Sunday, January 04, 2009

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling

From the back cover:

The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a Wizarding classic, first came to Muggle readers' attention in the book known as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Now, thanks to Hermione Granger's new translation from the ancient runes, we present this stunning edition with an introduction, notes, and illustrations by J.K. Rowling, and extensive commentary by Albus Dumbledore. Never before have Muggles been privy to these richly imaginative tales: "The Wizard and the Hopping Pot," "The Fountain of Fair Fortune," "The Warlock's Hairy Heart," "Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump," and of course, "The Tale of the Three Brothers." But not only are they the equal of fairy tales we now know and love, reading them gives new insight into the world of Harry Potter.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a great addition to the Harry Potter family. On the same level as Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch Through the Ages adds in a bit more background information to the world of Harry Potter. Of the three books, I found this one the most interesting. I went into this hoping for some fables and fairy tales and that's exactly what I got. I only wish that there had been more, a nice chunky volume of tales! Now that would have been perfect!

Of the 5 stories, my favorite was The Fountain of Fair Fortune, thought they were all interesting. Enhancing the stories are Rowling's own drawings and Dumbledore's commentary. I think this is definitely a fun book for anyone that loves Harry Potter and a great introduction to the world of Harry Potter for a new reader!

4/5 Stars
Purchased by myself

Have you read the Harry Potter series? What did you think of the Tales of Beedle the Bard?

14 comments:

  1. Anonymous6:30 PM

    We just got this one in. Weren't you surprise at how thin it was? I mean compared to her other books, I was taken back.

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  2. Anonymous6:34 PM

    I'm a big fan of Harry Potter.. but I haven't read this book myself yet. Just got three copies to give as gifts. =)
    Sounds like a great book though.

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  3. I got this a while ago, but I haven't gotten to read it yet! AHH!

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  4. Anonymous6:41 PM

    I bought this for my hubby for Christmas, so I should be reading it soon.

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  5. I'm a big Harry Potter fan and I have this sitting in my stack of books to read. . . I can't wait. :D

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  6. I loved this one! My favorite is The Warlock's Hairy Heart. I'm a little morbid, I suppose.

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  7. My favorite story was The Fountain of Fair Fortune as well. I loved this little book, and, like you, wished there had been more to it. I didn't want to stories to end!

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  8. I have read it, and I agree with your review and rating.

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  9. My 15 year old son and I, both Harry Potter fans, both enjoyed this book. I wrote a page at The Tales of Beedle The Bard Book Review and would welcome your opinion on the book there.

    Brenda

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  10. I'm a BIG HP fan - I think you're right with your 4/5 rating, that's what I ranked it!

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  11. I enjoyed the Harry Potter series, but I'm not a die-hard fan (believe me, I know some). This book didn't impress me very much. If you've read Harry Potter, you know most of the info, and the tales seemed similar to many standard fairy tales, except with a twist of magic. (I would make an exception for the Warlock's Hairy Heart, which I did enjoy very much). If you're interested, I posted a review:

    http://literarymenagerie.blogspot.com/2008/12/tales-of-beedle-bard-by-j-k-rowling.html

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  12. I'm glad you liked this one! I need to get to it at some point...

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  13. J. Kaye- Yes, it's like 1/8 of one of the Harry Potter books!

    Sounds like a lot of you are in the same boat i was in, bought it or want to read it but haven't yet. Once I started I couldn't believe how fast it was over! Like in the blink of an eye!

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  14. Khy- I liked that one too, I just didn't like that the heart was hairy, every time I think of it I just go Ewwwww!

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