Harry Potter makes history
US sales of the seventh and final Harry Potter volume hit an estimated 8.3 million in the first 24 hours, confirming its place in the history books as the fastest-selling book ever, reuters reports from London. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ comfortably beat the previous 2005 Potter installment, which posted US sales of 6.9 million copies in the first 24 hours, according to Scholastic, its publisher in the key American market.

Camilla shines, with Queen’s help
The Queen of England has helped the Duchess of Cornwall sparkle on her 60th birthday by lending a diamond necklace to her for a dinner party hosted by Prince Charles to mark his wife’s milestone anniversary last week, a daily reported here on Monday, PTI reports from London..

The diamond necklace, now very much part of the Royal Collection, was commissioned by King George VI as a present to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, to mark his coronation way back in 1937.

Serial rapist held in China
Chinese police have arrested a man on suspicion of raping 17 women, mainly migrant workers, since last August in a part of eastern China popular with South Korean investors, the official Xinhua news agency said on Monday, Reuters reports from Beijing.

Cheng Yehua, 24, was arrested in Shandong province and is also suspected of 24 burglaries, the report said.

‘’The victims said their attacker struck between 9:00 am and 10:00 am, carrying a knife and wearing a surgical mask, when the young women were sleeping in rented homes after work,’’ it added.