When J.K. Rowling began writing the novel that would become Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in the early 1990s, she didn't see fame in her own crystal ball. "I thought I'd written something that a handful of people might quite like," she said at a press conference near the end of her recent North American tour. "So this has been something of a shock."

The "this" she speaks of is the sudden and almost overwhelming fame that has accompanied the unprecedented success of her Harry Potter series of books. The sort of fame western society generally reserves for rock stars and well known actors, not ever -- until now -- for authors of books for children. Read the whole article -->