First Look: ‘The Tales of Beedle the Bard’ Cover and Illustrations Revealed!
Apr 09, 2018
Bloomsbury, Books, Companion Books, J.K. Rowling, News
Harry Potter Books from Bloomsbury announced in October of last year that a new illustrated companion book would be coming to book store shelves, and The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a compilation of classic wizarding children’s stories, was selected for the honor.
Leaky reported that award-winning artist Chris Riddell was chosen to illustrate the special edition, which is set to be published Oct. 2, 2018. The official Bloomsbury announcement read:
“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!”
UPDATE: Earlier today Bloomsbury revealed this magnificent cover for the illustrated Tales of Beedle the Bard:
ICYMI, here’s Chris Riddell’s gorgeous cover for our illustrated edition of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, out 2 October 2018. #thetalesofbeedleillustrated https://t.co/vREzjzJAVO pic.twitter.com/6uyc6T98fG
— Bloomsbury Kids UK (@KidsBloomsbury) May 17, 2018
Scholastic also took to their social media to officially announce their own edition, illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger:
A post shared by Scholastic (@scholasticinc) on
Read more about the covers here.
Bloomsbury shared beautiful first-look images from within those pages, with promises to unveil the cover art soon as well!
Our friends @pottermore have just revealed some of the gorgeous artwork from THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD Illustrated Edition, by J.K. Rowling, illustrated by Chris Riddell. Out 2nd October 2018. Cover reveal coming SOON. #thetalesofbeedleillustratedpic.twitter.com/MIe2bbW2hK
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
Here, take a look at the harrowing art from “The Warlock’s Hairy Heart.” The colors are gorgeous, though the subject is ghastly!
Feast your eyes on these incredible illustrations by @chrisriddell50. Can you guess which tale each illustration is from? #thetalesofbeedleillustratedpic.twitter.com/ak7iabYs2a
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
What do you think of this one–presumably, from “The Wizard and the Hopping Pot.” Does it appropriately capture the wizard’s surprise–or is that disgust!?
And this one? The title is in the illustration… #thetalesofbeedleillustratedpic.twitter.com/5yie2IIj4V
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
Bloomsbury notes that this illustration is significant to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, indicating that it must be from “The Tale of the Three Brothers.” Could this be a sorrowful rendering of the pitiable brother’s desperate use of the Resurrection Stone? We might need to return to this story to theorise about the Hallows in Fantastic Beasts, and how Flamel might fit into this narrative!
This illustration is from a story particularly significant to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows… #thetalesofbeedleillustratedpic.twitter.com/NHa9JqizWi
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
This image appears to depict the meeting of the three witches and their companion knight from “The Fountain of Fair Fortune.”
This illustration is from a tale that, according to Dumbledore, ‘was the subject of the sole attempt to introduce a Christmas pantomime to Hogwarts’ festive celebrations’… #thetalesofbeedleillustratedpic.twitter.com/I4aTnIjAF1
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
This final glimpse would seem to come from “Babbity Rabbity and her Cackling Stump,” which Bloomsbury notes is an early mention of the mysterious Animagus!
This illustration is from a tale that Dumbledore says gives us ‘one of the earliest literary mentions of an Animagus’. #thetalesofbeedleillustratedpic.twitter.com/sPBWRmNpo2
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
To top it off, Bloomsbury revealed that all stories are accompanied by the notes of Albus Dumbledore, also beautifully drawn.
All tales are accompanied by the notes of Albus Dumbledore, beautifully illustrated by Chris Riddell #thetalesofbeedleillustrated pic.twitter.com/yfmAD2v8Jb
— Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
This magical new edition is now available for pre-order, so don’t miss the opportunity to add it to your collection!
Preorder here https://t.co/3WOvNVJ4bb! — Bloomsbury UK (@BloomsburyBooks) April 9, 2018
Take a closer look at all the new images (credit to Bloomsbury and Chris Riddell) below!
