Eric Bradley

Harry Potter and the Unofficial Guide to Collectibles of our Favorite Wizard
by Eric Bradley
Krause Publications

For anyone who is Harry Potter fan, and who isn’t, this book is the ultimate guide for assessing your collection. After finally being published by Bloomsbury, the series was initially turned down by 8 other publishers. Harry Potter is now much-celebrated book, movie, and collectible franchise.

This unofficial guide covers books, movie posters, movie props, pottery, merchandise, limited edition collectibles, fandom, and Potter inspired collectibles. It details all and will give you information on what is and is not valuable.

For instance, the first edition print of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone from 1997 in like new condition fetched $43,750 in an auction in 2013. If you are lucky enough to have one of these editions you’ll find the number sequence “10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1” on the copyright page and “Copyright © Text Joanne Rowling 1997”. Given that most of the first edition books went to libraries, it is rare to find one in near perfect condition. This explains why the price is over $40,000 for a copy in such good condition.

Some books are prized for the errors that are made in them. First editions are commonly littered with errors and these rare mistakes become prized in later auctions. The errors that you would find in one of these rare books are spelled out in detail helping you to prove the authenticity of your collectible.

One of the rarest Harry Potter books is one that was created, handwritten and even illustrated by Rowling herself. This is a copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard which she created in 2007 for Barry Cunningham the British publisher who famously was the one man who would take a chance on the Harry Potter books. This rarity achieved $467,000 in a 2016 London auction.
More Than Just Books

Beyond books are movie posters many which will only fetch between $150 and $300. Some original poster art is rarer and gets between $40,000 – $60,000. But of course, these are not prints.

In all this is an excellent book for any fan of the Harry Potter series. Those who have chosen to collect various memorabilia will prize it especially. It is well laid out and provides excellent detail about look for and how to prove your collectible’s authenticity.

This review is in response to a complimentary copy of the book sent to me by the publishers in hopes of an honest review.… (mehr)