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J. K. Rowling returns with ‘Beedle the Bard’

Special to the Daily
ALL |

EDWARDS, Colorado ” It didn’t take much for J. K. Rowling to break her vow to never to return to the world she created with the Harry Potter series, just charity.

Rowling will release a collection of short stories Thursday with all royalties being diverted to the Children’s High Level Group, a charity she founded that seeks to improve the living conditions of children across Europe.

“The Tales of Beedle the Bard” is a collection of five stories referenced in the series- concluding novel Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which was released during the July 2007.



The stories, fully expanded along with illustrations from Rowling, were critical clues for Harry and his companions’ battle against evil in “The Deathly Hallows.” At the book’s end, Hermione Granger, Harry’s sidekick, was given The Tales of Beedle the Bard by Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

“The new edition will include the tales themselves, translated from the original runes by Hermione Granger and with illustrations by me,” Rowling said in a press release issued by Scholastic Publishing. “[There are] also notes by Professor Albus Dumbledore, which appear by generous permission of the Hogwarts Headmasters’ Archive.”

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The five featured stories of wizard lore will include: The Fountain of Fair Fortune, The Warlock’s Hairy Heart, The Tale of the Three Brothers, The Wizard and the Hopping Pot and Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump.

The book is expected to generate more than $8 million for Rowling’s charity during its first few weeks of availability, said Scholastic spokeswoman Kris Moran.

The Bookworm of Edwards has stocked 500 copies, and expects to go through them quickly, said Nicole Magistro, Bookworm co-owner and inventory buyer.

“We’re expecting a lot of excitement around the new book,” Magistro said. “Given the holiday season and its price point ($12.99) compared to other Harry Potter books it makes a great gift for any fan, and there are lots of them here.”

To date, the Bookworm has sold more than 530 copies of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.”

Stephen Bedford is the manager of The Bookworm of Edwards. E-mail comments about this story to cschnell@vaildaily.com.


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