthropomorphic creature ...
'' which achieved success and have become established classics, in part by appealing to the adult audience as well as children.


Sales

Sales for ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' were record-setting. The initial US print run for ''Deathly Hallows'' was 12 million copies, and more than a million were pre-ordered through Amazon and Barnes & Noble, 500 percent higher than pre-sales had been for ''Half-Blood Prince''. On 12 April 2007, Barnes & Noble declared that ''Deathly Hallows'' had broken its
pre-order A pre-order is an order placed for an item that has not yet been released. The idea for pre-orders came because people found it hard to get popular items in stores because of their popularity. Companies then had the idea to allow customers to r ...
record, with more than 500,000 copies pre-ordered through its site. On opening day, a record 8.3 million copies were sold in the United States (over 96 per second), and 2.65 million copies in the United Kingdom. It holds the
Guinness World record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
for fastest selling book of fiction in 24 hours for US sales. At WH Smith, sales reportedly reached a rate of 15 books sold per second. By June 2008, nearly a year after it was published, worldwide sales were reportedly around 44 million.#9: J. K. Rowling
. The Celebrity 100. ''Forbes''. 11 June 2008. "The final one, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', has sold 44 million since it was published last July, including 15 million in the first 24 hours." Retrieved 17 July 2009


Awards and honours

''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' has won several awards. In 2007, the book was named one of ''The New York Times'' 100 Notable Books, and one of its Notable Children's Books. The novel was named the best book of 2007, by ''
Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...
'' critic Malcolm Jones. ''
Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' also listed ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' among their Best Books of 2007. Also in 2007 the book received the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy at the Nebula Awards. In 2008, the
American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members a ...
named the novel one of its Best Books for Young Adults, and also listed it as a Notable Children's Book. Furthermore, ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' received the 2008 Colorado Blue Spruce Book Award.


Adaptations


Films

The two-part
film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...
of ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' was directed by
David Yates David Yates (born 8 October 1963) is an English film director, producer and screenwriter, who has directed feature films, short films, and television productions. He is best known for directing the final four films in the ''Harry Potter'' ser ...
, written by
Steve Kloves Stephen Keith Kloves (born March 18, 1960) is an American filmmaker. He wrote and directed the 1989 film ''The Fabulous Baker Boys'' and is mainly known for his adaptations of novels, especially for all but one of the ''Harry Potter'' films (the ...
and produced by
David Heyman David Jonathan Heyman (born 26 July 1961) is a British film producer and the founder of Heyday Films. Heyman secured the rights to the ''Harry Potter'' film series in 1999 and went on to produce all eight installments of the franchise. He also ...
, David Barron and
J. K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The ser ...
. Part 1 was released on 19 November 2010, and Part 2 on 15 July 2011. Filming began in February 2009, and ended on 12 June 2010. However, the cast confirmed they would reshoot the epilogue scene as they only had two days to shoot the original. Reshoots ended around December 2010.While this is not officially confirmed, Emma Watson is quoted as saying "We have reshoots at Christmas", so filming presumably ended around this time. ''Part 1'' ended at Chapter 24 of the book, when Voldemort regained the Elder Wand. However, there were a few omissions, such as the appearances of Dean Thomas and
Viktor Krum The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles ...
, and Peter Pettigrew's death. James Bernadelli of ''Reelviews'' said that the script stuck closest to the text since ''
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets ''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the second novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. The plot follows Harry's second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, du ...
'', yet this was met with negativity from some audiences as the film inherited "the book's own problems".


Audiobooks

''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'' was released simultaneously on 21 July 2007, in both the UK and the United States. The UK edition features the voice of
Stephen Fry Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director and writer. He first came to prominence in the 1980s as one half of the comic double act Fry and Laurie, alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring ...
and runs about 24 hours while the US edition features the voice of
Jim Dale Jim Dale (born James Smith; 15 August 1935) is an English actor, composer, director, narrator, singer and songwriter. In the United Kingdom he is known as a pop singer of the 1950s who became a leading actor at the National Theatre. In Britis ...
and runs about 21 hours. Both Fry and Dale recorded 146 different and distinguishable character voices, and was the most recorded by an individual on an audiobook at the time. For his work on ''Deathly Hallows'', Dale won the 2008
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
for the Best Spoken Word Album for Children. He also was awarded an Earphone Award by '' AudioFile'', who claimed, "Dale has raised the bar on audiobook interpretation so high it's hard to imagine any narrator vaulting over it."


