Libraries stock up for Potter finale

When the seventh and final book in J.K. Rowling's hugely popular "Harry Potter" series is released July 21, Chicago public libraries will have 1,000 copies on hand.

But don't count on being able to reserve a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in advance -- the city library system isn't allowing it.

"We believe that the first-come first-served system is the fairest way to go," said spokeswoman Maggie Killackey Jurgensen.

Of the 1,000 books, 110 will be available at the Harold Washington Library Center in the South Loop, while the rest will be dispersed evenly among 76 neighborhood branches.

Suburban libraries also are stocking up.

The Naperville Public Library has 285 copies of Deathly Hallows on order, and 484 "hold" requests, said spokeswoman Susan Greenwood.

In Tinley Park, the public library has ordered 15 copies, with 28 holds. Libraries in Aurora and Skokie each have 60 copies on order, with around 100 holds apiece.