Borders Group Recommends Books For Kids To Make the Most of This Summer's Reading ``Spell''; What to Read While Waiting for Harry Potter and Beyond

Business Wire, June 30, 2005

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Borders Group, Inc., a leading global retailer of books, music and movies with more than 1,200 Borders Books & Music(R) and Waldenbooks(R) stores worldwide, today released a list of recommended children's book titles for kids eagerly anticipating the July 16 release of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." With fictional tales about far-off places, magical spells and thrilling adventures, Borders Group's suggested summer reading list will keep Harry Potter fans reading all summer long.

"As reservations for the upcoming Harry Potter book continue to grow and outpace the number of reservations we had for the last Harry Potter book, we know there is a high level of interest and anticipation building. We want to help parents to make the most of their children's enhanced interest in summer reading," said Diane Mangan, category director of children's books for Borders Group. "From the classic "Chronicles of Narnia," by C.S. Lewis, to the newest "Artemis Fowl" adventure by Eoin Colfer, children's fantasy series are bigger than ever and very popular with kids of all ages," said Mangan, "Our recommendations give parents a shortcut to finding the best titles within the fantasy genre to keep kids reading all summer and to help instill a lifelong love of reading."

Some of the books recommended for readers age eight and up include:

--"Midnight for Charlie Bone," by Jenny Nimmo, about a boy who can hear the thoughts of people in photographs and who is destined for Bloor's Academy for Gifted Children. "Midnight for Charlie Bone" is the first in a series of four books available about the young wizard-to-be.

--Phillip Pullman's acclaimed "His Dark Materials" trilogy ends with "The Amber Spyglass" and brings to a conclusion all the intrigue and mysteries that made "The Golden Compass" and "The Subtle Knife" favorites of many young readers.

--A popular title in hardcover two years ago, "Eragon," is now available in paperback and tells the story of a 15-year old boy whose destiny as a Dragon Rider is revealed. Written by Christopher Paolini, the second installment, "Eldest," will be available in August.

Borders Group also recommends these additional titles for readers age eight and up, available at Borders and Waldenbooks stores nationwide:

--"Amulet of Samarkand," by Jonathan Stroud

--"The Spiderwick Chronicles," by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi

--"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," by Roald Dahl

--"Peter and the Starcatchers," by Dave Berry

--"The Giant Surprise: A Narnia Story," by Hiawyn Oram

To celebrate the release of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," Borders and Waldenbooks stores will host in-store "Midnight Magic" parties beginning Friday, July 15 and continuing until 12:01 a.m. Saturday, July 16, when the book is officially available for sale. The parties will treat Potter fans to fun-filled activities, including mask-making, science experiments, magic crafts, and of course, all things Harry Potter. In addition, the stores will have freebies available at many of the activity stations.

Borders will sell the 672-page book at 40 percent off of the publisher's list price of $29.99 for customers who reserve copies in advance. A collector's edition will also be available at 40 percent off of the publisher's list price of $60.00 for reserved copies, as will the unabridged audio CD and cassette versions of the book, read by acclaimed Harry Potter narrator Jim Dale.

For more information about Harry Potter events in your area, call your local Borders or Waldenbooks store. To locate the nearest Borders, visit www.bordersstores.com. To locate the nearest Waldenbooks, visit www.waldenbooksstores.com.

About Borders Group

Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich., Borders Group is a leading global retailer of books, music and movies with more than 1,200 stores and over 32,000 employees worldwide. More detailed information on the company is available at www.bordersgroupinc.com.