The Tales of Beedle the Bard by JK Rowling (Harry Potter Companion)

8/10

The long awaited book of (magical) children’s fairy tales as mentioned in the Harry Potter books is finally here but was it worth the wait…….oh come on, of course it was!!

Only a 105 pages in length this is a beautifully illustrated and dare I say it a pretty little book, but chaps, don’t let that put you off because the stories it contains are certainly not of the Enid Blyton variety and lend themselves more to the Brother’s Grimm tradition of story telling.

Upon opening the cover to the title page we see straight away the attention to detail that JK Rowling fans have come to expect and love; it attributes the translation of the stories from the original runes to none other than Hermione Granger. (As Potter fans will know, it was Dumbledore himself who bequeathed the original copy to Hermione in his will).

The foreward is by JK Rowling herself rather than one of her characters but explains that not only does the book contain Beedle The Bard’s tales but also notes on each story by Albus Dumbledore, written some 18 months before his demise. These notes, as one would expect, not only throw light on the origins of each tale but are also as entertaining as the tales themselves and similar in length.

Warty cooking pots, hairy shrivelled hearts and talking tree stumps are just some of the delights that are found within these stories and of course the tale of the Three Brothers who try to trick Death and request three gifts, which are of course the Deathly Hallows. For those children (or adults) who have not read the concluding volume, they are safe from any spoilers as there is nothing regarding the Harry Potter story that is given away or even alluded to here.

The book is perfectly charming and short enough to read in one sitting, however, do not be surprised if like me you find yourself turning the first page yet again as soon as you have finished reading the last. Not only does it give immense enjoyment to the reader but has been written with a most worthy children’s cause in mind and the postscript message from Baroness Nicholson, Co-Chair of Rowlings Children’s Higher Level Group charity, explains that each purchase of the book goes to support it’s aim to make a difference to over a million vulnerable and marginalised children across Europe.

I just can’t think of a good enough reason NOT to buy a copy.