J.K. Rowling to Tour U.S. This Fall

On June 14, Scholastic announced that J.K. Rowling will be coming to America in October for the "J.K. Rowling Open Book Tour." The tour will include four events, three to be held for school children in Los Angeles, New Orleans, and New York City and one event in New York City for any U.S. Harry Potter fan lucky enough to win a ticket through a Scholastic sweepstakes. At each event, Rowling will read from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, answer questions about the entire series, and sign copies of her latest book.

"What J.K. Rowling loves most is to talk with her readers, and that is what she will be able to do on this very special U.S. tour," said Lisa Holton, president of Scholastic Trade and Book Fairs, in a statement. "Almost three months after the publication of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Rowling will engage in lively conversations with her fans in each of the three cities she will visit."

Here is a rundown of J.K. Rowling's planned appearances for school children:

• October 15, at the Los Angeles Kodak Theater;
• October 18, in New Orleans at the Ernest N. Morial Auditorium at the Convention Center; and
• October 19, at New York's Carnegie Hall.

In September, at the beginning of the 2007/2008 school year, Scholastic will select schools in each of the three cities to send students to the events. Each selected school will then be given a Sorting Hat so they can have their own random drawing of students and classes to attend the events.

In addition to these three events, Rowling will do an event on the evening of October 19 in New York City that will be open to fans of all ages. One thousand fans will be selected in a sweepstakes that launches on July 30 via www.scholastic.com/harrypotter. Each will receive a pair of tickets to the Rowling event at Carnegie Hall.