Harry Potter fans, rejoice! Thanks to author J.K. Rowling, everyone can enjoy the magical world right from home during these difficult times of social distancing and lockdown, through the Harry Potter at Home hub.
Made available through WizardingWorld.com, the hub allows fans of all ages (parents, teachers, caregivers, students, etc.) to access “nifty magical craft videos (teach your friends how to draw a Niffler!), fun articles, quizzes, puzzles,” and much more. Perhaps the biggest single thing is that the eBook and audiobook versions of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the first book in Rowling’s series, is now free.
Parents, teachers and carers working to keep children amused and interested while we’re on lockdown might need a bit of magic, so I’m delighted to launch https://t.co/cPg0dZpexB pic.twitter.com/i0ZjTplVoU
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) April 1, 2020
The eBook can be accessed through the Harry Potter at Home hub itself, courtesy of OverDrive. Those signed up with OverDrive (schools and libraries primarily) can access the book as much as they’d like until April 30, in 20 different languages! The audiobook version — which is available in English, Spanish, French, Italian, German and Japanese — can be streamed at Audible Stories. And you won’t have to log into Audible or even sign up to get access to this book. Talk about magical!
This new project is in keeping with Rowling recently lifting copyright restrictions on her work so teachers can more easily use her books in class. Anything that helps people get through the current situation easier is more than welcome, so kudos to Rowling for making this effort.
Other partners in this venture include Pottermore Publishing, Bloomsbury, and Scholastic, the latter two being responsible for some of the quizzes, puzzles and videos on the hub.
We hope this helps with the quarantine, for however long it lasts. Thanks, J.K. Rowling!
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h/t Forbes
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