The Magical Worlds of Harry Potter: A Treasure of Myths, Legends, and… (2001)

Fascinating! I am making a point to read every page. ( )

Enjoyed this book very much. While I was aware that the vast majority of Rowling's creatures were drawn from existing mythology and that most character names have significance, this book fleshed out some details for me. It is not comprehensive but is a fun read nonetheless.

I started reading this book back to front, but as time went on I started picking out the questions I wanted answered. A lot of the things Colbert discusses aren't new to me. Many of these I've already identified when reading the books themselves. (The references to many of the Greek or Roman gods and the legends that accompany them, for instance.) But that is probably due to the fact that this is originally for meant children and partly due to the fact that I teach history myself and have to discuss many of these Gods with my pupils. I did enjoy those questions I didn't have the answer to at all! ( )

The name is somewhat misleading; this is a cute mini-encyclopedia of the real mythological roots of many aspects of the Harry Potter books. While I didn't learn a whole heck of a lot of new information, I would definitely recommend this book to any Harry Potter fan, especially younger ones. The writing is friendly without being dumbed down, the articles are short but concise, and the breadth of information is impressive. If nothing else, it instilled in me a renewed interest in mythology, and the extensive bibliography and notes provide a good jumping-off point for further research.

One note: the copy I read was written between the releases of Goblet Of Fire and Order of the Phoenix, and thus is it full of spoilers from the first four books and contains a sprinkling of (sometimes misguided) predictions for the latter three volumes. There is a revised version, but I don't know if it covers the entire series. Keep that in mind when reading. ( )

Every HP fan would definitely need (or desire) a companion book just to wade through all the literary, religious, fantastical and mythological references and innuendos Rowling made in all of her seven books. The book aptly describes itself as a "treasury of myths, legends and fascinating facts" regarding the world of Harry Potter and it wasn't that far off in its self-description.

It is a great tribute to Rowling's works; consisting of around 50+ questions aiming to dig deeper at an innocent remark or passing remark made in the books. Some questions and issues asked here that intrigued me the most were:

~ Does Dumbledore Trust Divination or Doesn't He?
~ Why Doesn't Dumbledore Fight Voldemort?
~ Was the Real Flamel a Successful Alchemist?
~ Why are Mirrors Magical?
~ Which of Voldemort's Cohorts Comes from India?
~ How Did Seven Become the Most Magical Number?
~ What's J.K. Rowling's Idea of a Hero?
~ Is Harry's Story About Religion?

Take note that the book does not pretend to offer a deep analysis of Rowling's motives or thought process, but does give us the background to further appreciate her work. Think of it as a quick course in mythology and history as related to the Harry Potter books. It may be a tad redundant to those who are already well-versed in these areas (such as myself) but it is always a good thing to refresh one's fond memories of religion and mythology.

However, there are reasons why I'm not giving this book a five star rating. There were a few long-winded entries (the history of the Order of the Phoenix comes to mind) that should've shelved. Mainly because of a few oversights (and hopefully they may be adressed in future additions) that keep this book from being the perfect guide to the world of Harry Potter. There are a few inaccuracies in terms of the merging together of Latin and Greek words as interpreted from the names and spells used by Rowling in the books. There were also some painfully obvious questions that weren't addressed even in this updated edition. I would expect a lot more from David Colbert, who has actually studied mythology, though, considering the book states he researches by "reading randomly in the library", it's not too surprising his book is sometimes inaccurate. Lastly, there were just parts of the book where the author did not really answer the question he himself posed! His pseudo answer just went around in a complete circle and rectified it by quoting from well-known works like that of Shakespeare's!

Still, these oversights cannot deny the fact that this book is a very informative guide to the contents of Harry Potter books. I was delighted to finally get the distinction between the following:
A charm is a bit of temporary magic that can be good or bad; a jinx will bring bad luck, but nothing serious; curses and hexes involve evil; and spells are serious magic that last a long time.

Each entry is accompanied by various illustrations drawn in purple ink (this is what's been missing in Rowling's "Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them". A small purple tab in the margin of the first page of each chapter guides readers looking for specific subjects: Divination, Goblins, McGonogall, Owls, Voldemort, Wands, etc.

Did you know, for instance, that medieval witches gave plants the names of animals (and their parts) to make their recipes/potions even more disgusting than they actually are? It would've never crossed my mind.

I truly appreciated the discussion on the use of the Latin language (and its translations), specially that of the spells. If only my Latin subjects back in my university days were half as interesting, then I would have actually learned something. "Radicitus, comes!"

What is staggering is how much effort Rowling did give in making sure that her fans and readers are kept amused and interested by the names she has given to her fictional characterd places (both in the world of Muggles and of in and out of Hogwarts). She was able to come up with such names by drawing inspiration from geography, foreign languages (she seems especially fond of using French and of course, Latin), literature, history, religion and mythology, saints, flowers and plants and from thin air.

The most enthralling bit for me would undoubtedly be the discussion of the question "What Makes Harry a Universal Hero?" where Colbert made extensive use of scholar John Campbell's "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" to accurately describe Harry's journey as a hero (having three stages: Departure, Initiation, and Return) and of his universal appeal to all types of audiences. If you're a writer then this is definitely an enriching read for you.

I'm positive that readers of this book will soon be clamoring for collections of Greek, Japanese, Indian, and Egyptian mythology (my interests as a child growing up) as well as copies of "The Sword in the Stone", "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and "The Canterbury Tales" to discover the sources of their favorite Harry Potter books.

As for myself, I'm thinking of (if I can get my hands on them, that is) purchasing:
"The Encyclopedia of Fantasy" by John Clute and John Grant
"Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns and Goblins" by Carol Rose

Book Details:

Title The Magical Worlds of Harry Potter
Author David Colbert
Reviewed By Purplycookie ( )