It’s good to do a proper clean out every once and a while. It’s cathartic, getting rid of those old clothes, shoes and books that you no longer need.
But if your bookcase contains your old collection of Harry Potter books, you might want to rethink that trip to the Op-Shop. They could be worth some serious money.
The Sun reports that one of the world’s foremost experts on The Boy Who Lived, author Philip W. Errington, has spent years researching the history of J.K. Rowling’s wizarding series.
Errington put together his findings while researching his new book, J.K. Rowling: A Bibliography 1997-2013, and has compiled a chart detailing how much the earlier editions of each are worth today.
The older the book, the more money you’re likely to get for it. So grab out your old faithfuls, dust them off and take a look.
If you version of Harry Potter and the Philsopher’s Stone is in hardback, published by Bloomsbury, and features Harry standing at the front of the Hogwarts express on the cover, then WRAP IT IN BUBBLE WRAP RIGHT NOW.
According to book site AbeBooks, that particular edition could be worth up to AU$76,000. And if the author is listed as Joanne Rowling instead of J.K. Rowling… buy a yacht.
A hardback first edition Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, could fetch up to AU$12,500. Not quite as impressive. But still a holiday.
A first edition of The Prisoner of Azkaban could go for around AU$900, but that’s about where the value ends. The later installments (Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows) were printed in much higher quantities, undoubtedly to the delight of Ms Rowling’s bank balance, so they’re not likely to make you much moolah.
