Did You Know...?
On July 21, 2007, National Braille Press achieved a special milestone. We released the braille edition of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on the same day that sighted readers received their print copies. The Harry Potter phenomenon has inspired an international following of young people, but until recently, if you were a blind Harry Potter fan, you had to wait weeks before you got your braille copy. By that time, everyone you knew had finished the book.
With the 2007 book release, blind fans began reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows the same day as their sighted friends, classmates, siblings, and neighbors. Many braille readers told us that they were ecstatic to be a part of release-day excitement.
National Braille Press collaborated with Scholastic, Inc., the publisher of the Harry Potter novels, to publish the whole series in braille. Since the first braille Harry Potter book was published, blind children and adults around the world have purchased about 12,000 braille books in the series.
Producing braille copies of Harry Potter, and other braille books, costs more than the print edition. The novel costs about $62 per book to produce, more than twice what the print version sells for. Braille requires more space than print: The braille version of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is eight volumes. If you stack them in a pile, they stand more than a foot high and weigh about 12 pounds.
National Braille Press has a policy that we charge blind readers the same price that sighted readers pay. Donations to National Braille Press by loyal supporters make up the difference. If you would like to help fund braille books like Harry Potter, click here to make a donation.
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