'Whether you come back by page or by the big screen...': 27 years ago on this day the first Harry Potter book was published

While using a 'Time-Turner' like Harry Potter's best friend Hermione Granger did to catch up on lessons is not feasible in the mundane Muggle world, Potterheads can definitely hark back 27 years ago when it all begun. On this very day almost three decades ago, author J K Rowling's first Potter book 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' was published in the UK.

Published by Bloomsbury, the fantasy novel was Rowling's debut book and follows the titular hero, Harry Potter who discovers the wizarding world and his magical heritage on his eleventh birthday. Harry receives a letter of acceptance to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, led by its headmaster Albus Dumbledore. He gets two best friends, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger and also survives an attack by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort who had killed Harry's parents when he was a baby but had failed to kill him because of magical protection, which is unravelled later in the series.

The book was later published in the US as 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'. It broke many records and won several literature awards and established Rowling as one of the most sought after children's book writers.

Rowling's style and humour and imagination was praised by readers and critics alike and the book went for reprinting after its popularity spread.

Rowling went on to publish 6 more books in the series and there were several 'spin-off' and inspired books released and Jo's magical world spawned a movie series picked up by Warner Brothers and several online games and most importantly, even theme parks designed to give fans a taste of the 'wizarding world'.

Even as the books and the movies have went on to become intrinsically a part of pop-culture, copies of the first edition of the book have often been auctioned for thousands of dollars for their rarity as there were only some 500 copies were printed when the book came out in 1997.

The books continue to be enjoyed by later generations as well even as the ones who grew up with Potter and his friends, continue to pick up the books to go through the journey again because as Jo said, 'Whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home'!