The day Harry Potter fans have both anxiously awaited and dreaded arrived Friday, as the long-awaited final book in the popular series was released around the globe.

At 10:30 p.m. ET, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows became available in St. John's, which is in the first time zone in North America to get the book, 30 minutes ahead of Halifax and an hour and a half ahead of Toronto.

The book attracted scores of fans dressed as Ron, Hermione, witches, Death Eaters and Muggles to bookshops around the world in anticipation of buying a copy of the book at a minute past midnight.

Minutes after buying the book at a late-night release party in St. John's, a few friends headed to a nearby provincial park for a weekend of camping and reading.

"We didn't want the media to influence the outcome of the book for us, because there are spoilers popping up everywhere," said Emily Power, 15, referring to apparent plot leaks that surfaced online in the days leading up to the release.

In Toronto, hundreds of families packed a downtown street that was closed off for the release. A Chapters store was staging what was billed as the largest release party in the country. Many attendees were dressed in homemade Hogwarts uniforms. Hogwarts is the wizard school Harry Potter attends.

"I feel happy and sad because it's the end," said Max Schindler, 7, who sported a wizard hat.

His sister, Emma, 9, said her favourite character in the books is Potter's friend Hermione "because she's so smart."

Hours earlier, at a minute past midnight in London, England, readers who had been waiting in the rain at bookstores rushed to get their hands on the new book.

Hundreds of fans gathered at London's Natural History Museum to hear author J.K. Rowling read from the book. Some 500 children from around the world have won the privilege of attending the special midnight event. Rowling sat in a large wing-backed chair and read the opening pages.

Saturday's release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows has prompted thousands of parties and overnight events at bookstores around the world, as fans gather to mark the end of the series.

At Waterstone's bookstore on Piccadilly in central London, more than 5,000 people lined up for hours before the midnight opening.

"I don't want Harry to die," said one young fan.

Bookstores across the globe made special preparations for the publishing event. Tel Aviv's Steimatzky bookstore was due to open at 2:01 a.m. local time Saturday, defying criticism from Orthodox Jewish lawmakers for opening on the Sabbath, when the law requires most businesses in Israel to close.

In India, stores were opening at dawn for special Harry Potter parties. In Bangkok, British ambassador David Fall was to hand over Thailand's first official copy of the book to the first customer in line at the Emporium Shopping Complex.

Across Latin America, bookstores were staying open late and Mexico City's Gandhi bookstore planned to keep the party going all weekend, with showings of the movies and readings in Spanish of excerpts from the book.

Rowling, writing on her website Friday, said she was feeling a "mixture of excitement, nerves and relief" as the launch of the last book in the boy wizard series approached.

"Within hours, you will know what happens to Harry, Ron, Hermione and the rest," Rowling wrote. "All the secrets I have been carrying around for so long will be yours, too."

A young Canadian was among the fans at the Deathly Hallows release and book-signing at the Natural History Museum. Nine-year-old Matthew Pincin of Richmond Hill, Ont., won an invitation in a contest by the book's Canadian publisher, Raincoast Books.

"Voldemort is going to die for sure but I'm not sure who the second person is," Pincin said, referring to the teen wizard's evil nemesis.

Pincin said he isn't happy to see the end of the series.

"I want to keep going because I like Harry's adventures and it's sad that the books are ending."

Child help line prepares for calls

Meanwhile, a British counselling service for children is adding extra staff to help child readers upset by the outcome of the last Harry Potter book.

Rowling revealed earlier in 2007 that two main characters would die in the final instalment of the seven-book series.

ChildLine, a confidential 24-hour help line for children, says readers could be devastated if several main characters die in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

"For many children, Harry Potter and his friends have become a major part of their childhood," Kate Trench, a senior supervisor with ChildLine, told The Guardian newspaper.

"Death and loss of any kind can make children feel upset, angry and afraid. The story could bring back unhappy memories for children who have lost friends, relatives or pets."

Publishers, including Raincoast Books, have spent a reported $20 million US in security to keep the outcome a secret, but to no avail. Copies of the book have apparently slipped out.

The New York Times, the Baltimore Sun and one paper in Paris have reviewed the book and revealed the details. Hundreds of Deathly Hallows copies are already on sale through eBay.

Scholastic, the U.S. publisher, admits "one-100th of one per cent of the total U.S. copies" were shipped prematurely. With a print run of 12 million, that would mean about 1,200 copies.

Meanwhile, online book seller Amazon.com said global pre-orders have reached 2.2 million, a 47 per cent boost from its previous pre-order record — held by the sixth book in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Author J.K. Rowling, seen here at the July 3 premiere of the movie Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, said she felt liberated after finishing the final book.
(Ian West/Associated Press)

Rowling has expressed outrage at the plot leaks and has begged those in the know to keep quiet.

Rowling said she "felt terrible for a week" after finishing Deathly Hallows.

"The first two days in particular, it was like bereavement, even though I was pleased with the book," she said on Thursday.

Rowling, whose first book was published in 1997, says she now feels "liberated" and predicts some fans will not like the last book.

"The final book is what it was always supposed to be, and so I feel very at peace with that fact."

The writer, said to be worth $1 billion US, says she doubts she will ever write anything as popular again.

With files from the Associated Press and the Canadian Press