The Harry Potter Book Worth Thousands That May Be Hiding In Your Bookcase

In the summer of 1997, United Kingdom readers perused through their local bookshops. The debut novel from author J.K. Rowling adorned shelves, with its cover artwork featuring a young boy with a peculiar lightning-shaped scar on his forehead and messy black hair, donning John Lennon-esque circular spectacles and a black cloak over a white dress shirt with a red and gold scarf around his neck, all while curiously anticipating the arrival of a train with the sign "Hogwarts Express" on the front. Two questions immediately come to mind: "Who is Harry Potter?" and "What is the Philosopher's Stone?"

Nearly 30 years later, it's safe to say that those U.K. readers (and soon, the rest of the world) fell in love with Harry Potter and the Wizarding World. Little did they know that Harry would become inarguably the most popular protagonist in children's literature of the 21st century, spawning seven books, 11 feature films, a play on the West End and Broadway, theme park lands across the globe, and an upcoming HBO television series that may or may not be a massive swing and a miss. With over 600 million books sold, Harry Potter is the best-selling series on record. However, the first adopters of the series that purchased "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" in their local book shops might be sitting on some gold worthy of Harry's inheritance stashed in Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

Published by Bloomsbury in the U.K. on June 26, 1997, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" was available in both hardback and paperback editions. Scholastic would publish the U.S. version in 1998. However, the first 5,000 hardback copies featured some notable errors. When referencing critical acclaim for the book, the back cover features the title with "Philospher's," a misspelling of "Philosopher's." Also, on page 53, "1 wand" is printed twice on Harry's equipment list. The book also referred to Harry's school as "Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft," which would later be changed to "Witchcraft and Wizardry," which arguably rolls off the tongue better. This first U.K. edition of the book is highly coveted amongst collectors, and some people may unknowingly have a rare copy on their shelves.

One person who purchased the first edition of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" is Christine McCulloch. A now-retired nurse, McCulloch told The Sun that she got the hardback edition for her two children, Adam and Rachael, after watching author J.K. Rowling describe the book as one that would appeal to both boys and girls in an interview on the British Children's television series "Blue Peter." In a serendipitous and narratively-satisfying fashion, McCulloch's son Adam kept the hardback copy in a cupboard underneath his staircase.

Sometime during the lockdown in 2020, the McCulloch family realized the value of their hardback copy. They referred to an article by books expert Jim Spencer on how to identify true first editions of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," and to their excitement, they were confirmed aspart of the first adopters of what would become the most popular book series in modern literature. According to the BBC, the McCulloch family's hardback copy, which was bought for £10 was sold at Rare Book Auctions in Lichfield, Staffordshire for £36,000.

Another person who made a surprise investment was Jane Thompson-Webb, who purchased a paperback edition in 1997 with her Ottakar's Bookshop employee discount for £3.50. Another BBC article revealed that the paperback copy sold for £6,600 on a telephone auction in Staffordshire.

Based on these particular auctions, it is clear that the first edition of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" is a coveted artifact for modern book collectors. Much like in a game of Quidditch, anyone who owns a copy may have their own literary Golden Snitch, valued at an even higher price than originally purchased. All it takes is perusing through your family's bookshelf to see if you are a part of the early adopters of the global phenomenon. Who knows? Maybe you can even sell your copy for a trip to the Ministry of Magic for the trial of Dolores Umbridge, just in time for the opening of the Epic Universe theme park this summer at Universal Orlando.