History & Theory of Magic Books

History of magic books for curious readers: A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot, Theory of Magic by Adalbert Waffling, Advanced Rune Translation, Ancient Studies in two parts and Rita Skeeter's scandalous biography The Life and Lies of Albus. Fully readable A5 hardcovers, printed and bound by hand. A History of Magic also comes in German, French, Russian and Japanese, and the biography in German and Spanish.

History of magic books and magical theory in our shop

The scholarly shelf of the library — books for readers who want to know where magic came from and how it works:

• A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot — the history of magic book of the first year, in English and in German, French, Russian and Japanese editions.
• Theory of Magic by Adalbert Waffling — the magical theory book: what a wand is, how spells work and the limits of magic.
• Advanced Rune Translation — the ancient runes textbook: the origins and meanings of runic symbols and practical translation exercises.
• Ancient Studies, Part 1 and Part 2 — the basic and advanced course of a scholarly elective, also as a set of 2.
• The Life and Lies of Albus by Rita Skeeter — the scandalous biography, in English, German and Spanish.
• Potion and history sets — A History of Magic with Advanced Potion Making, in English, German, French and Russian.
• Potions Class & Magic Theory Books, Set of 4 — both potion books with A History of Magic and Theory of Magic.

A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot: nine chapters

A History of Magic is the book every first-year is told to buy, and our fan edition deserves to be read to the end. It is written as a real course in nine chapters:

• The origins of magic and the first wizards
• The long conflict between wizards and goblins — its wars and rebellions
• The dark period of the witch hunts
• How the first wizarding villages grew and how the Ministry was founded
• A curious student's travel notes between the chapters
• Period portraits and maps that help you keep track of the centuries

Magical theory, runes and ancient studies

Theory of Magic by Adalbert Waffling explains the rules behind every other textbook: wand theory, how spells themselves work and, in its final part, the things no spell can create or undo. Advanced Rune Translation treats runes as a language and moves the reader from single symbols to reading inscriptions. Ancient Studies is an elective in two parts for students who prefer old books to new spells. These are the most demanding books in the library — and favourites of readers who love languages, codes and old alphabets.

A biography to read with suspicion

The Life and Lies of Albus by Rita Skeeter appears late in the story and sets everyone talking. Our edition is printed as the book itself, in the voice of its author: sharp, gossipy and never entirely fair. Part of the fun is deciding which pages to believe. It is a magical history book of a different kind — the history the newspapers would rather tell.

A History of Magic in five languages

Besides English, A History of Magic is available as Geschichte der Zauberei in German, Une histoire de la magie in French, История магии in Russian and 魔法史 in Japanese. The biography comes in German as Das Leben und die Lügen von Albus and in Spanish as Las Mentiras y la Vida de Albus.

History book replicas, made by hand

• A5 format — 14.8 × 21 cm (5.8 × 8.3 in), the size of a real school textbook
• Full colour hardcover that stands up to daily reading
• Thread-sewn binding — the book opens completely flat on a desk
• Coated paper 115 g/m² with a black & white illustrated interior
• Printed and bound by hand, all books in stock

Who these books are for

• History lovers and dark academia readers who want a magic history gift with real content
• Fans who enjoy the background of the story — goblin rebellions, witch hunts and the Ministry
• Readers of languages, runes and codes
• Collectors who want the scholarly side of the wizard library next to the spell and potion books

History and theory of magic: questions and answers

Is A History of Magic fully readable?

Yes. All nine chapters are printed with text, portraits and maps — no blank or lined pages.

Which editions of A History of Magic are available?

English, German, French, Russian and Japanese, as single books; the English, German, French and Russian editions also come in a set with the potions textbook.

What comes with the order?

Free fan art prints come with every order. A single book comes with 5 free fan art prints on kraft paper A5, a set of 2 or 3 books with 9 prints, and a set of 4 or more with 9 prints plus 3 fan art wizarding magazines.

How long does delivery take?

We deliver worldwide: to the USA from 7 days and within Europe from 2 days.

Original handmade fan art editions, created by fans for fans. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or licensed by any film studio, publisher or rights holder.