Harry Potter: A Journey Through Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts

Harry Potter: A Journey Through #1

by Pottermore Publishing, J.K. Rowling

The history of magic is as long as time and as wide as the world. In every culture, in every age, in every place and, probably, in every heart, there is magic.

This non-fiction short-form eBook features content which is adapted from the audiobook Harry Potter: A History of Magic – inspired by the British Library exhibition of the same name.

How to become invisible, to make someone fall in love with you, to transform into another creature: these are all things that people have believed in, yearned for, or feared, throughout history. Spells and charms have captured the imagination for hundreds of years. Warding off evil is also something that has concerned people throughout history. From werewolves to all manner of snakes in the wizarding world, you’d learn how to face a number of strange and frightening forces in Defence Against the Dark Arts classes.

This eBook short examines the colourful characters and curious incidents of the real history of magic, and how they relate to the Hogwarts lesson subjects of Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts from the Harry Potter stories.

Genres: Fantasy, Harry Potter, Fiction, Young Adult, Ebooks, Magic, Short Stories

63 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 27, 2019

Reviews

[Maryam Rz.]

Where are you, Potterheads? Have you finally gone extinct?? I'm going with that as I've been waiting for days to see you guys start screaming about this and yet...and yet...all is silent—or is this the calm before the storm?? *shivers in her skin* 👀

• • • • •

people: would Rowling just leave the Wizarding World alone!?
me, meanwhile: *discreetly pushes all those buzzing noises out the door* go wizarding history geeks!



This is for people who are genuinely interested in knowing more of the ins and outs of the Wizarding World, its history and folklore, how it was inspired by our own world history, and many more magical recipes. If that ain't you, please, I beg of you, the exit is that way!
Seriously, people.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know why i read this, it didn't satiate my need for more harry potter content nor did it keep me entertained. Its written in the style of a textbook and at times is dreadfully dull.

Sadly i was disappointed, i guess i just expected more?

[La La · Rating 1 out of 5]

A lot of people in my Harry Potter Collectors group on Facebook were disappointed this book wasn't in reality written by JKR (it only has snippets from the Harry Potter series), but I am glad because it means I don't have to hate her. This book is also not "new stories", it is a compilation of excerpts from a larger Journey Through the History title, grouped by subject into short ebooks.

British authors have to stop writing history accounts and Historical Fiction from a British Colonialism POV. It's the 21st Century, now, and quite frankly those interpretations are racist. I almost threw my Kindle across the room after reading about how the colonists suffered in a land with disease and "hostile indians". The colonists brought disease with them that decimated entire tribes, and maybe the Native Americans weren't always friendly because their land was being taken away, many times in a hostile manner, and they were trying to protect their homes and families.

There is still the same disrespectful lumping in of religious tenets and spiritual embodiments with ancient mythology and folklore, that we have seen on Pottermore before: except, of course, those of Christianity. Everything metaphysical outside of the Christian belief system gets reduced to the realm of fairies, brownies, and unicorns.

There was a section which referenced a book that was supposed to be the origin of the witches riding a broom imagery. It said the book was trying to change the public's view of witches from evil, to "jolly". However, the imagery of witches riding brooms came from Pagan spring fertility rituals where they would jump into the air with a "broom" (besom) to symbolize tall crops. There was also a far-fetched connection made to drawings of backwards broom riding being the witches' way of looking down her nose at the drudgery of housework, but Pagans were both men and women and their besoms (brooms) were casting tools; which were never used for housework. The brooms would have appeared to be ridden "backwards" because the besom would be carried bristle end up during rituals.

These things are only the tip of the iceberg with this book. Aligning the victims of witch trials and witch hunts with folklore and fantasy witches is insane. Those victims were not witches, real nor make-believe. Mentioning Satanism, was off the tracks, too. Pagans and Wiccans did not, and do not, worship Satan.

This book reads like a badly written Wikipedia article with bits and pieces of misinterpreted and misunderstood historical factoids added by the general non-academic public. There is nothing even the slightest bit scholarly about the reasonings and comparisons in this book. The only redeeming element about it was the inclusion of Rowling's original manuscript drawings. Those were delightful.

[Viola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patika labāk nekā daļa par Potions and Herbology. Interesanta sadaļa par raganu dedzināšanu.

[Katie (Kitkatscanread) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a quick read based on the history of charms and defence against the dark arts.
It speaks of love potions, how abra cadabra became avada kedavra, werewolves, kappas, and so much more.
If you're a Harry Potter fan, you will enjoy this book.

