The new Harry Potter book went on sale last Saturday night at 12:01 a.m. Bookstores across the country celebrated with midnight parties; here we present a sampling of photos from those festivities.

Harvard Square in Cambridge, Mass., became Hogwarts Square for the big day. Photo: Judith Rosen

Winner of the costume contest at Prince Books in Norfolk, Va. Photo: Sue Corbett

Harry Potter (Lynden Moseberth), staff member Linsley Moseberth, and Dobby the House Elf (Jameson Moseberth), at Prince Books.

Abigail Kline posed for a Have You Seen This Wizard? photo at Prince Books.

Group shot of Potterheads at Prince Books.

Bookshop Santa Cruz had 2,000 wizards for its big event. Here Gryffindor scores 10 points in Quidditch outside of Bookshop Santa Cruz in Santa Cruz, Calif. Photo: Casey Coonerty

A street view of the Harry Potter Festival, which took up an entire city block. Bookshop Santa Cruz in Santa Cruz, Calif. Photo: Casey Coonerty

Via donations of socks in honor of Dobby donated by local business Sockshop Santa Cruz, Bookshop Santa Cruz raised $700 for the Santa Cruz Family Shelter. Photo: Casey Coonerty

Green-screen photos placed customers (in this case Bookshop Santa Cruz owner Casey Coonerty) in their own Quidditch game. Photo: Casey Coonerty

As reported by Colin McDonald, marketing and events coordinator at 57th Street Books, part of Seminary Co-op Bookstores in Chicago, “We had a joyous Harry Potter Midnight Release Party, with at least 150 attendees dressed as Harry Potter, Bellatrix Lestrange, Sybill Trelawney, et al. The crowd, a mix of young and old(er) Potter fans sang ‘Happy Birthday' to Harry and collectively blew out the candles.”

The line snaked through the store at 57th Street Books in Chicago.

Wand-making at 57th Street Books.

A cake for Harry at 57th Street Books.

Two Schuler Books stores and Nicola’s, owned by Schuler Books, are donating 30% of the cover price to charity. The Grand Rapids store is raising money for a group of volunteers at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital. The Okemos store is donating to Simbolei Girls’ Preparatory Academy in rural Kenya. Nicola’s is donating to Washtenaw Literacy, a local adult literacy program. Photo: Schuler Books in Okemos, Mich.

A Divination station at Schuler Books.

Waiting outside for copies of Cursed Child at Schuler Books..

Potions and bubbling beverages at Schuler Books in Grand Rapids.

Marking the Muggle Wall at Schuler Books.

“Got my book!” at Schuler Books.

One family came to Schuler Books as Harry, Hedwig, Mad-Eye Moody, and Marge Dursley. Harry pulled his little sister (Hedwig) around all evening.

One of the biggest midnight release parties in the country took place in Naperville, Ill. Through the involvement of Anderson’s Bookshop in Naperville, Ill., with the Naperville Downtown Alliance, close to 50 businesses participated in The Return of the Party That Shall Not Be Named. In 2007, nearly 50,000 people attended the Harry Potter release party. This year thousands returned. Photo: Anderson’s Bookshop.

Throngs of Potter fans in Anderson’s Bookshop.

Mad-Eye Moody at Anderson’s Bookshop.

Selecting a wand at Anderson’s Bookshop.

The costume contest at Half Price Books’s flagship store in Dallas, Tex.

A Dallas police officer guarded books at Half Price Books.

Mad-Eye Moody and friends at Half Price Books.

Let’s Play Books! in Emmaus, Pa., held a Midnight Book Release Festival at the Wildlands Conversance at the Pool Wildlife Sanctuary in Emmaus, Pa. More than 100 people attended despite the pouring rain, and the store distributed more than 100 books. The sanctuary’s large pavilion turned into the Great Hall of Hogwarts, with multiple classrooms including Divination/Tea fortune reading, Wand Making, Wizard Chess Instruction, Owl Husbandry, Forbidden Forest instruction and hoot hike, Defense Against the Dark Arts, even a live tarantula. Max Levine, son of Harry Potter's U.S. publisher Arthur Levine, joined the event and opened the first book box.

Professor Trelawney (Emma Ville) leading a Divination class at Let’s Play Books!

The Have You Seen This Wizard poster at Let’s Play Books!

Professor Umbridge from the Ministry of Magic (played by professor Jane Yauch) was in charge of book and goody bag distribution. Let’s Play Books! in Emmaus, Pa.

(From l. to r.): Maron Schellenberg, Jeanie Ville, Maddie Hess, Olivia Moreno, Deva Sullivan, and Max Levine at Let’s Play Books!

Barnes & Noble’s event at its Union Square store in New York City went “fantastically well,” according to company spokesman Alan McNamara. Photo: Hillary Richard for Barnes & Noble.

“I’ve Done My Waiting”: Barnes & Noble at Union Square. Photo: Hillary Richard for Barnes & Noble.

Hedwig at Barnes & Noble at Union Square. Photo: Hillary Richard for Barnes & Noble.

The first book from the first box at B&N Union Square. Photo: Hillary Richard for Barnes & Noble.

One hundred people attended the midnight release party at the Stratford Library Association in Stratford, Ct. Hogwarts guests were sorted into their houses, played pin-the-sock on Dobby, and went to Potions, Divinations, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and NEWTS classes. Accio Harry Potter. Photo: Chris Bacchiocchi and Denise Dumas

DADA with Tonks at Stratford Library Association. Photo: Chris Bacchiocchi and Denise Dumas

Defeating dementors in DADA at Stratford Library Association. Photo: Chris Bacchiocchi and Denise Dumas

Potions with Snape at Stratford Library Association. Photo: Chris Bacchiocchi and Denise Dumas

Reading the latest Harry Potter at Stratford Library Association. Photo: Chris Bacchiocchi and Denise Dumas

The line for books stretched down the block at Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C.

Politics & Prose owners Brad Graham and Lissa Muscatine celebrated the new release, too.

Booksellers at the Strand Book Store in New York City relaxing after an evening with more than 1,000 Potter fans. Photo: Elizabeth Nahum-Albright.