Harry Potter: A History of Magic by the British Library

Just in case you couldn’t get enough… here comes an amazing ‘companion to a unique exhibition’ in honor of 20 years of Harry Potter.  J.K. Rowling along with the publisher Bloomsbury joined forces to create an exhibition at the British Library which examined the depth and persistent historical connections of Rowling’s work in the Harry Potter world.  Everything is covered, from potions to alchemy, to divination and herbology.  Though Rowling’s work is fiction, a surprising amount of it comes from real-life historical persons, documents, and events, as well as legends and myth.  It’s not possible to describe this book in such a small space, but it is richly illustrated with full color photographs of many of the exhibit pieces, as well as anecdotes and descriptions.  There is also a companion work about this exhibition, HARRY POTTER: A JOURNEY THROUGH A HISTORY OF MAGIC which is intended for a children’s audience.  It is just as well done.  Verdict: a sorely-needed historical guide to Harry Potter, and an awesome book just to look at and in which to get lost for hours.