Harry Potter casts a spell in China

Little Green Book: The magic of "Ha-li Bote" brings three-hour queues in Beijing

BEIJING, China (Reuters) -- Harry Potter has made a splashy official debut in China, despite anxious debate within the People's Literature Publishing House over whether the schoolboy wizard was politically correct.

An initial print run of 600,000 copies of the first three children's books by British author J.K. Rowling was rushed to market to beat pirates already making a killing.

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The biggest first edition run of a work of fiction in the 51-year history of Communist China attracted long queues that stretched halfway around the block outside Wangfujing Bookstore in Beijing's main shopping district.

Wang Ruiqin, children's editor for People's Literature Publishing House -- publisher of the Collected Poems of Mao Zedong -- said she fought criticism that Harry Potter with his vampires, zombies and trolls promoted superstition.

After the Communists took power in 1949 they outlawed "feudal superstition" along with a host of other evils, including prostitution and drugs.

"Some who have not read the book feel it is just like witchcraft, but after you read it you will not feel that way," she said.

The editorial board was persuaded by the argument that Harry Potter was a fine role model for children.

"Harry Potter's courage, his willingness to help people -- this is universal," she said.

Customers paid a hefty 68 yuan ($8.20) for the books printed on special green-tinted paper to foil counterfeiters. The Sorcerer's Stone, Chamber of Secrets and the Prisoner of Azkaban are being sold as a trilogy.

People's Literature Publishing House is negotiating for rights to the fourth in the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and could bring it to market next year depending on the response to the first three, Wang said.

"For Chinese readers, it has been a long wait," said publishing house president Nie Zhenning.

First in line on Friday was Zhang Huitou, who waited more than three hours to get his hands on the set for his 11-year-old daughter after reading a newspaper account of the exploits of the boy wizard "Hali Bote," as he is known in Chinese.

"This really makes Chinese kids excited," said Zhang.

The publisher moved the launch in major cities up by a week to cut down on counterfeiting, but already three or four pirated versions are circulating on the streets.

It said readers would be swayed by the more accurate translation and high quality of genuine copies.

The publisher hopes the three books, which have sold more than 35 million copies worldwide, will provide commercial magic in China. But some literary critics are not so sure.

"The cultural difference is too great," said Chen Jie, a writer for China Reading Weekly. "I'm not too optimistic about the China market."

Gao Wei, a 27-year-old nursery school teacher, said he was buying the books for his classes, and himself.

"Nine years old or 100 years old, we're all interested in Harry Potter," he said.

Copyright 2000 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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