Video games

Two action-adventure video games were produced by
Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted th ...
(EA) to coincide with the release of the film adaptations, as with each of the previous ''Harry Potter'' films. Part 1 was released on 16 November 2010, and Part 2 on 12 July 2011. Both games received a mixed to negative reaction from critics.


Subsequent works


''The Tales of Beedle the Bard''

On 4 December 2008, Rowling released ''
The Tales of Beedle the Bard ''The Tales of Beedle the Bard'' is a book of children's stories by the author J. K. Rowling. There is a storybook of the same name mentioned in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows'', the last book of the ''Harry Potter'' series. The book ...
'' both in the UK and US. ''The Tales of Beedle the Bard'' is a spin-off of ''Deathly Hallows'' and contains fairy tales that are told to children in the "Wizarding World". The book includes five short stories, including "The Tale of the Three Brothers" which is the story of the Deathly Hallows. Amazon released an exclusive collector's edition of the book which is a replica of the book that Amazon purchased at auction in December 2007. Seven copies were auctioned off in London by Sotheby's. Each was illustrated and handwritten by Rowling and is 157 pages. It was bound in brown Moroccan leather and embellished with five hand-chased hallmarked sterling silver ornaments and mounted moonstones.


''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child''

In 2016, ''
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'' is a play written by Jack Thorne from an original story by J. K. Rowling, John Tiffany, and Thorne. Previews of the play began at the Palace Theatre, London, on 7 June 2016 as a two-part play, and it pr ...
'' was released, a two-part play written by
Jack Thorne Jack Thorne FRSL (born 6 December 1978) is a British playwright, television writer, screenwriter, and producer. He is best known for writing the stage play '' Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'', the films '' Wonder'' and '' Enola Holmes'', ...
based on an original story by Rowling, Thorne, and
John Tiffany John Richard Tiffany (born c. 1971) is an English theatre director. He directed the internationally successful productions ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'', ''Black Watch'' and ''Once''. He has won 2 Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, a Drama ...
. Billed as the eighth story in the ''Harry Potter'' series, it picks up where the epilogue of ''Deathly Hallows'' left off, following an adult Harry Potter and his son,
Albus Severus Potter The following are supporting characters in the ''Harry Potter'' series written by J. K. Rowling. For members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, Hogwarts staff, Ministry of Magic, or for Death Eaters, see the respective articles. ...
. Previews of the play began at the
Palace Theatre, London The Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster in London. Its red- brick facade dominates the west side of Cambridge Circus behind a small plaza near the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue and Charing Cross Road. The Palac ...
, on 7 June 2016, and it premiered on 30 July 2016. The play opened on Broadway on 21 April 2018 at the Lyric Theatre, with previews starting on 16 March 2018. Both parts of the stage play's script have been released in print and digital formats as ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts I & II''. The first edition, the Special Rehearsal Edition, corresponded to the script used in the preview shows and was published on 31 July 2016, the date of Harry's birthday in the series and Rowling's birthday, as well. Since revisions to the script continued after the book was printed, an edited version was released on 25 July 2017, as the "Definitive Collector's Edition". According to CNN, this was the most preordered book of 2016.


Notes


References


Bibliography

* Granger, John. ''The Deathly Hallows Lectures: The Hogwarts Professor Explains the Final Harry Potter Adventure''. Zossima Press: 2008. . * Hall, Susan. ''Reading Harry Potter: critical essays''. Greenwood Publishing: 2003. . * Rowling, JK. ''
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores th ...
''. London:
Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mu ...
/New York City: Scholastic: 2005. UK /US . * Rowling, JK. ''
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'' is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fourth novel in the ''Harry Potter'' series. It follows Harry Potter, a wizard in his fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and W ...
''. London:
Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mu ...
/New York City: Scholastic: 2000. UK /US . * Shapiro, Marc. ''J. K. Rowling: The Wizard Behind Harry Potter''. St. Martin's Press: 2007. . * Heckl, Raik
"The Tale of the Three Brothers" and the Idea of the Speaking Dead in the Harry Potter Novels
Leipzig: 2008.


External links


Harry Potter at Bloomsbury.com web site
UK publisher book information
Harry Potter at Scholastic.com web site
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