Order of the Phoenix in French Debuts in Canada on December 3

[from information in French from Infopresse, translated by Dave Haber with help from Altavista]

Thirty bookstores thoughout Montreal and Quebec will hold special events to herald the arrival of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in French on December 3, sponsored by Gallimard Jeunesse, Harry’s French publisher in Canada.

The festivities will start at four bookshops in Quebec and two in Montreal late in the evening of December 2, books will go on sale at midnight. Then, starting at 7 am the next morning, the festivities will move eround to the other stores during the day. Additional appearances will be made at more stores the next day, December 4.

Magicians will perform for an hour and a half at each location, and there will be bird-handlers with several owls of different species, including barn owls and snowy owls like Hedwig. The bird-handlers engaged by Gallimard Jeunesse are members of the Quebec Union of Birds of Prey Rehabilitation from the Veterinary School of the University of Montreal. Kids will be able to pose with the owls for pictures which will be then sent to them for no charge by email.