Four New Harry Potter Ebooks Announced, Promise a Journey Through History of Magic

Four new Harry Potter short ebooks have been announced, which will be adapted from the audiobook Harry Potter: A History of Magic, which in turn was inspired by London's British Library exhibition of the same name. They are called Harry Potter: A Journey Through Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts, Harry Potter: A Journey Through Potions and Herbology, Harry Potter: A Journey Through Divination and Astronomy, and Harry Potter: A Journey Through Care of Magical Creatures. The first two, Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Potions and Herbology, will be published on June 27.

Interestingly, J.K. Rowling's name is completely missing from the announcement, with ‘Pottermore Publishing' mentioned as the author everywhere. It makes you wonder if the 53-year-old author was involved with the writing process, or if these Potter books are another cynical cash-grab attempt by the powers that-be. That said, Rowling herself has been at the forefront of the biggest Potter cash-grab, thanks to the ongoing spin-off film franchise Fantastic Beasts, which has released two films — one middling in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and the other horrendous in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald — and has three more in the works.

The official announcement on Pottermore — the digital home for Harry Potter — claims the four new short ebooks will “delve deeper into the rich history of magic” and “will take you back in time once again to learn about the traditional folklore and magic at the heart of the Harry Potter stories, accompanied by some new, gorgeous line drawings from London-based artist Rohan Daniel Eason.” These are adapted from the aforementioned audiobook, which also ties into the two ‘History of Magic' books that were released in 2017. You'll also find feature notes, manuscript pages, and sketches in the new ebooks, just as with Harry Potter: A History of Magic.

The four new Harry Potter ebooks are listed on Amazon India but you can't pre-order them. At least not yet. For what it's worth, pre-orders are open on Amazon UK and Amazon US. They will initially be available in English, French, Italian, and German. And though Pottermore only lists the June 27 release date for Harry Potter: A Journey Through Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Harry Potter: A Journey Through Potions and Herbology, digital retailers mention (expected) release dates for the other two as well — July 25 for Harry Potter: A Journey Through Divination and Astronomy, and August 22 for Harry Potter: A Journey Through Care of Magical Creatures.