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Cover Art for German "Tales of Beedle the Bard"

We have several updates regarding the upcoming publication of “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” by J.K. Rowling. As readers know, this book, including the tales first mentioned in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” is due to be published in the UK and US on December 4, 2008. Several international editions of the book are now due to be published on the same day, including a translation from Gallimard in France, and Salamandra in Spain. The book will also be published in Germany on the same date, and their publishers, Carlsen have posted the cover art to this new book, which you can see here in our galleries.

On a related note, recently Bloomsbury released a poster for retailers of the book, which you can also download at home via this link (PDF file). Readers should note that back in August the UK publishers fully integrated their Harry Potter website back into the main Bloomsbury site, but the information is still available for all, here. The separate “SWOT up on Harry Potter” mini-site still is available, here.

As a reminder, this companion book to the Harry Potter series will be published in December with proceeds to benefit The Children’s High Level Group charity. The Beedle the Bard book, which contains 128 pages, is available for pre-order here in our Cauldron Shop in both the Standard Edition, and the Collector’s Edition. Information about the book released by Scholastic includes the following:

The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a Wizarding classic, first came to Muggle readers’ attention in the book known as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Now, thanks to Hermione Granger’s new translation from the ancient runes, we present this stunning edition with an introduction, notes, and illustrations by J. K. Rowling, and extensive commentary by Albus Dumbledore. Never before have Muggles been privy to these richly imaginative tales: “The Wizard and the Hopping Pot,” “The Fountain of Fair Fortune,” “The Warlock’s Hairy Heart,” “Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump,” and of course, “The Tale of the Three Brothers.” But not only are they the equal of fairy tales we now know and love, reading them gives new insight into the world of Harry Potter.

The stories are accompanied by delightful pen-and-ink illustrations by Ms. Rowling herself, featuring a still-life frontispiece for each one. Professor Dumbledore’s commentary—apparently written some eighteen months before his death—reveals not just his vast knowledge of Wizarding lore, but also more of his personal qualities: his sense of humor, his courage, his pride in his abilities, and his hard-won wisdom. Names familiar from the Harry Potter novels sprinkle the pages, including Aberforth Dumbledore, Lucius Malfoy and his forebears, and Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington (or “Nearly Headless Nick”), as well as other professors at Hogwarts and the past owners of the Elder Wand. Dumbledore tells us of incidents unique to the Wizarding world, like hilariously troubled theatrical productions at Hogwarts or the dangers of having a “hairy heart.” But he also reveals aspects of the Wizarding world that his Muggle readers might find all too familiar, like censorship, intolerance, and questions about the deepest mysteries in life.

You can see a portion of what the back cover art looks like, here in our galleries, however note the back text has not yet been released.

Finally, the special Tenth Anniversary Edition of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” officially due to be released Sept. 23 will contain a special frontispiece of Hagrid and the boats going to Hogwarts by artist Mary GrandPre. Although this has been released on the Scholastic website previously, we now have it our galleries in glorious high res, here.

Thanks to Harry Potter X-perts, UniversHarry Potter and Harry Latino for mailing about the international editions.