[Ty-Orion · Rating 1 out of 5]

Манджа с грозде, съчетана от книгите за Х.П. и статийки от Уикипедия. Нивото е като за 8-годишни. Единственият плюс са няколкото оригинални илюстрации на Роулинг от времената, когато е писала/планирала книгите. Много е зле положението... По-зле от предишните издания на Потърмор, в които все пак имаше интересни нещица.

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

This book includes a history of charms and defence against the dark arts.

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an interesting read learning about the history of those two topics. But it seemed slow at parts and got dragged out a lot.

[Sanne ☀️]

This book is really written like it is a schoolbook. Therefore, it wasn’t my favourite thing to read...

[Estefanía Teixeira · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5🌟

[Azbaqiyah · Rating 5 out of 5]

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[Asta · Rating 3 out of 5]

"An accusation of witchcraft was a convenient way to bypass a line of inheritance."

"Should you ever want to bathe in a Japanese river, people believe to this day that kappas can be placated by writing your name, or that of your family, onto cucumbers and tossing them into the water. The cucumber is the kappa's favourite meal and should provide a necessary distraction for you to enjoy your swim in peace!"

[Lupe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Me gustó como rastrean los orígenes y etimologías de los hechizos, es interesante de ver.

igual, tampoco tiene contenido super exclusivo sin el cual no podes vivir, hay que decir todo

[♛ Garima ♛ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished it in an hour. It was like one of that Arianna Grande song...



and I loved it.

[Robin Sloan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Deceivingly not written by jkr. The book is a summary of magical things of the past. But it doesn't go into details of anything and I think overlaying historical examples with some scenes from the Harry Potter books is a huge stretch.
Poorly done. Boring as can be.
Disappointed.

[Esther Dijkhuizen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s always fun to read more about the Wizarding World. This book suits the documentary about Fantastic Beasts and the Natural History Museum that I watched recently. Quite fun and informative.

[Par- · Rating 3 out of 5]

These series of books contains magical inventions of J.K. Rowling with their historical background. You can see how in the quest to discover magic, practitioners laid the foundations of science. There are three parts in this book: Charms, defence against the dark arts and mythical monsters. How JKR came with the idea of sorting hat? Why did she choose snakes and how creatures like Sphinx came into wizarding world? All the answers right here!
Also, a shocking thing that I read was about witches, and a society which men were ruling over it. It’s amazing that not so long before our times, people studied magic and believed in it. I was completely speechless when I realized that in the shadow of ignorance, fear and paranoia that mixed with masculinity, they accused and killed hundreds of women for being in a league with Satan and practicing witchcraft.

[Helena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice.

[Cassandra Marie Darling · Rating 3 out of 5]

If your a Potter fan its a cute little read to keep the magic going.

[N.K. Aning · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting read

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short overview of charms and protections against dark magic through history.

A well written and accessible look at the real world inspirations behind the 'Harry Potter' stories.

[Chelsea · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at the historical context and ties to the Harry Potter series, this specifically being a history of Witchcraft where JKR may have found inspiration to how she designed here wizarding world.

I believe there is a hardback collected edition of all this information but it was broken down into chunks for ebooks.

[EstephBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never would I thought that there was so much history behind Happy Potter books. This was very enjoyable.

[Lili · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,75 ⭐️

„in every culture, in every age, in every place and, probably, in every heart, there is magic.“ 🫶🏻❤️‍🩹

nice book but nothing crazy.

[Ruby Holloway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why was this actually fascinating af??

[Sarah Couture · Rating 3 out of 5]

C’est intéressant de connaitre les origines des idées d’un auteur !

[Halls · Rating 1 out of 5]

JK Rowling didn’t write this and it shows.

I read this for free on Kindle Unlimited, and I’m hoping people aren’t using their real life money to pay for this compiled mess of poorly written historical facts, illustrations, and quotes from the Harry Potter series. I just can’t see the point of it or how it adds anything substantial to the Harry Potter universe.

[Ira Kushnir · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit boring and disappointing. I hoped this series would let me relive the magical atmosphere of Harry Potter world all over again. Turned out, it's just a Muggle book.

[MissRina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I aspected more...I don’t know if I will read the others.

[Llesi Sea · Rating 1 out of 5]

Plain and simple : it’s woke. Don’t need this book. Just read “Harry Potter A Journey Through A History of Magic”. The book this book was based on.


How do you ask it is woke ? The book has no author credited to it, just a publication. Suspicious though not woke. The wokeness appears when the book tried to argue two different ideas and how they are related, tries to show snip bits of history to defend the idea but actually does the opposite, and then continues to talk about its woke idea as if it didn’t just dismantle their own idea one paragraph previously.

