Harry Potter is celebrating 20 years this September, and as part of a year-long celebration, Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine Books have released a new set of beautiful collectible covers. Illustrated by Brian Selznick, Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator and author of The Invention of Hugo Cabret, each cover of all seven books stand alone, but also connect to form a larger image. You can check out the full effect in the video above!
It’s hard to believe that Harry Potter is 20 years old! Then again, it’s hard to imagine a world without Harry Potter in it when so many of us came of age with him, Ron, and Hermione.
The wonderful thing about books is that there are always new readers who can experience them for the first time. “The wonder of Brian Selznick’s new cover interpretations,” says Arthur Levine, the publisher of Arthur A. Levine Books and the editor of all seven Harry Potter books in the U.S. “Is that he makes us see these beloved characters as if we’re just meeting them — and indeed we hope a new generation does exactly that.”
Meanwhile, Selznick sounded like a total fanboy in a statement on having been selected for the job, saying, “I’m a huge Harry Potter fan (a proud Hufflepuff!) and to be asked to illustrate the 20th anniversary edition covers was an absolute honor.” He then talks a little about the process:
“One of the most challenging and rewarding aspects of the process was drawing seven independent covers that would stand on their own, while making sure that they also lined up to create one single satisfying image. It took dozens and dozens of sketches to get it right, and I am thrilled to share my great love for the books with these new illustrations.”
In addition to these new covers (I really hope they also release a poster!), Scholastic will be hosting Potter-related events at bookstores, libraries, schools, and festivals all over the U.S. It will also publish Rowling’s screenplay for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald and books tied to the New-York Historical Society exhibition, Harry Potter: A History of Magic.
If you want to check out the full gallery of covers, head on over to SyFy Wire. The individual covers will be available for purchase this summer, with a collectible boxed set to be released this fall for the anniversary.
(featured image: screencap, images: Scholastic)
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