2nd Annual Harry Potter Party!!!

Whoa, guys. You should be soooo stoked for the Harry Potter party on July 31 (check out the deets at the bottom). To get in the mood, here are some cool HP links to check out:

• Daniel Radcliffe said he can't wait to see Fantastic Beasts, but will he be in the movie? He says no, but of course people are speculating that he will.
• Speaking of Fantastic Beasts, you could be the newest star! Producers are holding a casting call in London on July 18 to find an actress for the role of Modesty. Luna Lovegood herself is signal boosting the call!
• How much would it cost to go to Hogwarts? Research has been done, and the result is staggering. Reports say that with Galleon-to-Dollar conversion, Hogwarts tuition would be around $43,031 a year. WHOA. Makes you appreciate Ron's parents even more.
• Fandoms collide! Here is a selfie of cast members for Game of Thrones, Doctor Who, and Harry Potter. [If you don't know what a fandom is, check out The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Geek Girls by Sam Maggs (YA 302.23 M).]

I think this photo is gonna make the world implode..... Last night was really great #sdcc2015

A photo posted by @maisie_williams on Jul 12, 2015 at 11:01am PDT

• 100 Things You Didn't Know About Harry Potter
• Test Your Knowledge of Spells
• What's in Hermione Granger's inbox?
• 23 Times Harry Potter Characters Made Deeply Questionable Choices
• What Job Would You Have in the 'Harry Potter' Wizarding World?
• Can You Guess The "Harry Potter" Character By These Emojis?
• Can You Guess Which "Harry Potter" Book These Chapter Illustrations Are From?
• Fans of Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl know about HP-style fanfic. Here is one HP fanfic that has been gaining attention lately, even though it was published in 2001. What do you prefer: Harry Potter fanfic or "Carry On" by Fangirl's protagonist, Cath?
• There is mass hysteria surrounding Harper Lee's Go Set a Watchman. Some bookstores are preparing for Harry Potter-like crowds. But this article from Quartz claims that the excitement surrounding the books is J.K. Rowling's fault. What?! Do you blame Queen Jo for fervent children's book fans?
• This fan-made Marauders prequel is everything.

Happy Birthday, Harry Potter! @ Main Library

7/31/2015

July 31 is Harry's birthday, and it marks when he first gets his Hogwarts letter. Come out to the Library and celebrate this super wizard's birthday with crafts, games & snacks! Don't forget to dress as your favorite character!

Location:
Main Library - downtown Harrisonburg




UPDATE: 
The director of some of the HP movies wants to make more!! Yes, please!!!

BREAKING NEWS: Harry Potter the Play!!!!

too excited. can't talk. can't capitalize. just read:

From BBC.com:

JK Rowling has announced her Harry Potter stage play will open in London's West End next year. 

Called Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, it will tell the "untold part" of the boy wizard's story, including the story of the lives of his murdered parents. 

However, the author said on Twitter the play was "not a prequel". 

It will run at the Palace Theatre in the summer of 2016, with tickets on sale this autumn. 

Rowling said she chose to make the announcement on Friday because it was "a very special day" - the 18th anniversary of when her debut book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was first published in the UK. 

But she was tight-lipped about the plot of the play, saying she did not "want to say too much more, because I don't want to spoil what I know will be a real treat for fans". 

She added: "To answer one inevitable (and reasonable!) question - why isn't Cursed Child a new novel? I am confident that when audiences see the play they will agree that it was the only proper medium for the story." 

The play was first announced in December 2013, after the author said she had "received countless approaches" over the years "about turning Harry Potter into a theatrical production". 

Although the new story has not been written by Rowling, it is a collaboration between herself and writer Jack Thorne - who previously adapted Let The Right One In for the stage and won a Bafta for his work on Channel 4's This is England '88 - and John Tiffany, who will also direct the play. 

It will be produced by Sonia Friedman and Colin Callender, and British singer Imogen Heap will provide the music.

