Joanne Rowling, known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. [1] She has won numerous accolades for her Harry Potter book series, including general literature prizes, honours in children's literature and speculative fiction awards. The series has garnered multiple British Book Awards, beginning with the Children's Book of the Year in 1997 and 1998 for the first two volumes, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets . In 2000 the third novel, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban , was nominated for an adult award – the Whitbread Book of the Year – where it competed against a book by a Nobel prize laureate (Seamus Heaney's translation of Beowulf ). The award body gave Rowling the children's prize instead (worth half the cash amount); some scholars view this as exposing a literary prejudice against children's books. [2] [3] Next followed the World Science Fiction Convention's 2001 Hugo Award for the fourth book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire , [4] and the British Book Awards' adult prize – the 2006 Book of the Year – for the sixth novel, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince .
Rowling's early career awards include the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to children's literature in 2000, and three years later, the Spanish Prince of Asturias Award for Concord. She won the British Book Awards' Author of the Year and Outstanding Achievement prizes over the span of the Harry Potter series. Following the series' completion, Time named Rowling a runner-up for its 2007 Person of the Year, citing the social, moral and political inspiration she gave the Harry Potter fandom. [5] Two years later, she was recognised as a Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur by French President Nicolas Sarkozy; [6] leading magazine editors then named her the "Most Influential Woman in the UK" the following October. [7] Later awards include the Freedom of the City of London in 2012 and for her services to literature and philanthropy, the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in 2017.
Academic bodies have bestowed multiple honours on Rowling. She has received honorary degrees from the University of Aberdeen; the University of St Andrews; Dartmouth College; the University of Edinburgh; Edinburgh Napier University; the University of Exeter (which she attended) [8] and Harvard University. Rowling spoke at Harvard's 2008 commencement ceremony; [9] the same year, she also won University College Dublin's James Joyce Award. Her other honours include fellowship of the Royal Society of Literature (FRSL), the Royal Society of Edinburgh (HonFRSE) and the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (FRCPE).
Rowling's awards for film, theatre and crime fiction include the 2011 British Academy Film Award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema for the Harry Potter film series, the 2017 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and the 2021 British Book Awards' Crime and Thriller category for the fifth volume of her Cormoran Strike series.
Award | Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bram Stoker Award | 2000 | Work for Young Readers | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Won | [4] |
2001 | Work for Young Readers | Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | Nominated | [4] | |
2004 | Work for Young Readers | Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix | Won | [4] | |
Hugo Award | 2000 | Novel | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Nominated | [4] |
2001 | Novel | Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire | Won | [4] | |
Locus Award | 1999 | First Novel | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | Nominated | [4] |
2000 | Fantasy Novel | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Won | [4] | |
2019 | Art Book | The Tales of Beedle the Bard | Nominated | [4] | |
Mythopoeic Award | 1999 | Children's Literature | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | Nominated | [4] |
2000 | Children's Literature | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban | Nominated | [4] | |
2008 | Children's Literature | The Harry Potter Series | Won | [4] | |
Nebula Award | 2008 | Andre Norton Award [lower-alpha 1] | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows | Won | [27] |
Award | Year | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
Gold Dagger | 2015 | The Silkworm | Nominated | [28] |
2021 | Troubled Blood | Nominated | [29] | |
Ian Fleming Steel Dagger | 2021 | Troubled Blood | Nominated | [29] |
Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year | 2016 | Career of Evil | Nominated | [30] |
Award | Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
British Academy Film Awards | 2010 | Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema | Harry Potter film series [lower-alpha 2] | Won | [32] |
British Academy Children's Awards | 2011 | Feature Film | Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 | Won | [33] |
Laurence Olivier Awards | 2017 | Best New Play | Harry Potter and the Cursed Child | Won | [34] |
Tony Awards | 2018 | Best Play | Harry Potter and the Cursed Child | Won | [35] |
