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The Library > Book Synopses
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
By Newt Scamander
Newton Artemis Fido "Newt" Scamander is a wizard more than 100 years old (born 1897). His earliest memory is of a 7-year-old wizard ripping apart Horklumps, mushroom-like plants with pinkish bodies and a diet of earthworms.
From the age of 17, when he graduated from Hogwarts School, Scamander was involved with the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures in the United Kingdom's Ministry of Magic.
Two years into his career at the Ministry, he was transferred to the Beast Division, and this book could be viewed as the end product of nearly 90 years of study and work with exotic creatures.
In fact, Scamander was awarded the Order of Merlin, Second Class, for pioneering Magizoology, the study of magical animals.
Fantastic Beasts is a facsimile of one of Harry Potter's Hogwarts textbooks. Scamander wrote the first edition in 1918, when he was just 21 years old, at the request of August Worme, head of Obscurus Books, the original publisher.
Scamander begins with a definition of a "beast," which includes some intelligent creatures, such as centaurs and merpeople. These two classes of humanoids, for exmaple, which asked not to be classified as "beings," the group that includes humans.
Part of the duties of the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures staff is to conceal magic animals from Muggles. Various strategies include animal refuges, selling and breeding regulation and Memory Charms, if needed. An Office of Misinformation has worked with the Muggle UK prime minister to draw attention away from magical creatures.
For example, many Muggles the world over know about the "Loch Ness Monster," a supposed sea serpent living in a large lake in Scotland. Scamander reports that it actually is a kelpie, a type of water demon that can change form, most often appearing as a horse with cattails for a mane. This particular kelpie likes appearing as a large serpent.
In the A to Z creature directory, animals are rated on their level of danger:
So, you have the extremes from the one-X Flobberworm and Horklump, to the five-X dragon, Acromantula or basilisk. One of the strangest five-X hazards is the lethifold, or "Living Shroud," a flat black creature resembling a cloak about 1/2 inch thick. This animal is known to sneak into rooms at night and smother people while they slept and digest their bodies, leaving nothing behind.
In the middle (three X) category, you can find the Billywig, a sapphire blue bug that spins rapidly and is known to sting, to the Salamander, a lizard so flame-resistant that it lives in fire.
From Acromantula to Yeti, the reader is introduced to both familiar and obscure magical creatures. Some of these critters have been in the Harry Potter series, such as the aforementioned Acromantula, a huge, black, hairy spider with the ability to speak. Ron and Harry almost became one's dinner -- he was Aragog, friend of Hagrid and king of the spiders in the Forbidden Forest.
Under "dragons," a number of species are listed, including the Norwegian Ridgeback, which Norbert from The Sorcerer's Stone was. There also are the basilisk, troll, grindylow, merpeople, centaurs, pixies, gnomes and the kneazle. This is a spotted wildcat, and J.K. Rowling has said that one of Crookshank's parents was one of these felines.
Scamander leans heavily toward European creatures and more particularly UK creatures, such as the grindylow, a water demon found in English and Irish lakes.
Muggles will recognize dragons and leprechauns, but have they ever heard of the dangerous Quintaped, a short, furry monster with five legs, that may be descended from members of a transfigured wizard family? Or the ramora, a fish with a suction cup section atop its head that can hold a large ship stationary during a big tempest? Or the Fwooper, an African bird with orange or lime green puffy feathers and a song that can drive people insane over time?
Then there's Golden Snidget, the bird that inspired the Golden Snitch ball (see Quidditch Through the Ages), because it's the wizard version of an endangered and protected species.
Scamander also has included small line drawings to show some of the creatures.
A funny touch are the doodles and comments added by Harry Potter. At the Troll entry, he writes, "My name is Gregory Goyle, and I smell," a reference to one of Draco Malfoy's hulking bodyguards. He also added many more X's beyond the five next to the Acromantula entry, considering he almost became the spider's meal. And what monster raked its big claws across the front cover?
Enjoy a wizard's analysis of some of the creatures you met in the HP books, and of some that more than likely will be in future volumes as well. And remember, when you buy this book or Quidditch Through the Ages, all net profits go to Comic Relief, helping children in need in the UK and around the world. It costs $3.99 U.S.
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