The plot details might still be hazy, but there's little doubt Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will have a magical effect at the West End box office. 

It will be at the 1,400-seat Palace Theatre, which was home to theatrical blockbuster Les Miserables for a record 19 years. 

JK Rowling's success needs no introduction, but the new Harry Potter play reunites the creative dream team behind the stage adaptation of supernatural love story Let The Right One In. 

When it comes to West End hits, producer Sonia Friedman has a golden touch. Her biggest successes include Book of Mormon and Sunny Afternoon, while her musical Bend It Like Beckham kicked off to rave reviews this week. 

When it opens in summer 2016 the play is likely to spark the kind of Potter-mania that surrounded the release of the books and films. 

And it won't end there. The stage show will be closely followed by the Potter film spin-off Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in November 2016. 

Eddie Redmayne will star in a movie adaptation of Rowling's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 

"Jack, John and Sonia Friedman are a dream team," Rowling said. 

"It has been a huge pleasure to share with them (and soon, with you!) this untold part of Harry's story." 

Producers originally said the play would explore "the previously untold story of Harry's early years as an orphan and outcast". 

"Featuring some of our favourite characters from the Harry Potter books, this new work will offer a unique insight into the heart and mind of the now legendary young wizard," they said. 

The Daily Mail's Baz Bamigboye claimed The Cursed Child would "delve into what happened to Harry's parents before they were killed by Lord Voldemort, forcing an infant Harry to be raised in miserable circumstances by his mother's sister, Petunia, her horrid husband Vernon and their spoiled son Dudley". 

Rowling's seven Harry Potter best-sellers were adapted into eight blockbuster films starring Daniel Radcliffe as the boy wizard. 

The author is making her screenwriting debut on Potter spin-off film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, starring Eddie Redmayne, due in cinemas next November.

Harry Potter Illustrated Books - Sneak Peek!!!

This year, Bloomsbury, a British publisher, will release a fully illustrated version of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone! Some images surfaced on the Internet, and they're superawesomecoolfantasticbeautifulmouthwateringlydelightful! Here are a few sneak peeks, courtesy hypable.com:

via hypable.com

via hypable.com

via hypable.com

via hypable.com

via hypable.com

via hypable.com

What scene are you looking forward to seeing illustrated? Comment below!

A Gift from J.K. Rowling!!!

The amazing and wonderful author J.K. Rowling (a.k.a. Queen Jo) has a gift to share with the world this month: 12 new stories taking place in the Harry Potter universe! Apparently they'll feature brand-new "festive surprises and accompanying rhyming riddles" as well as "new potions and Moments" in the Pottermore website. New "gifts" will be released on Pottermore daily from Dec. 12-23.

(If you don't know what Pottermore is, it's an online Harry Potter resource, with games [you can make potions and cast spells!] and a very safe social aspect [it's completely anonymous]. You follow the course of the books through chapters--meaning you answer quiz questions written by Queen Jo herself to get sorted into a house at Hogwarts in the first one! Plus there is so much background on all your favorite characters, locations, potions... It's just really cool and fun! Wait until you read Professor McGonagall's background; she's fantastic.)

Queen Jo has been posting new HP information, backgrounds, and treats through the Pottermore site since it was released in 2011. More recently, she posted an article by Rita Skeeter about the HP crew in their 30's, as well as more background information about the notorious Dolores Umbridge.

Bonus Post: J.K. Rowling's Fantastic Beasts Update!!!