Year | Country | Honour | Citation | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | UK | Order of the British Empire (OBE) | Services to children's literature | [36] |
2003 | Spain | Prince of Asturias Award for Concord | Children's literature [lower-alpha 3] | [37] |
2008 | UK | Edinburgh Award | Contributions to Edinburgh | [38] |
2009 | France | Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur | [6] | |
2012 | UK | Freedom of the City of London | Services to children's literature | [39] |
2017 | UK | Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) | Services to literature and philanthropy | [40] |
Year | Institution | Honour | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
2000 | Dartmouth College | Honorary degree | [41] [42] |
Edinburgh Napier University | Honorary degree | [43] | |
University of Exeter | Honorary degree | [8] | |
University of St Andrews | Honorary degree | [44] | |
2002 | Royal Society of Edinburgh | Fellowship (HonFRSE) | [45] |
Royal Society of Literature | Fellowship (FRSL) | [46] | |
2004 | University of Edinburgh | Honorary degree | [47] [48] |
2006 | University of Aberdeen | Honorary degree | [49] [50] |
2008 | Harvard University | Honorary degree | [9] |
University College Dublin | James Joyce Award | [41] | |
2017 | Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh | Fellowship (FRCPE) | [51] |
Year | Awarded by | Title | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Glamour | Woman of the Year | Won | [52] |
2007 | Time | Person of the Year | Runner-up | [5] |
Barbara Walters ( ABC ) | Most Fascinating Person of the Year | Won | [53] | |
2010 | National Magazine Company | Most Influential Woman in the UK | Won | [7] |
Year | Organisation | Award | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | Blue Peter | Gold Blue Peter badge | [54] |
2010 | Hans Christian Andersen Literature Committee | Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award | [55] |
2016 | PEN America | PEN/Allen Foundation Literary Service Award | [56] |
2018 | Museum of Pop Culture | Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame | [4] |
2019 | Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights | Ripple of Hope Award (returned in 2020) | [57] |
Joanne Rowling ; born 31 July 1965), better known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote Harry Potter, a seven-volume fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The series has sold over 600 million copies, been translated into 84 languages, and spawned a global media franchise including films and video games. The Casual Vacancy (2012) was her first novel for adults. She writes Cormoran Strike, an ongoing crime fiction series, under the alias Robert Galbraith.
Hermione Jean Granger is a fictional character in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. She first appears in the novel Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), on the Hogwarts express as a first year student on her way to Hogwarts. After Harry and Ron save her from a mountain troll in the girls' restroom, she becomes best friends with them and often uses her quick wit, deft recall, and encyclopaedic knowledge to lend aid in dire situations. Rowling has stated that Hermione resembles herself as a young girl, with her insecurity and fear of failure.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling. The first novel in the Harry Potter series and Rowling's debut novel, it follows Harry Potter, a young wizard who discovers his magical heritage on his eleventh birthday, when he receives a letter of acceptance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry makes close friends and a few enemies during his first year at the school and with the help of his friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, he faces an attempted comeback by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who killed Harry's parents, but failed to kill Harry when he was just 15 months old.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the second novel in the Harry Potter series. The plot follows Harry's second year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, during which a series of messages on the walls of the school's corridors warn that the "Chamber of Secrets" has been opened and that the "heir of Slytherin" would kill all pupils who do not come from all-magical families. These threats are found after attacks that leave residents of the school petrified. Throughout the year, Harry and his friends Ron and Hermione investigate the attacks.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and is the third in the Harry Potter series. The book follows Harry Potter, a young wizard, in his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Along with friends Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, Harry investigates Sirius Black, an escaped prisoner from Azkaban, the wizard prison, believed to be one of Lord Voldemort's old allies.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the fourth novel in the Harry Potter series. It follows Harry Potter, a wizard in his fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the mystery surrounding the entry of Harry's name into the Triwizard Tournament, in which he is forced to compete.
The Harry Potter Lexicon is a fan-created online encyclopedia of the Harry Potter series.
