Around 500 books had been sold by 7 a.m. Saturday after the midnight book release party for "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" at Wal-Mart, Warsaw, Friday night.
Around 1,000 books have been sold as of this morning.
"Thirteen hundred books came in, and we had 1,100 to give out at midnight because the rest were presales," said Kimberly, stationary manager.
Harry Potter fans were lining up at Wal-Mart much earlier than 11 p.m. to receive bracelets, which gave them a number in line to receive a book. The wait was not difficult though with themed refreshments being served, trivia, costumes to admire and a raffle, offering the deluxe edition of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."
By 10:15 p.m., bracelets already were being handed out from a second bag, where each bag contained 50.Two 16-year-old boys and one 19-year-old boy had set up camp at 8 p.m., complete with lawn chairs and a 24-pack case of Mountain Dew. Casey Cretcher, 16, Corey Boschet, 16, and Tyler Gerard, 19, have been reading the Harry Potter series since third grade and are a little disappointed that there will not be an eighth book to look forward to.
"All good things must come to an end," Boschet said.
However, they are excited to finally have some answers revealed to the mysteries that lie in the previous six books. The boys chatted about who they believe will die in the end, as J.K. Rowling has announced that two significant characters die.
The book release party hosted around 500 people who were served "butterbeer," and cake decorated with the final book's cover. "Butterbeer," which they served in cauldron-like buckets, is a famous drink mentioned in the Harry Potter series for wizards and witches, but at Wal-Mart it was a simple root beer float.
Timothy Farner, 6, Warsaw, dressed as a young Harry Potter, had fun controlling the fog machine, spurting out misty white clouds ever so often.
The crowd ranged from elementary kids to middle-age adults, with about half sporting a variety of costumes. Laura Lockridge, 37, Warsaw, waited for her book with her son, who each have a complete set of the series. "You just read and read and read them, over and over," she said.
Some kids wore witch costumes or wizard robes, while others took it more serious.
One person was dressed as a "death eater," a much feared character in the book, complete with an all-black cloak and an unknown face hidden behind black material. Several younger boys dressed as Harry Potter himself, complete with circle-framed glasses and drawn-on lightening scars. One girl showed her support for the "Gryffindor House" by wearing a red and yellow scarf, Harry Potter's house colors.
As bracelets were handed out for hours, giving each person their right to buy a book at midnight, one woman joked about the bracelet and said, "I'll guard it with my life."
