Harry Potter Books in Order

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Played by Daniel Radcliffe on the big screen, Harry James Potter is one of the most famous wizards of modern times. He just doesn’t know it’s when the story begins.

On his tenth birthday, Harry learns that he is a wizard, and joins Hogwarts where he meets Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Harry Potter is ready to live dangerous adventures with his two best friends to fight evil and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

How to read the Harry Potter Series in Order?

Reading The Original Harry Potter series in order

Where the magic happened. The original series was designed as the principal series by J.K. Rowling who retraces the Harry Potter story during his scholarship at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Each novel corresponds to a year-long period of time.

1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (or Philosopher’s Stone) – On his tenth birthday, Harry learns that he is a wizard and is to go off to Hogwarts, a prestigious school for wizards and witches. Harry and his friends, Hermione and Ron, soon discover that something shady is going on, and they must save Hogwarts from the very sorcerer who killed Harry’s parents.
2. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - In Harry’s second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageously stuck-up new professor, Gilderoy Lockhart, a spirit named Moaning Myrtle who haunts the girls’ bathroom, and the unwanted attentions of Ron Weasley’s younger sister, Ginny. But each of these seems minor annoyances when the real trouble begins, and someone-or something-starts turning Hogwarts students to stone.
3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -For twelve long years, the dread fortress of Azkaban held an infamous prisoner named Sirius Black. Convicted of killing thirteen people with a single curse, he was said to be the heir apparent to the Dark Lord, Voldemort. Now he has escaped and Harry Potter isn’t safe, not even within the walls of his magical school, surrounded by his friends. Because on top of it all, there may well be a traitor in their midst.
4. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – The Triwizard Tournament is to be held at Hogwarts. Only wizards who are over seventeen are allowed to enter. Then at Hallowe’en, when the Goblet of Fire makes its selection, Harry is amazed to find his name is one of those that the magical cup picks out. He will face death-defying tasks, dragons, and dark wizards, but with the help of his best friends, Ron and Hermione, he might just make it through-alive!

5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – In his fifth year at Hogwart’s, Harry faces challenges at every turn, from the dark threat of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and the unreliability of the government of the magical world to the rise of Ron Weasley as the keeper of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team.
6. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Secrets and suspicion are spreading through the wizarding world, and Hogwarts itself is not safe. Harry is convinced that Malfoy bears the Dark Mark: there is a Death Eater amongst them. Harry will need powerful magic and true friends as he explores Voldemort’s darkest secrets, and Dumbledore prepares him to face his destiny…
7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – The protective charm that has kept Harry safe until now is broken, but he cannot keep hiding. The Dark Lord is breathing fear into everything Harry loves and to stop him Harry will have to find and destroy the remaining Horcruxes. The final battle must begin–Harry must stand and face his enemy…

Reading The Harry Potter Sequel (a play)

It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now–18 years after the end of the original series–that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband, and father of three school-age children.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Parts One and Two: The Official Playscript of the Original West End Production – 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. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: Sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.

Reading The Complementary Harry Potter Books

The Harry Potter World extends beyond the original series. From textbooks to the screenplay, the complementary books explore these magical universes in writing:

Reading The Hogwarts Library books

1. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – Textbook about the magical creatures in the Harry Potter universe.
2. Quidditch Through the Ages – Textbook about Quidditch in the Harry Potter universe.
3. The Tales of Beedle the Bard – Book of children’s stories mentioned in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Reading the Newt Scamander Adventures (aka Fantastic Beasts, the screenplays)

1. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay – Prequel to the original book series. When Magizoologist Newt Scamander arrives in New York, he intends his stay to be just a brief stopover. However, when his magical case is misplaced and some of Newt’s fantastic beasts escape, it spells trouble for everyone…
2. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald – The Original Screenplay – At the end of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the powerful dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald was captured in New York with the help of Newt Scamander. But, making good on his threat, Grindelwald escapes custody and sets about gathering followers, most unsuspecting of his true agenda: to raise pure-blood wizards up to rule over all non-magical beings. In an effort to thwart Grindelwald’s plans, Albus Dumbledore enlists Newt, his former Hogwarts student, who agrees to help once again, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead.

Reading the Pottermore Presents books (only in ebooks)

1. Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide – This eBook, with writing curated by Pottermore, will take you beyond the Harry Potter stories as J.K. Rowling reveals her inspiration, intricate details of characters’ lives, and surprises from the wizarding world.
2. Short Stories from Hogwarts of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists – These stories of power, politics, and pesky poltergeists give you a glimpse into the darker side of the wizarding world, revealing the ruthless roots of Professor Umbridge, the lowdown on the Ministers for Magic, the history of the wizarding prison Azkaban and more.
3. Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies – These stories of heroism, hardship, and dangerous hobbies profile two of the Harry Potter stories’ most courageous and iconic characters: Minerva McGonagall and Remus Lupin, give us a peek behind the closed curtains of Sybill Trelawney’s life, and you’ll encounter the reckless, magical-beast-loving Silvanus Kettleburn along the way.

A Journey Through… (by Pottermore Publishing, only in ebooks)

This non-fiction short-form eBook features content that is adapted from the audiobook Harry Potter: A History of Magic – inspired by the British Library exhibition of the same name.

1. A Journey Through Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts – This eBook short examines the colorful characters and curious incidents of the real history of magic, and how they relate to the Hogwarts lesson subjects of Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts.
2. A Journey Through Potions and Herbology – This eBook short examines the colorful characters and curious incidents of the real history of magic, and how they relate to the Hogwarts lesson subjects of Potions and Herbology.
3. A Journey Through Divination and Astronomy – This eBook short examines the colorful characters and curious incidents of the real history of magic, and how they relate to the Hogwarts lesson subjects of Divination and Astronomy.
4. A Journey Through Care of Magical Creatures – This eBook short examines the colorful characters and curious incidents of the real history of magic, and how they relate to the Hogwarts lesson subjects of Care of Magical Creatures.

If you like our article about the Harry Potter reading order, don’t forget to bookmark it! You may also be interested in reading Christopher Paolini’s books or Diana Wynne Jones’ Chrestomanci series. Don’t hesitate to follow us on Twitter or Facebook to discover more book series.