Naturally, Twitterati and fans of the series went berserk as they cheered about the news. We invited three city Potterheads to discuss this new discovery, 25 years after the book was first published.

Childhood throwback
Sarthak Shukrey, thermal engineer, 25

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As a child, reading Harry Potter in the school library made my day better. It enhanced my ability to think beyond reality. I remember asking my mother to buy me DVDs of every Potter film immediately after its release; such was the craze back then. The author has articulated the story so beautifully that we, as readers, automatically try to imagine and create the characters and what they would look like in our minds. No wonder the illustrations are proof of how detailed the story line is, but it doesn’t change much for a reader like me, as I have already acquainted myself with how it is portrayed in the movie. The illustrations, however, indicate how well-thought out the idea was to have it written and illustrated at once.

Special connect
Ruta Bakshi, content writer, 22

I don’t think it will change my perception of the characters or the story, as I have known the story of Harry Potter for so many years now. It will be a good way of understanding what the author was imagining while writing the book, but I believe the most interesting part of reading is that every reader perceives the book’s characters and worlds differently, so each book is special to readers in different ways. It was a huge part of a lot of people’s childhoods, and so many of us have different perceptions of the books. Personally, I don’t think the illustrations will affect that, but it will be interesting to see for sure.

Surprising facts
Rittisha Davis, post-graduate student, 23

While reading the books, a part of my mind had already developed the characters and how they would appear. As a result, the illustrations are almost identical to how I had imagined them as a child. I was surprised by one of the illustrations in which Harry is standing in front of The Mirror of Erised. The movie and book stressed the fact that the little boy’s deepest desire was to see his parents, although the illustration shows a few more people. This has ignited my curiosity. I am on my way to binge-reading the novel again to see if I missed any parts so I can relate more to the illustrations. Consider why Rowling chose to publish the illustrations after 25 years; I think she felt that readers should know what she thought of the characters while creating them.