Example : talking about a male dominated society (during witch trials) where women, the mentally ill and disabled were weak targets depicted as old ugly women with brooms and were disenfranchised. Ok first of all, not even all men were able to vote. So men were also “disenfranchised”. Only men who owned property/land could vote. Second, an old ugly lady in european and american folklore isn’t because women are weak. It’s to show aging, knowledge gained, beauty and youth versus wise and smart, among other things.

Next ,
“But the attitude in history towards witchcraft has been overwhelmingly negative, and often used as a means of persecuting women in society.”

Then it talks about Edward Fairfax in 1621 and how his youngest of three daughters died, and the two older daughters blamed a random woman in their town of doing witchcraft that lead to their youngest sisters’ death.

“The women accused by Fairfax were tried twice, but, despite his best efforts, they were acquitted each time. His daughters eventually admitted that they had invented their dreams in which the witches were performing dangerous acts and trying to kill Anne. It was possibly no surprise that, in this male-dominated society, they had done so to get the attention of their father.”

1. Yes. Many women died. But “society at large” didn’t do it because they hated women. If women were actually hated, families wouldn’t keep their daughters, inheritance wouldn’t pass to daughters AT ALL in any form. So no, people didn’t hate women just because.

2. If this publication had any brain cells and knowledge over actual history, they (cuz we don’t know who wrote it) would know that any social contagion or phenomena that spreads quickly as a means to give explanation for the inexplicable, has almost always started with girls and women. Why? Because women care about what others think of them, they care about belonging socially in a group, they care about looking good towards others (even if that isn’t true). Women are social. Sometimes it’s to please others. During the witch trials it was often a girl or a woman who accused another woman or girl. Other reasons as to accuse someone of witchcraft during the witch trials was because someone was in the way. In the way of you getting money , status , prestige , land , etc. Remember, there weren’t many people back in that time and most often the people residing in these towns and cities were related to one another in some way, whether an inlaw or cousin, or teacher who saw you grow up etc. Everyone knew everyone. The easiest way to get what you want, is to eliminate the person in your way.

The book eve says the daughters lied because they wanted to please their father. It’s not because of a “male-dominated society” bullcrap. It’s because they are children. They love their father. What son or daughter , be it 5 or 18 or 24 years old, doesn’t want to please their parents and get their approval? It’s because of love. “I close my case”. XD

This is what I mean by already having an idea or conclusion and trying to prove it but the book doesn’t prove it at all. XD It actually dismantles it’s own idea in the process. Exhibit B; another paragraph about two pages later when it talks about the salem witch trials :

“ Unfortunately, that meant accusing a number of young women who ranked much lower than him in the strict social hierarchy of being in league with Satan. The reasons why family, neighbours and acquaintances were accused have been debated many times over the centuries. Fear and paranoia played their part, but so did financial exploitation. In these close-knit communities, many people were related to each other and an accusation of witchcraft was a convenient way to bypass a line of inheritance. The misogyny of the period ensured a son never accused a father. Accusations of witchcraft were a way for societies to control what they viewed as ‘disruptive’ female behaviour. What often started as an opportunistic way of getting a woman out of the way became a cultural contagion with little or no rational explanation. “

Little to no rational explanation my butt.
Reasons : 1) women are social and care what others think, thus blaming other women/girls in order to solve whatever social problem they had. Fairfax’s daughters wanting their fathers attention. 2) The book LITERALLY said what I explained; financial exploitation. “Someone is in the way.” 3) Misogyny isn’t a direct causation or reason why sons never accused fathers. Both sons and daughters could inherit things from their families. As I’ve said with reason 1, women are social. Men care more about objects. Boys grow up caring about different things. It’s not about “does dad like me” but rather “does dad recognise my strength? Have i earned his respect?”. Very different things.
4) witchcraft wasn’t a direct reason for controlling uncontrollable women. Yes, it was an easy way to TRY and physically grasp control of that which was uncontrollable at the time ( plagues, smallpox and other diseases the english brought, famine , hostile Indians , religious upheaval, a block for financial gain, and yes, even people who did not follow their religious way of life. People who acted outside of what was considered good. Why was it a lot of women and girls and less so men ? See reason 1 and 2. ). Killing someone because of witchcraft gave a physical control and a means to an end to the problems which were not only physical problems but social upheaval issues as well. They didn’t have medicine. People didn’t know germs thrived in dirty water. Boiling water wasn’t a thing. Puritans who lived in England and now moved to America are dealing with a very different soil and crop types.


Don’t need this book.
I was so frustrated just reading it because whoever wrote it clearly lacks any logical thinking and just has a vendetta for people hating women and men doing everything blah blah blah. I doubt JK Rowling would be proud of this book at all.
I saved myself a lot of time by not continuing reading this crap.