The first twelve publishers turned her down. Number thirteen said, “Yes” - mainly
because the little girl of the company’s chairperson loved the book - but warned Rowling
to get a job because she would not make much money from a children’s book.
Once Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was published, however, the book won a
raft of awards and began selling at an incredible pace. Every book in the series sold more
than the last, with the last four books all setting world records for the fastest sale of a
million copies.
All told, the Harry Potter series has sold 400 million copies in sixty-five languages,
sparked a series of highly successful movies, and made J. K. Rowling one of the
wealthiest authors in the world.
Rowling remembers her own struggles and gives millions of dollars a year to charities,
including those that focus on poverty and on multiple sclerosis. She is also president of a
charity that supports single parents.
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