Royal Mail to Release Harry Potter Stamps

With the release of J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" only months away, fans have more to look forward to than just the book, and the move for the fifth book, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."

The Guardian, a British newspaper, is reporting that the British Royal Mail will be releasing a series of seven stamps, each showcasing covers of each version of the Harry Potter book.

On July 17^th, millions of stamps will be released celebrating what the post office calls celebrating 'social themes and important occasions central to our way of life' according to Julietta Edgar, the one in charge of special stamps at Royal Mail.

Times Online is reporting that the stamps have been developed under a special licensing arrangement between Warner Brothers and Bloomsbury. The Royal Mail suspects the stamps will be 'highly collectible' according to Petersfield Today, another British newspaper.

This book is certainly one of the most important, as fans are supposed to come across some important answers to questions that have plagued readers from the beginning. J.K Rowling has also said that two characters will die in this next book, which is set to be the end of the Harry Potter series.

With the release of the last book, Rowling has pleaded, as well as many fans, that spoilers not be released as those can ruin a person's reading of the book. During the release of "Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince", an unknown person decided to sign up for an account on the popular journaling site Livejournal and post scans of the pages before and after the death of a leading character on Harry Potter communities.

Fans are not the only ones mourning the end of Harry Potter, even author J.K Rowling is feeling the loss herself, as Harry, Hogwarts and his friends have been such a large part of her lives since she began writing them all those years ago.

Harry and his friends have turned millions of children (and some adults for that matter) onto reading and helped create lasting friendships amongst fans, as Harry Potter conventions are held every year, in popular cities.

The AP is reporting that J.K Rowling's Potter series has sold over 325 million copies world wide.

The Royal Mail has recognized other authors on their stamps such as Beatrix Potter, T.S Elliot, Ronald Dahl, J.R Tolkien, C.S Lewis and Lewis Carroll.

SOURCES:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2084240,00.html
http://www.petersfieldtoday.co.uk/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=2891774§ionid=4070
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article1816556.ece