A building in Jefferson City has thousands of the new Harry Potter novel. But the publisher doesn’t want you to know about it. A vice-president for Scholastic publishing, in New York, will admit 12-million copies have been printed. But she won’t admit that a national Scholastic Distribution Center in Jefferson City has any of them. Apparently they’ll show up in the stores at 12-0-1 a.m. on July 21st by–what else–magic.
A source at the center in Jefferson City will admit the Potter books are there—but they’re under serious security.
Vice President Jerry Cowley of Cowley Distributors in Jefferson City has not been told when he will get the books to ship to the 100 to 150 stores his company serves. If things are done this time as they have been done with several of the earlier Potter books, he says, his company won’t get them until Thursday. And that’s a problem for a company with outlets as far away as Omaha and the state of Oklahoma.
Scholastic has told book stores not to open any boxes of books they get until 12-0-1 the morning of the 21st and not to even put the boxes out where they can be seen because it will spoil the magic for those waiting in line. And if anybody sees an open box–let alone a book on a shelf before the official debut minute—let Scholastic know right away.
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