Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the world's largest bookseller, will host the ultimate Midnight Magic Costume Party at the Union Square Barnes & Noble (33 East 17th Street) in Manhattan on Friday, July 20th, with an exclusive appearance by the acclaimed British actor, Jim Dale. All Harry Potter fans, young and old, are welcome. Come for a night of costumes, games, and magic at the world's largest costume party dressed as your favorite character from J.K. Rowling's magical series. Festivities at the Union Square store will also be webcast live on Barnes & Noble.com (www.bn.com), beginning at 9:00 p.m.

Potter fans can begin their journey through the Union Square Barnes & Noble at 5:00 p.m., at the ?Eeylops Owl Emporium? on the first floor, featuring live owls. Next, visit ?Diagon Alley,? on the second floor, home to the ?Magical Menagerie? face painting station, magic tricks at ?Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes,? homemade potion brewing at ?The Apothecary,? and wand making at ?Ollivanders.? Pass on to ?Hogwarts Castle? for fortune telling at the ?Forbidden Forest? and stop by the Harry Potter Photo Booth. ?Yule Magic,? on the store's fourth floor, will feature magic shows, costume contests and games with some of your favorite Harry Potter characters.

Jim Dale has created and recorded more than 200 different voices for the Harry Potter audiobooks. Beginning at 10:30 PM, he will discuss how he got the role of narrator; how he creates his characters' voices; and read excerpts from previous Harry Potter books. Dale will then lead the magical countdown to midnight when Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows goes on sale.

Barnes & Noble stores nationwide will host Midnight Magic parties on Friday, July 20th, to celebrate the seventh and final book in the J.K. Rowling series. Stores will remain open late and sell Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at the stroke of midnight, when it officially goes on sale. To find the Midnight Magic Costume Party near you, please visit www.bn.com/midnightmagic.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is selling for $20.99, 40 percent off the list price of $34.99. Barnes & Noble Members can buy the book for $18.89, a savings of 46 percent. Customers can order the book at any Barnes & Noble store or at the online Harry Potter store at www.bn.com/harrypotter. Barnes & Noble stores and website (www.bn.com) also feature Harry Potter-related merchandise including magic wands, the Harry Potter Time Turner sticker kit and the Harry Potter and Friends bookmark and tassel.

About Barnes & Noble, Inc.

Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the world's largest bookseller and a Fortune 500 company, operates 793 bookstores in 50 states. For the fourth year in a row, the company is the nation's top bookseller brand, as determined by a brand's overall strength based on its combination of familiarity, quality and purchase intent, according to the EquiTrend® Brand Study by Harris Interactive®. Barnes & Noble conducts its online business through Barnes & Noble.com (www.bn.com), one of the Web's largest e-commerce sites.

General information on Barnes & Noble, Inc. can be obtained via the Internet by visiting the company's corporate Web site: http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com.

Barnes & Noble, Inc.
Mary Ellen Keating, 212-633-3323
Senior Vice President
Corporate Communications
or
Carolyn J. Brown, 212-633-4062
Director
Corporate Communications