Loved the little wizard world fairy tales (even if they don't have fairies, they are what I call fairy tales). Like all fairy tales they come with a moral.
Dumbledore is kind to explain the moral in is little notes at the end of each tale, but that kind of spoils it for me.
On the other side I like Dumbledore's notes, because they were meant to make it seem a real wizard world book, but then JKR's notes also spoiled that.
She has a nice little story in the introduction, about how Hermione had translated the runes, and how they found the notes on Dumbledore's papers, that the little notes intended to explain wizardry facts to Muggles could have been made as Hermione's...

I have read the other fictional books and they are more coherent in that point. They are written by a wizard, and JKR's name doesn't appear on the book (maybe on the fine print about rights and stuff, but not on the main part of the book).

Didn't like the notes on the last story (the one about the deadly hallows). I was expecting the notes to make reference to Harry's cloak and to acknowledge the existence of the artefacts, and maybe some mention of Dumbledore's own quest to find the Elder Wand, but he dismisses all as fantasy... ( )

Love love LOVE this book of magical fairy tales. If only there were more! ( )

A very enjoyable illustrated collection of stories from J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter world.

Very meta. Very cool.

Although it didn't totally bowl me over with awesomeness, it was fun to read. I liked the illustrations and the comments "by Albus Dumbledore."

It contains:

The Wizard and the Hopping Pot ****
A wizard inherits a magical pot from his father, who said that he used it to help all of the people in their community. The wizard doesn't care about helping anybody, but the pot has other ideas...

The Fountain of Fair Fortune *****
My favorite story in the collection. Three witches and a knight have a chance to make it to the fabled Fountain of Fair Fortune, which allegedly grants wishes and makes the one who bathes in it lucky for the rest of their life. However, they don't realize that it may be the journey, not the fountain, that helps them solve their problems.

The Warlock's Hairy Heart ***
A warlock decides that love is for fools and never wants anything to do with other people, even after his parents age and die--until one day he realizes others are pitying him for not having a wife. Not being able to stand their pity, he vows to find the very best wife, but the woman he finds wonders why his heart is so cold. He shows her the enchantment he put on his heart and... omg wtf.

Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump ****
A king wants to be the most magical person in the world, so he declares that all witches and wizards will be hunted down, following this up by asking for someone who will come teach him magic. Being that the real witches and wizards are rather afraid of him, a charlatan shows up to pretend to teach him magic in exchange for a lot of money. Babbitty, the king's washerwoman, who is a real witch, gets in the way of these plans.

The Tale of the Three Brothers *****
The story that forms the basis of the plot in [b:Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows|818064|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter, #7)|J.K. Rowling|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388842985i/818064._SY75_.jpg|2963218]. No less cool in this book. Three brothers cheat Death by magicking up a bridge to cross a river. Death is angry, but cleverly offers them their choice of prize. One brother wishes for a wand that could defeat anyone, and receives the Elder Wand. The second wishes for a way to resurrect the dead--Death gives him the Resurrection Stone. The third wishes for a way to leave without Death following him, so Death gives him the ultimate Invisibility Cloak that provides perfect concealment and will never wear out. Needless to say if you're an HP fan, #3 gets the best bargain.

Reading this story again made me re-connect the theme of death and grief to the role of the Invisibility Cloak in the main HP series. The cloak was passed down to Harry by his father and, like his mother's love, protects him from danger and, in a way, the despair that death can bring. Rowling really must have been planning on how that would all tie together from the beginning. Bravo. ( )

I borrowed this book from my niece, to whom I had given this book as part of her Christmas gift and who decided I should read it, too. A fun, clever little volume. ( )

A fun little book with a number of the wizarding worlds children's stories. Each of the five stories has notes from "Albus Dumbledore" explaining the story. Each story, like muggles fairy tales, is intended to teach youngsters how they should act. ( )