Last year, I wrote my Honours thesis on book covers, looking specifically at the Harry Potter covers. It gave me an excuse to fill my 100-page thesis with beautiful pictures of covers.  I have a few favourites, which I might post up here one day but for now, these are the editions of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone that I own. I do have US editions of 4, 5, and 6, but not of the first.

On the far left, you have the hardcover Bloomsbury edition that my mum gave me after my first three books in paperback started to fall apart. Second on the left is one of the Celebratory editions. These were always released as paperbacks so as to coincide and celebrate the release of each movie. Hence, why there are no movie tie-in covers. These covers used the original cover art but framed the illustration with a solid colour border and foil stars. The edition on the centre is the book that started it all. You can see the torn corners and tattered cover. This is the book that started the love affair with Harry Potter that started in 1999 (when I was 9) when my teacher recommended I read the book, which I had been given earlier in the year at my birthday party. By the time I went to bed that night after Mum had come home from that fateful parent-teacher meeting, I had read three chapters and I was in love. The fourth book is the original French paperback. This is a very special edition because it contains my signatures from the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 movie premiere. I have both Weasley twins, Narcissa Malfoy, Lupin and young Lily and Snape’s signatures. Not only do I love this edition for those signatures, but I also love it for the French translations of certain Rowling words (for example, Hufflepuff is Poufsouffle in French). The very last book, on the right, is my latest purchase and is the newest cover of first book of the lot. Linocut artist Clare Melinsky designed these covers. Her linocuts strip the story down to one crucial object or event for each novel, while also using vivid colours.

I want to keep collecting different versions of the books, especially when I visit countries, so will keep my eye out in op shops and second hand book shops.