J.K. Rowling sent a strange post to the Twitterverse on Monday:

Cry, foe! Run amok! Fa awry! My wand won’t tolerate this nonsense.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) October 6, 2014

The Internet went into a frenzy, trying to solve the anagram. One possibility was:

Redditor says @jk_rowling's tweet is anagram for: "Harry returns! Won't say any details now. A week off. No comment". pic.twitter.com/PHATsEF7H4
— Eli Langer (@EliLanger) October 7, 2014

But the answer, confirmed by Queen Jo, is:

@jk_rowling Newt Scamander only meant to stay in New York for a few hours... #anagram
— Emily Strong (@EmyBemy2) October 7, 2014

.@EmyBemy2 YES!!!!!!!!!!!! People, we have a winner!
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) October 7, 2014

Queen Jo gave a hint earlier:

#helpfulhint The solution is the first sentence of a synopsis of Newt's story. It isn't part of the script, but sets the scene.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) October 7, 2014

So now we know more about Newt Scamander and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them! (To learn about about Newt and Fantastic Beasts, you can read the book Queen Jo wrote for Comic Relief. We have a copy in the library system! Check it out!)

Children's/YA Movie Adaptations!! (Masterpost)

There are so many YA movie adaptations hitting screens. Before we begin, I'll just say: SPOILER ALERT. Now, let's break it up by book:

The Giver - in theaters now!

• Lois Lowry did an interview...check it out!
• This article from Slate talks about things you might have missed in The Giver book. **Spoiler alert!

If I Stay - in theaters now!

• Here are some observations about If I Stay and why it did/didn't work. **Spoiler alert!

The Maze Runner - release date: September 19, 2014

• Check out this featurette explaining "the rules."

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 - release date: November 21, 2014

• The director of Mockingjay Part 1 talked to Entertainment Weekly and spilled tons of info about the final two movies in the series. Apparently the new movies will break from literary canon and include scenes we never see in the book. The one thing that will stay the same? The love triangle between Katniss/Peeta/Gale.  **Spoiler alert!
• Lorde is in charge of the soundtrack for Mockingjay Part 1! She'll be picking songs for the album and will also be writing a single. She talks about the movies/soundtrack with Billboard.
• There are new posters, and they're fantastic. Mockingjay.net compiled a list of all the posters and where you can find them.

Movies in production:

• The 5th Wave
• A Great and Terrible Beauty
• The Alchemyst
• Aliens on Vacation: The Intergalactic Bed & Breakfast Series
• The Amulet of Samarkand: Bartimaeus Trilogy
• Anna Dressed in Blood
• Angelfall
• Artemis Fowl
• Assassin's Creed
• A Tale Dark & Grimm 
• Attack on Titan
• Before I Fall
• Blackbird
• Blood of Eden series 
• Blood Red Road
• Catherine, Called Birdy
• Children of Paranoia
• The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair (in the juvenile section)
• Chronicles of Nick
• Half-Blood
• Dark Hunter series
• The Darkest Minds series
• Daughter of Smoke and Bone
• DC movies, + Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice + Justice League + Suicide Squad
• Delirium
• Divergent Series (Insurgent, Allegiant - Part 1, Allegiant - Part 2)
• The Diviners 
• Down a Dark Hall
• The DUFF
• Dumplin'
• Eleanor & Park
• Elusion
• An Ember in the Ashes
• Embrace
• Endgame
• Fae
• Fallen
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (screenplay by Queen Jo!)
• The Fire Sermon
• The Forest of Hands and Teeth
• The Finisher
• Firelight
• The Forest of Hands and Teeth
• Frankenstein (starring Daniel Radcliffe!) 
• Goosebumps
• Graceling
• Grasshopper Jungle
• The Graveyard Book
• Heist Society
• The Here and Now
• Hourglass
• House of Night series
• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 
• Incarceron
• The Immortal Rules
• The Iron Trail (Magisterium series)
• The Jungle Book
• The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking trilogy)
• The Last Apprentice
• Legend
• Let It Snow
• Leven Thumps
• Lockwood and Co.
• Looking for Alaska
• Looking Glass Wars
• The Lost Books of Merlin
• Lux series
• Madman's Daughter
• Marvel movies, + Deadpool + Fantastic Four reboot
• Matched
• Maximum Ride
• Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
• A Monster Calls
• Monument 14
• Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes 
• Nerve
• The Night Circus
• Olivia Kidney
• On the Jellicoe Road
• Origin
• The Outliers
• The Paladin Prophecy
• Pan
• Panic
• Paper Towns
• Paranormalcy
• Peter and the Starcatchers
• Pure  
• The Queen of Tearling (with producer/star Emma Watson!)
• The Raven Boys 
• Red Rising
• The Red Queen
• The Last Apprentice series
• The Selection
• Septmius Heap: Magyk
• Shadow and Bone
• Shadow Falls series
• Shatter Me
• Significance
• Soulkeepers
• The Scorpio Races
• Shiver
• Tempest
• The Testing
• This Song Will Save Your Life - also optioned for the stage
• Tiger's Curse
• The Traveler: Fourth Realm Trilogy
• Trylle Trilogy
• Tunnels
• Uglies
• Under the Never Sky  
• Unearthly 
• Unremembered
• Unwind
• Wake
• We Were Liars
• Wicked Lovely
• Wildwood
• Wings
• Wither 
• The Scorch Trials
• If The Maze Runner does well enough, they're going to make the second book in the series into a movie, too! They want to see how much money the movie makes, then maybe start shooting this fall.
• Frostbite: A Vampire Academy Film - maybe in the works?
•  Producers started a crowdfunding campaign to get a second Vampire Academy movie made. You can pick a package and donate toward production. But the deadline is September 5, and they've only raised 15% of their goal.
• Thirteen Reasons Why - maybe in the works?

