By Rory Reynolds
A FIRST edition of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is set to fetch £2000 when it goes under the hammer next week.
The second novel in the series was published just ten years ago but is set to be sold for a staggering 200 times what it cost to buy in 1998 – because it’s been signed by the author herself.
JK Rowling also left a touching personal note to an avid fan saying she hoped she enjoyed the book.
It reads: ‘To Emily, I am very flattered to hear how much you liked Harry one – hope this one doesn’t disappoint, JK Rowling’.
It is thought that best-selling author wrote the message to the lucky girl before she received worldwide fame following her later books and movie series.Alex Dove, books expert at Lyon & Turnbull said that the special message made all the difference to the book’s worth at the sale on 16 September.
Rare
She said: “We sell Harry Potter volumes quite frequently and they vary from very good unsigned copies to signed collections.
“However, the signed ones are not as rare as the ones that are personally inscribed by JK Rowling – which are much more unusual.
“This one has a really lovely inscription and because it’s the second book rather than one of the later editions when she was famous, that makes it more unusual as well.
“It would be a nice one to buy because it is an immaculate copy, and because of the inscription.
“We have quite abroad bidding base so we expect to get interest from around the world.”
Die-Hard Fan
Emily Gibbon, 21, was given the book by her auntie, who asked JK Rowling to write the message when she walked into her bookshop in 1998.
Emily cherished the book for eleven years, before deciding to sell it on to another die-hard fan.
She said: “I didn’t actually meet her myself, years ago an auntie of mine worked in a book store and she managed to get an autograph from JK Rowling.
“It must have been 1998, if that’s when the book came it out.
“It must have been because it was only her second work, before she was really famous – it was incredibly lucky that she was there and was kind enough to sign it.
Record
“It’s obviously quite sentimental, I’ve had the book for a while now – but it think it’s time for someone else to have it.
“I’ve just seen the new film and I’ve always been a big fan since the first book.
“I haven’t be lucky enough to meet her – I’d like to meet her just to say thank you.”
However the sale won’t make a dent in the current record – in 2007 JK Rowling’s Tales of Beedle the Bard was bought for £1.95million by online marketplace giant Amazon.com.
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