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The Sorcerer's Companion: A Guide to the Magical World of Harry Potter
by Allan Zola Kronzek, Elizabeth Kronzek
4.02 · Rating Details · 6,051 Ratings · 90 Reviews 23
The New York Times bestseller, now fully updated to include Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Who was the real Nicholas Flamel? How did the Sorcerer’s Stone get its power? Did J. K. Rowling dream up the terrifying basilisk, the seductive veela, or the vicious grindylow? And if she didn’t, who did?

Millions of readers around the world have been enchanted by the magical world of wizardry, spells, and mythical beasts inhabited by Harry Potter and his friends. But what most readers don’t know is that there is a centuries-old trove of true history, folklore, and mythology behind Harry’s fantastic universe. Now, with The Sorcerer’s Companion, those without access to the Hogwarts Library can school themselves in the fascinating reality behind J. K. Rowling’s world of magic.

Newly updated to include Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, The Sorcerer’s Companion allows curious readers to look up anything magical from the Harry Potter books and discover a wealth of entertaining, unexpected information. Wands and wizards, boggarts and broomsticks, hippogriffs and herbology, all have astonishing histories rooted in legend, literature, or real-life events dating back hundreds or even thousands of years. Magic wands, like those sold in Rowling’s Diagon Alley, were once fashioned by Druid sorcerers out of their sacred yew trees. Love potions were first concocted in ancient Greece and Egypt. And books of spells and curses were highly popular during the Middle Ages.
From Amulets to Zombies, you’ll also learn:
•how to read tea leaves
•where to find a basilisk today
•how King Frederick II of Denmark financed a war with a unicorn horn
•who the real Merlin was
•how to safely harvest mandrake root
•who wore the first invisibility cloak
•how to get rid of a goblin
•why owls were feared in the ancient world
•what really lies beyond the Veil
•the origins of our modern-day “bogeyman,” and more.

A spellbinding tour of Harry’s captivating world, The Sorcerer’s Companion is a must for every Potter aficionado’s bookshelf.

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Allan Zola Kronzek is an author, educator, and magician. His programs The Art of Fooling, The Magician’s Art and Scientific Inquiry, and Exploring the Magical World of Harry Potter are regularly featured at colleges, libraries, and schools throughout the New York area. He is the author of The New York Times bestseller The Sorcerer’s Companion—A Guide to the World of Harry Potter; A Book of Magic for Young Magicians – The Secrets of Alkazar, and 52 Ways to Cheat at Poker – How to Spot Them, Foil Them, and Protect Yourself Against Them.

When not visiting schools, Allan performs close-up and strolling magic at private social events, corporate affairs, benefits, and family parties. He has appeared at New York City’s Monday Night Magic and has been featured on CNN. He has published original magical routines for fellow magicians, most recently Destiny, Chance and Free Will. He lives in Sag Harbor, Long Island, NY.