Available now:

• The Fault in Our Stars
• Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
• Divergent
• Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters
• How I Live Now
• THG & Catching Fire
• Beautiful Creatures
• The Book Thief
• The Spectacular Now
• Where the Red Ferns Grow
• The Golden Compass
• Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (in the Juvenile section)
• Old Yeller (in the Juvenile section)
• White Fang (in the Juvenile section)
• Treasure Island (in the Juvenile section)
• The Percy Jackson movies
• The Host
• Inkheart (in the Juvenile section)
• Jumanji (in the Easy section)
• The Polar Express (in the Easy section)
• Shrek (in the Easy section)
• Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (in the Easy section)
• Madeline (in the Easy section)
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower
• The Neverending Story
• How I Live Now
• Mary Poppins (in the Juvenile section)
• The Borrowers (in the Juvenile section)
• The Seeker
• Tuck Everlasting
• Matilda (in the Juvenile section)
• James and the Giant Peach (in the Juvenile section)
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (in the Juvenile section)
• The Witches (in the Juvenile section)
• The Wizard of Oz (in the Juvenile section)
• The Lord of the Flies
• Tiger Eyes
• The Outsiders
• Coraline
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (in the Juvenile section)
• Around the World in 80 Days (in the Juvenile section)
• Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (in the Juvenile section)
• I Am Number Four
• The Hobbit movies (in the Juvenile section)
• The Lord of the Rings series
  
• A Series of Unfortunate Events (in the Juvenile section)
• The Twilight series
• Youth in Revolt
• The Adventures of Tin-Tin (in the Juvenile section)
• City of Ember
• Stardust
• Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
• Bridge to Terabithia (in the Juvenile section)
• A Little Princess (in the Juvenile section)
• The Secret Garden (in the Juvenile section)
• Little Women (in the Juvenile section)
• Spiderwick
• Charlotte's Web (in the Juvenile section)
• Howl's Moving Castle
• The Indian in the Cupboard (in the Juvenile section)
• The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants movies
• Eragon
• The Princess Diaries movies
• I Know What You Did Last Summer
• The Neverending Story
• Marvel movies
• DC Comics movies
• The Harry Potter series (in the Juvenile section)
• Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (in the Juvenile section)
• The Chronicles of Narnia movies (in the Juvenile section)
• ...and tons more! Check out the books, then watch the movies!

Also, check out this list of YA books that should be turned into movies! What are your thoughts? Want to see your fave YA book on the big screen? Comment with your suggestions!

