The story

It is the richest going-away party in history.

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the seventh and final volume of J.K. Rowling's all-conquering fantasy series, sold a mountainous 8.3 million copies in its first 24 hours on sale in the United States, according to Scholastic Inc.

The book sold 2.6 million copies in Britain in its first 24 hours, according to Nielsen BookScan. Read full article »

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