By Tim Saunders on
A book of Harry Potter-related fairy tales written and illustrated by JK Rowling is to be published for charity.
The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a collection of five tales first referred to in Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and final part in the author’s series of wizarding masterpieces. It was initially produced as seven handwritten copies, six of which were given away by Rowling as gifts, and one was bought by Amazon.com at auction in December for $4 million.
“There was understandable disappointment among Harry Potter fans when only one copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard was offered to the public last December,” said Rowling. “I am therefore delighted to announce that, thanks to the generous support of Bloomsbury, Scholastic and Amazon – and with the blessing of the wonderful people who own the other six original books – The Tales of Beedle the Bard will now be widely available to all Harry Potter fans.”
The book will be released on December 4 by Bloomsbury in Britain and Scholastic in the United States, and Amazon plans to sell a leather-bound collectors’ edition priced at $100. Rowling has generously signed over all her royalties from the book to the Children's High Level Group, a charity founded by JK Rowling and Emma Nicholson in 2005 to improve the well-being, health and protection of vulnerable children. The charity works at a political and practical level to ensure that UN minimum standards for the care of children are implemented across the whole of Europe and beyond. Their Children’s Voice campaign wants to end the neglect and abuse of children and teenagers that still exists in many countries.
Copyright © 2008 Look to the Stars
