Rowling JK: "The idea that we could have a child who escapes from the confines of the adult world and goes somewhere where he has power, both literally and metaphorically, really appealed to me."

Like that of her own character, Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling's life has the luster of a fairy tale. Divorced, living on public assistance in a tiny Edinburgh flat with her infant daughter, Rowling wrote Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone at a table in a cafe during her daughter's naps ? and it was Harry Potter that rescued her. First, the Scottish Arts Council gave her a grant to finish the book. After its sale to Bloomsbury (UK) and Scholastic Books, the acColades began to pile up. Harry Potter won The British Book Awards Children's Book of the Year, and the Smarties Prize, and rave reviews on both sides of the Atlantic. Book rights have been sold to England, France, Germany, Italy, Holland, Greece, Finland, Denmark, Spain and Sweden.

A graduate of Exeter University, a teacher, and then an unemployed single parent, Rowling wrote Harry Potter when "I was very low, and I had to achieve something. Without the challenge, I would have gone stark raving mad." But Rowling has always written; her First book was called "Rabbit." "I was about six, and I haven't stopped scribbling since."

For Rowling, the change in her fortunes has been slightly bewildering. But her daughter has no doubt about her mother's new career: when asked what mommies do, she replies without hesitation, "Mommies write!"

Harry Potter's magic has touched a huge audience of all ages, all over the world. In America, there are nearly 80 million books in print, and each title has been on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. The fifth title, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, has already broken records with its First print run of 6.8 million copies and a second print run of an additional 1.7 million copies, a figure unprecedented for any book.

J. K. Rowling has won the Hugo Award, the Bram Stoker Award, the Whitbread Award for Best Children's Book, a special commendation for the Anne Spencer Lindbergh Prize, and a special certificate for being a three-year winner of the Smarties Prize, as well as many other honors. She has been a featured guest on 60 Minutes, The Today Show, and Larry King Live. Rowling has also been named an officer of the British Empire.

Rowling First thought of Harry while riding a train back in 1990. "Harry just strolled into my head fully formed." She worked on the book for several years, finding quiet moments while her daughter napped. Several publishers turned down the finished manuscript before one took interest.

In 1998, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was published in the United States, kicking off Harry-mania. Suddenly, kids were reading again, and their parents wanted to read the same books! The second and third books in the series were published in the spring and fall of 1999.

On July 8, 2000, the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire became a major celebration, with bookstore events occurring at midnight nationwide. The book sold an unprecedented three million copies in its First 48 hours of release, and according to Publishers Weekly is "the fastest-selling book in history."

Warner Bros. enjoys certain rights in respect to all the Harry Potter books and has exercised its option to create films on all of those that have been published to date. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets have each been released to critical praise and record-setting box-office success. With over 203 million copies sold, the series has been translated into 55 languages, and distributed in over 200 countries. Each of the First four books is currently on bestseller lists in the USA and Britain and around the globe.

Joanne Rowling was born in Chipping Sodbury near Bristol, England. After graduating from Exeter University, she found work as a secretary, and later spent time teaching English in Portugal before moving to Edinburgh, Scotland, with her daughter. Rowling currently resides in Scotland with her husband and two children.

(Author bio courtesy of Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine Books. Photo by William De La Hey)

Harry Potter And The Chamber of Secrets (1999)

Harry Potter: It was the late 1970s. Lord Voldemort, an extremely powerful Dark Wizard, and the only living descendant to Salazaar Syltherin, was on the verge of taking over the world.

Meanwhile, James and Lily Potter had a son, Harry, on July 31, 1980. The Potters were very prestigious in the magical world due to (we find out what their jobs were in book 7). They went into a little less than a year after Harry's birth, protected under the Fidelius charm, an extremely complicated charm where a secret is hidden inside the soul of the chosen "Secret Keeper". They chose Peter Pettigrew, a friend of James Potter's from Hogwarts as Secret Keeper. As long as Pettigrew did not tell anyone where they were, they would be protected from anyone. You could look directly in their living room window and not see them.

Alas, Pettigrew was disloyal. Less than a week after Albus Dumbledore performed the charm, Voldemort broke into their house.

Voldemort intended to kill just James Potter and Harry. Evidently, he saw that they could be threats to his reign. He killed James Potter First, then killed lily, when she refused to let him kill Harry. He however was not able to kill Harry. Rumor has it that it was because Lily Potter died protecting Harry Voldemort was unable to kill him. When Voldemort tried to kill him, he gave Harry a lightning-bolt shaped scar on his forehead. It is said that when Harry and Voldemort clashed, Voldemort accidentaly transferred some of his powers to Harry, including his ability to talk to snakes.

