Eight Ways You Know You Have Too Many HP Books
Eight ways for eight movies! (Er, not quite, since we’re speaking about books.) At any rate, please enjoy the beauty in the different Harry Potter sets and covers the world has to offer!
1. You have your original, torn, worn, falling apart set of the Harry Potter books.
These are the ones you actually read, the ones you had from each book release date, the “one and only”s.
2. There’s the second set of copies.
These are mostly for show and for people to borrow because you don’t want anyone to touch your babies. These are typically all hardcover of the original artwork, perhaps bought even in a chest-like case.
3. There’s the new artwork set by Kazu Kibuishi (US editions) or Jonny Duddle (UK editions).
The US set of books is so aesthetically pleasing because of the way the spines create a full picture of Hogwarts when pushed and ordered together, as well as the artwork on the box it comes in itself. The UK set of books (out September 1!) is also aesthetically pleasing in its vibrant colors and depicted situations on the covers. Well done.
4. Having the books in more than one language or dialect
Many fans (at least, from an American standpoint) love to have the books in the US version, as well as the UK edition. There are also fans who are multilingual and look for the books in English, Japanese, Spanish, Arabic, Greek, etc.
5. There are special collector copies.
In the US, this features artwork never before seen in the original set of Harry Potter, and these deluxe editions typically come in a nice box with J.K. Rowling’s signature printed right at the top (cue sobbing). In the UK, there are also copies that feature J.K. Rowling’s signature right on the book itself! Magical! (Also, don’t forget that the US once had a special ten-year anniversary edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, in which the cover art featured Harry himself, at age eleven, looking into the Mirror of Erised. Ah!)
For example… Source
6. You have hardcover and paperback editions.
To be fair, if you have the hardcovers then it feels necessary to have the paperbacks. For some weird, unexplainable reason.
7. You have both the adult and children cover art sets (UK editions).
Because maybe you read it as a child and “graduated” to the adult cover art set. Because maybe you were an adult when you first read Harry Potter and now you want to pretend what it would be like to read it as a child. Because maybe you just want both.
8. Leather-bound editions
Enough said. They’re beautiful. They may be rare. But ultimately, they’re lovely to crack open and see how lasting of an imprint Harry Potter has on our world.
How do your copies of the book differ or relate to what’s mentioned above? Which copies do you have or like the most, especially if it is one from a different language or culture? Comment below!
