Short clever Potter-type tales

            This book contains five J. K. Rowling tales, ostensibly composed by the fifteenth century wizard Beedle, “written for young wizards and witches,” which Rowling assures us are very popular in Hogwarts, the land of Harry Potter. Each tale is followed by a commentary by Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Dumbledore speaks his mind, offers his explanation of the tale, and occasionally reacts with anger over what he considers a stupid story or a foolish reaction to it.

            For example, in The Wizard and the Hopping Pot, the Beedle theme is that wizards need to help humans who are in need of help. Dumbledore angrily reminds his readers how humans mistreated wizards and witches, and contends that they deserve no help at all. 

            Another example is The Fountain of Fair Fortune, which ends with a human marrying a witch. Dumbledore and others liked it, but some wizards in authority demanded that it be removed from schools because it depicts interbreeding. Dumbledore points out that: “There is not a witch or wizard in existence whose blood has not mingled with that of Muggles (humans), and I should therefore consider it both illogical and immoral to remove works dealing with the subject from our students’ store of knowledge.”

Needless to say, despite Beedle’s reason for writing the tales, Muggles will acquire many good lessons from these parables.