Culture & ArtsSyriaJK Rowling

J.K. Rowling Sends Harry Potter Books To 7-Year-Old Fan In War-Torn Syria

The author turned on the magic after the girl's mom asked her how she could get a copy.
Rebecca Shapiro
By 

Senior Editor, HuffPost

J.K. Rowling provided some welcome respite for a seven-year-old Harry Potter fan living in Aleppo, Syria.

Bana Alabed, who has been tweeting updates about her life in the the war-torn city, recently saw a Harry Potter film. Her mother later contacted the author saying her daughter would like to read the book, but it’s not available where they live. The family’s home is in the rebel-held eastern part of the city that’s been at the center of the nation’s violent, years-long conflict.

Twitter users noticed the exchange and told Rowling the tweet was from the young girl, who has amassed over 90,000 followers since she joined Twitter in September.

Soon after, a member of Rowling’s team got in touch with Bana’s mother.

Two days later, Bana tweeted a photo of herself thanking Rowling for the books.

When Twitter users asked how Rowling managed to get the titles to the young fan, she had a simple response:

Mashable confirmed Bana received the books on Wednesday.

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A woman sits at a table in an Aleppo bar on May 21, 2009.
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An aerial view of Aleppo in 1997.
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Children in Aleppo in 2006.
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A man smokes his water pipe in front of the Aleppo citadel on March 18, 2006.
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View from the citadel of Aleppo in 2007.
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A couple stuck in a traffic jam on a bustling street in Aleppo on July 7, 1996.
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A Syrian musician plays during the opening of the festival marking Aleppo as the Islamic cultural capital on March 18, 2006.
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A couple in Aleppo on Oct. 5, 2006.
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Antique dealer Musafi Assal attends to a customer in Aleppo on June 23, 2010.
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Aleppo on Oct. 5, 2006.
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A man asleep inside his shop in Aleppo on Sept. 13, 2002.
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The interior of Sissi House, a storied hotel in Aleppo, on March 20, 2010. It burned down during the Syrian civil war in 2012.
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Syrian dancers perform the the Sufi tannoura dance (also known as the al-darawish or dervish dance) during the ceremony marking Aleppo as the Islamic cultural capital on March 18, 2006.
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A man inside Aleppo's Al Madina Souk in 2010.
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Bath domes in Aleppo in 2006. Aleppo was famous for its attractive churches, mosques, schools and baths.
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A waiter at the Sheraton in Aleppo holds a plate of food in 2010.
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A cook at Al-Andalos Sweets in Aleppo preparing baklava in 2010.
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People shop at the main market in Aleppo on June 23, 2010.
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View of Aleppo from the city's citadel on Oct. 21, 2004.
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Syrian men weave traditional rugs in Aleppo on March 18, 2006.
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A sweet shop inside Al Madina Souk in Aleppo in 2010.
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A man drinks tea after a bath at the Hammam Yalbougha an-Nasry in Aleppo on Sept. 13, 2002.
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Famous Aleppo architecture in 2006.
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Tourists walk past a trinket shop in Aleppo on June 23, 2010.
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A view of Aleppo and its historic citadel on June 23, 2010.
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Tourists at the entrance of Aleppo's citadel on June 23, 2010.
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People prepare kebabs in Hagop, an old restaurant in Aleppo, on June 23, 2010.
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Members of the Syrian Academy of Gastronomy taste Aleppine cuisine at a restaurant on Oct. 21, 2007.
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Two people take an evening walk in Aleppo on March 20, 2010.
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Tourists visit the ruins at the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites on March 25, 2010.

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