The Tales of Beedle the Bard

This small book is a collection of five fairy tales said to be favourites among young wizards, first mentioned in the Harry Potter series. Each story is a short fable about magic, cleverness, kindness or foolishness, in the manner of traditional folk tales. The tales are followed by commentary written in the voice of a wizard scholar, who adds notes on their history and how readers have understood them. It is a light, witty companion to the novels that shows how stories shape a culture, and it was published to raise money for charity.