Recently, one of the greatest announcements of my generation was made: there will be another Harry Potter book! Well, sort of. The announcement came earlier this month that the new play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, will be made into a script book available to everyone this July. JK Rowling didn’t exactly write it, but the giddy excitement of anyone who has ever taken the magical journey to Hogwarts and fought Voldemort beside Harry, Ron, and Hermione is still palpable.
Excited? I haven’t even said the best part, yet. Along with a new Harry Potter book comes new opportunities to celebrate literature with people who care at midnight release parties! Remember those? Dressing up in your dark cloaks and coke bottle glasses and boasting to anyone who would listen that you were a particularly good finder so it was okay you had the yellow and black scarf. Stuffing your face with chocolate frogs and cauldron cakes? Playing games and standing in long lines all to do what? Be the first to read the newest Harry Potter book!
Now, it’s been a while since I had the good fortune of going to a midnight release for a book. Movies, sure. All the time. There are so many that have midnight releases, complete with dressing up, long lines, and the mad rush when they open the doors to the theater (Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, anything Marvel, The Hunger Games, Twilight, etc.). But books are different. Books rarely get as much attention as movies. Even incredibly popular books, like Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series, haven’t had any release parties (at least in my area). That makes me sad.
Being able to commemorate the release of a book is one of my favorite things to do. People of all ages and all backgrounds come together for one reason—to get excited about reading. Inside that book store, you’re surrounded by other people who love the book just as much as you do, who are so excited to read the next book, to touch the next book, that they can’t imagine waiting even a few hours. There’s dressing up, games, food, and excitement. Then, there’s something even more special. There’s silence. Everyone has his or her book. They’ve found a place to read and sat down with their noses almost touching the freshly turned pages. They’re feverishly reading and they’re not stopping until they’ve finished. It’s pure magic. And soon it’s coming back; hopefully not as a one-time event.