Authors Sort Their Characters Into Hogwarts Houses!

At LeakyCon last weekend, BuzzFeed asked famous YA authors to sort some of their characters into Hogwarts houses, and the results are amazing. The photos are here (and the drawings are hilarious--I mean, let's just say that some of these authors should stick to writing *ahem*JohnGreenGayleForman*ahem*), but I'll type them up here:

John Green (The Fault in Our Stars)
Augustus Waters - Ravenclaw
Hazel Grace Lancaster - Gryffindor

John Green (Looking For Alaska)
Alaska - Ravenclaw
Pudge - Hufflepuff

Gayle Forman (If I Stay)
Mia - Gryffindor
Kim - Ravenclaw
Adam - Gryffindor

Rainbow Rowell (Eleanor & Park)
Eleanor - Gryffindor

Rainbow Rowell (Fangirl)
Levi - Hufflepuff

Holly Black (Magisterium: The Iron Trial)
Callum Hunt - Slytherin

Holly Black (The Coldest Girl in Coldtown)
Gavriel - Gryffindor

Holly Black (The Darkest Part of the Forest)
Hazel - Hufflepuff

Stephanie Perkins (Anna and the French Kiss)
Anna - Ravenclaw
Etienne St. Clair - Gryffindor

Stephanie Perkins (Lola and the Boy Next Door)
Lola - Gryffindor
Cricket Bell - Hufflepuff

Stephanie Perkins (Isla and the Happily Ever After)
Isla - Ravenclaw
Josh - Ravenclaw

Scott Westerfield (Uglies)
Shay - Slytherin
David - Gryffindor
Tally - Gryffindor

Lev Grossman (The Magicians)
Julia - Ravenclaw
Janet - Slytherin
Quentin - Ravenclaw
Alice - Gryffindor


So what do you think?? Are there any that you agree with? What about ones that you disagree with? Comment with your suggestions for characters they didn't sort!

Before the Summer Ends + HARRY POTTER BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!

It's the end of July! That means you've got some serious summer reading to fit into the last few weeks before school starts up again. To give you some inspiration, check out the following:

• YALSA is having a Teen Blogging Contest for Teen Read Week! If you're passionate about YA lit and love to blog, this is perfect for you. TRW isn't until October--more about that later--but you only have until August 1 (that's Friday!) to sign up for the contest! Click here for more information.
• This one isn't just for the girls! Meg Medina, author of Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass and The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind, and Gigi Amateau, author of Claiming Georgia Tate and Come August, Come Freedom, made a summer reading list of books about amazing girls. This list is awesome, and should be required reading for any kid, in my opinion. (I'm still working my way through some of them!) Fun fact: Both authors live in Richmond!
• Veronica Roth did an interview with Goodreads about her Divergent trilogy and subsequent prequel(ish) quartet of short stories about the male lead, Four. It has some major spoilers, so don't read it unless you've read at least up to Allegiant. Before you go back to school, this is a perfect time to get caught up on one of the hottest literary trends of the past few years! Then read the interview to get some questions answered for you.

The coolest and most awesome thing you can do before July ends is come to the Harry Potter birthday party we're having at the library tomorrow night! It's going to have everything: Butterbeer, Hagrid's (cup)cakes, wandmaking at Ollivander's, the Sorting Hat, and even Quidditch. That's right--the JMU Quidditch Team is going to be here to teach us the greatest wizarding sport ever and help us play a game. It's going to be amazing, so put on your best HP costume and come to the Main branch to throw Harry Potter the best birthday party he never had!

Happy Birthday, Harry Potter!

7/31/2014

Teens (ages 11-17) are invited to celebrate Harry Potter's birthday by drinking butterbeer, making your own wand, and playing his favorite wizarding sport with the JMU Quidditch team. You'll even be sorted into one of the Hogwarts Houses!

