Illustrated Edition of ‘The Tales of Beedle the Bard’ Announced!

Oct 09, 2017

Posted by: Dawn Johnson

BigNews, Bloomsbury, Books - Release Dates, Companion Books, Fandom, Fans, Fantastic Beasts, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter and the Philosophers / Sorcerers Stone, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Interviews, J.K. Rowling, Jim Kay, News, Publishers

Harry Potter Books from Bloomsbury announced an upcoming illustrated edition of J.K. Rowling’s The Tales of Beedle the Bard today. The new edition will be illustrated by the award-winning Chris Riddell and is set to be published Oct. 2, 2018!

The official Bloomsbury announcement reads:

We are absolutely thrilled to announce Chris Riddell will be illustrating a full-colour edition of J.K. Rowlin’s THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD sold in aid of the author’s international children’s charity Lumos. Publishing on 2nd October 2018, this classic from the Wizarding World will be gloriously reimagined in a large colour gift edition by the multi-award-winning Riddell. We can’t wait!”

This will be the latest entry into the illustrated collection of Rowling’s works, preceded by Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: The Illustrated Edition, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: The Illustrated Edition, and the recently-released Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: The Illustrated Edition, all by renowned illustrator Jim Kay.

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Bloomsbury has clearly picked up on how popular these re-imagined editions are with fans and even promoted the release of Prisoner of Azkaban with four meet-and-greet events with Kay.

The success has been so great with the Harry Potter series that Bloomsbury announced its intention to create an illustrated edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them earlier this year. It is being illustrated by Olivia Lomenech Gill. Leaky recently interviewed both Gill and Kay about their commissioned works and reported:

“We were told that both illustrators worked on huge sheets, and that the work we see is a only a fraction of the original size of the works–given that the Harry Potter books are multiple hundreds of pages long and there are a fair few beasties to illustrate in Fantastic Beasts, that’s a monstrous task to undertake, and deserves huge acclaim.”

Riddell will more than likely follow the same illustrating process, which is awe-inspiring and exciting. Considering the attention to intricate, colorful detail and the beautiful renderings we’ve seen so far, there’s no doubt this companion book will receive the same loving treatment–with truly magical results. We can’t wait for the cover reveal, teased as “coming soon!”

It will be particularly interesting to see Riddell’s interpretation of “The Tale of the Three Brothers” and how it differs from the dark and minimalist but beautifully-whimsical onscreen version presented in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. That telling was entrancing, and it will be remarkable to see the same story played out in a new and equally-engaging way.

Which of the five Beedle stories are you most looking forward to seeing illustrated, Potter fans?!

 





The Leaky Cauldron is not associated with J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., or any of the individuals or companies associated with producing and publishing Harry Potter books and films.