Harry Potter fans queue up outside Waterstones bookstore in central London awaiting the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and (top) Harry Potter posters adorn the facade of the Western Book Depot in Panbazar. Pictures by Reuters and Eastern Projections

July 19: The queue has begun to take shape like a coiled serpent across the globe as Harry Potter fans line up to buy the final book of the boy wizard’s adventure series.

As magic hour, 12.01 am, Saturday, approaches, bookstore owners in the city are keeping their fingers crossed whether they can deliver Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on time to children.

“Harry Potter is a big hit among the city’s booklovers, especially children. We dare not risk the book lovers’ ire by delaying the release of the final and decisive book. We have been flooded with demands for the book,” said Ramesh Kumar, proprietor of Western Book Depot.

But the release would still be delayed by a few hours because of security reasons. “Initially we had planned to arrange a midnight bash to mark the book’s release. But because of security reasons, we have decided to unveil the book at the time when we normally open the bookstore, at 9am. We have ordered quite a large number so that we do not have to turn away any Potter fan,” said Kumar.

Though the city’s prominent bookstores, mostly located in Panbazar, have not made any special preparations for the release of one of the most eagerly awaited books, colourful posters of Harry and his magical world adorn every bookshop.

“We don’t have to make any extra efforts or resort to publicity gimmicks to sell Harry Potter books. The city is already under the spell of Harry’s magic,” said the manager of another popular bookstore in Panbazar.

However, Anwesha, the leading children’s literature publishing house and bookstore in Chenikuthi, has expressed disappointment over its failure to release the book on the day of its global release. “We will provide the book a day after its release date because of problems in supply. But we have arranged for 1,000 copies of the book,” said Paresh Malakar, president of Anwesha.

Widely circulated pictures of the Deathly Hallows have left die-hard Potter fans unfazed though.

“Even if the book can be read on the Internet, I am waiting to read the real book. But I am so sad that the book is the final of the series,” said college student Pranami Sharma.

Like the rest of the world, residents of the city are also wondering if J.K. Rowling’s pen will kill Harry.