Location:

Main Library-downtown Harrisonburg

Dumbledore's Army Reunion BY J.K. ROWLING!!

J.K. Rowling wrote an amazing update for the Dumbledore's Army for Pottermore.

(If you don't know what Pottermore is, it's an online Harry Potter resource, with games [you can make potions and cast spells!] and a very safe social aspect [it's completely anonymous]. You follow the course of the books through chapters--meaning you answer quiz questions written by Queen Jo herself to get sorted into a house at Hogwarts in the first one! Plus there is so much background on all your favorite characters, locations, potions... It's just really cool and fun! Wait until you read Professor McGonagall's background; she's fantastic.)

Queen Jo wrote an article as Rita Skeeter and posted in on Pottermore yesterday as though Dumbledore's Army (Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, and Luna) had a reunion at the Quidditch World Cup! You also get an update on some other faves. In case you were wondering, the article mentions that Harry is 34 years old (The Deathly Hallows takes place from 1997-1998).

When I first started reading it, I saw it on Tumblr without seeing the caption and I just thought it was an insanely good fanfic, but I got to a certain point and realized it was her...it was the queen. If you come to the Harry Potter Birthday Party on July 31, we can gab about everything and--oh, enough talk! Here's the article she posted! (If you zoom in, you'll have to read all the left columns before the right ones.)

Major spoiler alert!! If you don't want to know what they're up to all these years later, do not read past this sentence!

Adaptation News!!!

THERE'S A MOCKINGJAY PART 1 TEASER THAT'S SO AMAZING IT MAKES ME WANT TO TYPE IN ALL CAPS.

"PANEM TODAY, PANEM TOMORROW, PANEM FOREVER."

Wow, guys. This is going to be great. Which reminds me...

I've been speculating with people about where the first part of Mockingjay is going to end. It's not like the book is easily broken into parts. Where do you think they're going to end Mockingjay Part 1? Comment with your thoughts.
*Note: This makes the comment section definitely a spoiler zone! Watch out for that!

Also, if you haven't heard already, John Green broke some major news on his Twitter last night:

So excited to announce that the brilliant filmmaker Sarah Polley will be writing and directing a film adaptation of Looking for Alaska.
— John Green (@realjohngreen) June 26, 2014

For those of you keeping tally of John Green movie adaptations:
TFiOS: Check
LfA: They're working on it
Paper Towns: Other people are working on it
An Abundance of Katherines: Some other people might be working on that one, too? There have been rumors.

So if you like John Green's books, this is a really good week for you.

And finally, we've all been totally excited for the addition to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios--and totally jealous of anyone who's lucky enough to visit. But now you can see what it's all about! Slash Film offers us an insight into Diagon Alley with tons of detailed pics of the decor, props, and even food & drinks! Take a look around and enjoy--and get ready for the Harry Potter Birthday Party we're throwing here at the library on July 31 (more details to follow)!

'80s Manga Cyber Punk Harry Potter Vid

The title says it all.

Hermione + ???

SPOILER ALERT!

JK Rowling announced this week that she made a mistake matching Hermione and Ron in the Harry Potter books. She claimed the pair was "wish fulfillment" and not giving either character what they truly deserved. Even Emma Watson agrees.

This leads us to question other relationship pairings in the books. Should Harry have ended up with Ginny? What about Neville and Hannah Abbott? James and Lily?!

But for now (fittingly, Valentine's Week), vote in this poll:

 

Who do you think Hermione should have married at the end of the Harry Potter books?
	Ron! Stick with the original canon!
	Harry! They were best friends for a reason.
	Krum! How cute was it that he called her "Hermy-own-ninny"?
	Cormac! She wasn't completely repulsed by him, right?
	Draco! It's obvious he was in love with her.
	Who cares?! She can do whatever she wants, including staying single, for Merlin's sake!

Harry, Hermione and Ron vs. The Worst Guys Ever

What Makes a Hufflepuff?