Bloomsbury Publishing plc is a British worldwide publishing house of fiction and non-fiction. Bloomsbury's head office is located in Bloomsbury, an area of the London Borough of Camden. It has a US publishing office located in New York City, an India publishing office in New Delhi, an Australian sales office in Sydney CBD, and other publishing offices in the UK, including in Oxford. It is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the seventh and final novel in the Harry Potter series. It was released on 21 July 2007 in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury Publishing, in the United States by Scholastic, and in Canada by Raincoast Books. The novel chronicles the events directly following Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005) and the final confrontation between the wizards Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort.
The Harry Potter fandom is the community of fans of the Harry Potter books and films who participate in entertainment activities that revolve around the series, such as reading and writing fan fiction, creating and soliciting fan art, engaging in role-playing games, socialising on Harry Potter-based forums, and more. The fandom interacts online as well as offline through activities such as fan conventions, participating in cosplay, tours of iconic landmarks relevant to the books and production of the films, and parties held for the midnight release of each book and film.
MuggleNet is the Internet's oldest and largest Harry Potter and Wizarding World fansite. MuggleNet was founded in 1999. It has expanded over the years to include a handful of partner podcasts, a separate book blog, over half a dozen published works and live events. At one point, it also ran its own forums, social network and separate fan fiction website. Originally owned by founder Emerson Spartz, MuggleNet became an independently-owned and operated brand in early 2020.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the Harry Potter series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores the past of the boy wizard's nemesis, Lord Voldemort, and Harry's preparations for the final battle against Voldemort alongside his headmaster and mentor Albus Dumbledore.
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The main story arc concerns Harry's conflict with Lord Voldemort, a dark wizard who intends to become immortal, overthrow the wizard governing body known as the Ministry of Magic, and subjugate all wizards and Muggles.
Writer J. K. Rowling cites several writers as influences in her creation of her bestselling Harry Potter series. Writers, journalists and critics have noted that the books also have a number of analogues; a wide range of literature, both classical and modern, which Rowling has not openly cited as influences.
Timothy Peter Wiseman, who usually publishes as T. P. Wiseman and is named as Peter Wiseman in other sources, is a classical scholar and professor emeritus of the University of Exeter. He has published numerous books and articles, primarily on the literature and the social and political history of the late Roman Republic, but also the mythography of early Rome and Roman theatre.
Julia Eccleshare MBE is a British journalist and writer on the subject of children's books. She has been Children's Books editor for The Guardian newspaper for more than ten years, at least from 2000. She is also an editorial contributor and advisor for the website Love Reading 4 Kids. She is a recipient of the Eleanor Farjeon Award.
Wizarding World Digital is a digital publishing, e-commerce, entertainment and news company. It offers news, features, and articles as well as new and previously unreleased writing by J. K. Rowling regarding the Wizarding World. The site features Rowling's thoughts, several pages of unpublished text, and a sales resource for e-book and audiobook versions of the seven Harry Potter novels through Pottermore Publishing.
Barry Cunningham is a British publisher, who worked for various publishers including Penguin Books and Bloomsbury before setting up Chicken House publishing in 2000. He is most well known for signing J. K. Rowling and publishing Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in 1997.
British author J. K. Rowling, writer of Harry Potter and other Wizarding World works, has garnered attention for her support of the Labour Party under Gordon Brown and her criticism of the party under Jeremy Corbyn, as well as her opposition to the Republican Party under Donald Trump. She opposed Scottish independence in a 2014 referendum and Brexit during the 2016 referendum to leave the European Union.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is a play written by Jack Thorne from an original story written by J. K. Rowling, Thorne and John Tiffany. The story is set nineteen years after the events of the 2007 novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by Rowling. It follows Albus Severus Potter, son of Harry Potter, who is now Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Magic. When Albus arrives at Hogwarts, he gets sorted into Slytherin, and fails to live up to his father's legacy, making him resentful of his father. Rowling has referred to the play as "the eighth Harry Potter story".