Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them facts for kids
First edition cover
|
|
| Author | J. K. Rowling (credited as Newt Scamander) |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | Harry Potter |
| Genre | Fantasy |
| Publisher |
|
|
Publication date
|
1 December 2001 |
| Pages | 128 |
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a special guide book from the magical world of Harry Potter. It was written by J. K. Rowling in 2001. She used the name Newt Scamander, who is a made-up author from the Harry Potter stories.
This book is all about the amazing and sometimes strange magical creatures that live in the Harry Potter universe. The first version of the book looked like Harry Potter's own school textbook. It even had notes written inside by Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger! These notes shared their funny experiences with some of the creatures.
J. K. Rowling said she chose to write about magical creatures because it was a fun topic. She already had many ideas about them from writing the main Harry Potter books. When the book first came out, Rowling's name was not on the cover. It only showed "Newt Scamander" as the author.
Contents
About the Fantastic Beasts Book
Helping Others with the Book
This book does more than just tell cool stories. It also helps a charity called Comic Relief. More than 80% of the money from each book sold goes to help children in need around the world. By 2009, this book and another one called Quidditch Through the Ages had raised over £17 million!
The Book Inspires Movies
On September 12, 2013, Warner Bros. and J. K. Rowling announced exciting news. They would make a movie based on the book. This movie was the first in a series of five films. J. K. Rowling herself wrote the movie script.
The story in the movies is about Newt Scamander. It takes place in New York City, about 70 years before Harry Potter's adventures began. The first film came out on November 18, 2016.
Newer Editions of the Book
A new edition of the book was released on March 14, 2017. It had new pictures and a special message from Newt Scamander. This version did not have Harry, Ron, and Hermione's handwritten notes. Money from this edition also helps charities, including Lumos and Comic Relief.
On November 7, 2017, another new edition came out with beautiful illustrations by Olivia Lomenech Gill. Then, on February 1, 2018, a special digital version was released. It had moving pictures for devices that could show them.
What You'll Find Inside
The Original "Muggle" Version
The Fantastic Beasts book is written as if it's a copy of a textbook. This textbook belongs to Harry Potter and was written by Newt Scamander. Newt is a "magizoologist," which means he studies magical creatures.
Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts, wrote the introduction for the book. He explained that this special edition was made to help the Comic Relief charity. Dumbledore also told Muggle readers (non-magical people) that the creatures in the book are fictional and cannot hurt them. He reminded everyone of the Hogwarts motto: "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus," which means "Never tickle a sleeping dragon."
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them tells the history of studying magical creatures. It describes 85 different magical species from all over the world. Newt Scamander says he gathered most of this information by traveling for years across five continents. The book was first asked for in 1918 but wasn't published until 1927. It is now in its fifty-second edition!
In the Harry Potter universe, this book is a required textbook for first-year students at Hogwarts. It has been an approved textbook since it was first published. Dumbledore also says it's a great reference book for wizarding families.
The book even has funny drawings and notes added by Ron Weasley. These notes seem to have been written around the time of the fourth Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. For example, next to the Acromantula entry, Ron confirms that Hogwarts is in Scotland. He also adds funny comments, like agreeing that the Hungarian Horntail is the scariest dragon. This is a nod to Harry's own scary experience with one in the fourth book.
The cover of the first book has claw marks on it. It looks like an unknown magical animal made them!
The 2017 "Wizard" Version
The 2017 edition of the book includes six new creatures. These are the hidebehind, the hodag, the horned serpent, the snallygaster, the thunderbird, and the wampus cat. Newt Scamander explains in the introduction why these creatures were not in the first book. The president of MACUSA (the Magical Congress of the United States of America) asked him not to include important American creatures. This was to stop wizarding tourists from visiting when American wizards were facing more danger than European ones.
Newt Scamander's Role in Harry Potter
The author of the book, Newt Scamander, does not appear in the main Harry Potter books. However, his name is seen on the Marauder's Map in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Newt Scamander is the main character in the Fantastic Beasts film series. He is played by the actor Eddie Redmayne.
Magical Creatures in the Book
Here are some of the amazing magical creatures listed in the book:
- Acromantula
- Ashwinder
- Augurey
- Basilisk
- Billywig
- Bowtruckle
- Bundimun
- Centaur
- Chimaera
- Chizpurfle
- Clabbert
- Crup
- Demiguise
- Diricawl
- Doxy
- Dragon
- Antipodean Opaleye
- Chinese Fireball
- Common Welsh Green
- Hebridean Black
- Hungarian Horntail
- Norwegian Ridgeback
- Peruvian Vipertooth
- Romanian Longhorn
- Swedish Short-Snout
- Ukrainian Ironbelly
- Dugbog
- Erkling
- Erumpent
- Fairy
- Fire Crab
- Flobberworm
- Fwooper
- Ghoul
- Glumbumble
- Gnome
- Graphorn
- Griffin
- Grindylow
- Hidebehind
- Hippocampus
- Hippogriff
- Hodag
- Horklump
- Horned serpent
- Imp
- Jarvey
- Jobberknoll
- Kappa
- Kelpie
- Knarl
- Kneazle
- Leprechaun
- Lethifold
- Lobalug
- Mackled Malaclaw
- Manticore
- Merpeople
- Moke
- Mooncalf
- Murtlap
- Niffler
- Nogtail
- Nundu
- Occamy
- Phoenix
- Pixie
- Plimpy
- Pogrebin
- Porlock
- Puffskein
- Quintaped
- Ramora
- Red Cap
- Re'em
- Runespoor
- Salamander
- Sea Serpent
- Shrake
- Snallygaster
- Snidget
- Sphinx
- Streeler
- Tebo
- Thunderbird
- Troll
- Unicorn
- Wampus cat
- Werewolf
- Winged horse
- Yeti
Different Versions of the Book
The book has been released by different publishers over the years. Here are some of the ways you can find it:
- Scholastic editions
- Paperback: ISBN: 0-439-29501-7
- Hardcover Box Set: ISBN: 0-439-32162-X (Includes Fantastic Beasts... and Quidditch Through the Ages)
- Bloomsbury edition
- 2001 paperback: ISBN: 0-7475-5466-8
- 2017 hardcover: ISBN: 978-1-408-88071-5
- Pottermore E-book edition
- Original version: ISBN: 978-1-78110-014-1
- 2017 edition: ISBN: 978-1-78110-556-6
- 2017 Olivia Lomenech Gill illustrated edition: ISBN: 978-1408885260
Book to Screen: Adaptations
Audiobook Version
The 2017 version of the book was also made into an audiobook. It was read by Eddie Redmayne, who plays Newt Scamander in the movies. He reads the book in Newt's character voice.
Film Series
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a British-American fantasy film. It was inspired by the book and is part of the wizarding world from the Harry Potter film series. David Yates directed the movie. The film stars Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Alison Sudol, and Dan Fogler, among others.
The first movie was released on November 18, 2016, in the United Kingdom and the United States. It was followed by a sequel on November 16, 2018. A third movie is planned to be released in July 2022.
See also
In Spanish: Animales fantásticos y dónde encontrarlos para niños
