Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling, the fifth in the bestselling series, has been scheduled for release on Saturday 21 June 2003 in Britain, the USA, Canada, Australia and in the English language in many countries. In making the joint announcement, Nigel Newton, Chief Executive of Bloomsbury Publishing in Britain and Barbara Marcus, President of Scholastic Children's Books in the United States said: 'We are thrilled to announce the publication date. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is absolutely superb and will delight all J.K. Rowling's fans. She has written a brilliant and utterly compelling new adventure, which begins with the words: The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and adrowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive - The only person left outside was a teenage boy who was lying flat on his back in a flowerbed outside number four. 'Later in the novel, J.K. Rowling writes: Dumbledore lowered his hands and surveyed Harry through his half-moon glasses. "It is time," he said, "for me to tell you what I should have told you five years ago, Harry. Please sit down. I am going to tell you everything." ' Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix isover 255,000 words compared to over 191,000 words in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The new book is 38 chapters long, one more than Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

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Personen: Rowling, Joanne K.