New Harry Potter Book Sells 4 Million Copies in First Week

The new Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, sold more than 4 million print copies in its first week, its publishers announced today. Sales in North America amounted to 3.3 million, while it moved 850,000 copies in the UK since its release on July 31, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Cursed Child is the script for Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling's new play of the same name. The book's release pushed up sales of the original Harry Potter novels, as the first book, The Sorcerer's Stone, sold 35,000 print copies in the US for the week ended August 7, WSJ said. That makes it the No. 8 book on the newspaper's best-seller list; Cursed Child is No. 1.

"This is way beyond our most optimistic expectations and is testament to the passion readers have for J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World, as well as to the amazing reception the play itself has had," Little, Brown Book CEO David Shelley said in a statement.

Cursed Child may have had a hot start, but it didn't come close 2007's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which sold 8.3 million copies in the US over its first 24 hours.

The script, written by Jack Thorne, is based on an original story by Rowling. It's the eighth official story in the Harry Potter series and the first one to be performed for the stage; it opened in London on July 30.

Cursed Child tells the story of a 37-year-old Harry Potter, who is now an overworked Ministry of Magic employee and a father of three children.

"While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted," reads a line from the book's description. "As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places."

Rowling claims Cursed Child is the end of Harry Potter's story. "This is the next generation, you know. So, I'm thrilled to see it realized so beautifully but, no, Harry is done now," she said last week.

Although this might be the end of the line for Harry, Rowling's wider magical universe is to continue. The prequel Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them hits theaters in November, directed by David Yates, who made the last four Harry Potter movies.