At this point, Harry had become an orphan. Minutes later, Rubeus Hagrid, groundskeeper at Hogwarts, arrived with instructions from Dumbledore to get Harry. At the same time, Sirius Black, godfather to Harry and James's best friend, arrived on his flying motorcycle. Hagrid comforted the devastated Black, but declined to turn Harry over him.

Harry's only living relatives were the Dursleys, his muggle aunt's family. Dumbledore sent Harry to live with them. The Dursleys, hating magic, tried to "get the magic out of him." They never told him anything about the magical world, and that his parents had died in a car crash.

For ten horrible years, Harry lived with the Dursleys. Then, when he was eleven, he was accepted into the prestigious Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Hermione Granger: Muggle-born Hermione Granger is another Gryffindor and close friend of Harry and Ron. Obsessed with her studies, in her third year at Hogwarts, she went so far as to use a Time-Traveler, just so she could attend several classes at once (sheesh!) Reportedly, her most feared thing is failing all her tests!

Ron Weasly: Harry's best friend, Ron and Harry met on the platform waiting for the train to Hogwarts. It was both Harry and Ron's First years, and, as they were both sorted into Gryffindor House, became fast friends.

Between Harry's First and second years at Hogwarts, Harry stayed at the Weaslys for part of the summer after the Dursleys had locked and barred him in his room.

Movies: In Warner Brothers' Harry Potter movies (three so far) the roles of Ron, Harry, and Hermione were played by Rupert Grint, Daniel Radcliffe, and Emma Watsony, respectively.

Fred and George Weasly: The Weasly twins are mainly in the book for comic relief. They are 3 years older than Harry and Ron, and are beaters on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

Fred and George are also somewhat troublemakers; they stole the Maurader's Map from Filch's office while they were in there for setting of dung bombs. Not to mention stealing their father's flying car.

Ginny Weasly: The youngest of the Weaslys, Ginny First appeared in Chamber of Secrets, when she opened the chamber and started petrifying students. She idolizes Harry, and reveres him as a God.

Percy Weasly: Before he graduate from Hogwarts, Perfect Percy was a prefect for two years before becoming Head Boy. He desires to become the Minister of Magic, and once read a book entitled Prefects who Gained Power : A study of Hogwarts Prefects and their Later Careers.

Percy is very stately, nowhere near relaxed. When meeting Harry back at Hogwarts after the summer, he very solemnly shook Harry's hand and said, "Hello Harry, I hope you're well."

Neville Longbottom: A short, fat, and slightly daft Gryffindor. Neville is pure wizard blood, although he is probably one of the worst students in his year. A loyal friend to Harry, Hermione, and Ron, he even tried to stop them from saving the Sorcerer's Stone for fear of losing points.

His parents were Aurors during Voldemort's reign of terror until Death Eaters caught and tortured them after his downfall. They are now insane, and Neville lives with his grandmother.

Dean Thomas: Muggle-born soccer fan Dean Thomas is another Gryffindor in Harry's year. His best friend is Seamus Finnigan.

Seamus Finnigan: Sandy-haired Seamus Finnigan is another Gryffindor in Harry's year. He is Irish, and good friends with Dean Thomas.

Lucius Malfoy: Draco's father. Malfoy is a Death Eater, although he was acquitted after Voldemort's downfall, mainly thanks to the Malfoy's affluence. When Voldemort returned to power, Malfoy became once again in his inner circle.

Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley Dursley: Harry's muggle relatives; he lived with them for ten years under the stairs. being in second place to their spoiled son Dudley. They never told him that he was a wizard, only saying that his parents had died in a car crash. The Dursleys hate Harry, not liking any magical people at all.

Sirius Black: Convicted mass murder Sirius Black was supposedly Voldemort's right-hand man, and also played a crucial role in the deaths of Lily and James Potter. In Azakaban though, he proves that it was actually Peter Pettigrew who killed the people, who betrayed the Potters. Sirius was James's best friend, best man at his wedding and godfather to Harry. As he says, succeeding to prove his innocence in a shack in Hogsmeade, "I would have died before I betrayed Lily and James."

(note: thanks to www.harrypotter.ws for the character bios)