J.K. Rowling is back
Harry Potter devotees, you didn't really think J.K. Rowling was going to retire quietly, did you? She announced today that she will publish a book of wizarding fairy tales and donate millions in proceeds to her charity for children, according to the Associated Press.
The Tales of Beedle the Bard, to be published December 4, is mentioned in the seventh and final Potter book as having been left to Harry's friend Hermione Granger by the headmaster of their school, Hogwarts. Rowling initially only produced seven copies of The Tales, bound in leather and decorated in silver and moonstones. She gave six to people closely connected to the Potter books, and the seventh was bought at auction by Amazon for about $4 million.
Bloomsbury Publishing will now publish editions with an introduction by Rowling, selling for $12.99. Amazon will produce as many as 100,000 collector's edition copies, which will aim to replicate the look and feel of the original book and sell for $100.
"The new edition will include the Tales themselves, translated from the original runes by Hermione Granger, and with illustrations by me, but also notes by Professor Albus Dumbledore, which appear by generous permission of the Hogwarts Headmasters' Archive," Rowling said in a statement.
Of the five stories in the 157-page book, only one, "The Tale of the Three Brothers," is told in the Potter novels. It appears in the final Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
She said the proceeds would be donated to the Children's High Level Group, a charity she founded to help the 1 million children across Europe living in large residential institutions.
Photo by Kirsty Wigglesworth, AP
While she always preferred The Hardy Boys to Nancy Drew, 
Comments
I'm glad J.K. Rowling is doing more books. I think what should happen, is rowling and Stephenie Meyer write a book together, half Meyer =, defening vampires and half Rowling, defending magic. A debate over which is better.
Posted by: Taylor | September 6, 2009 1:01 AM