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.

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
? 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.

The Sorcerer's Companion has not been prepared, approved, or licensed by any person or entity that created, published, or produced the Harry Potter books or related properties.

"Each alphabetically organized entry contains a potent blend of fact, fiction and folklore....Thorough research and period prints combine to create a memorable book." Publishers Weekly

"The material is interesting and informative, easy to read, and fairly wide-ranging. The same readers who can't get enough of Harry Potter will enjoy learning about arithmancy, spell casting, and much more here, while waiting anxiously for the next Rowling novel to appear." School Library Journal

"[A]n attractive text, easily accessible to the young reader....Its bibliography is equally impressive, citing more than one hundred sources from historical to Web based....[A]n entertaining overview..." VOYA

Allan Zola Kronzek is a professional magician and educator who lectures on the history of magic and conjuring. A frequent visiting artist at elementary and middle schools, he is the author of A Book of Magic for Young Magicians: The Secrets of Alkazar.

Elizabeth Kronzek, his daughter, is a writer, editor, and historian. She holds a master?s degree in Renaissance history from Princeton University.

Introduction xiii
Amulet: The Evil Eye 1
Arithmancy 4
Astrology: Disaster and Disease 10
The Zodiac 15
The Meaning of the Planets 18
Banshee 19
Basilisk: The Basilisk Today 21
Boggart: The Bogeyman 24
Broomstick 26
Cat: Cat Tales 28
Cauldron 32
Centaur 35
Charm: "Charmed, I'm Sure" 36
Circe 39
Crystal Ball 41
Curse: Licensed to Curse 44
The Mummy's Curse 47
Dark Arts 48
Demon: How to Recognize a Demon 52
Divination: The Mantic Arts 56
A Brief History of Tarot 63
Dragons: Dragons of the East 65
Dreams 68
Dwarf 71
Elf: The Elf's New Clothes 73
Fairy: The Tooth Fairy 76
The Cottingley Fairies 79
Fairy Rings 81
Flying Carpet 82
Forbidden Forest 84
Ghost 85
Ghoul 89
Giant 90
Gnome 93
Goblin 94
Grim 96
Grindylow 98
Hag 100
Herbology 102
Hex 105
Hinkypunk 107
Hippogriff: Animals on Trial 108
Horoscope 111
Invisibility Cloak 113
Kappa 116
Leprechaun: The Farmer and the Leprechaun 117
Magic 120
Magician 132
Magic Mirror: Mirror Superstitions 145
Magic Wand: The Magic Club 149
The Caduceus 153
Magic Words: A Little Hocus Pocus 157
Mandrake: Mandrake Safety 159
Manticore 162
Merlin 164
Mermaid/Merman: Mermaid Relatives 168
Morgana: The Fata Morgana 172
Mummy 175
Nicholas Flamel 177
Owl 181
Palmistry 182
Petrification 186
Phoenix 188
Pixie 190
Poltergeist 191
Potion 194
Red Cap 197
Runes: Rune Casting 198
Salamander 200
Sibyl 203
Snake 205
Sorcerer 208
Sorcerer's Stone: The Making of the Stone 210
The Faking of the Stone 215
Spell 217
Sphinx 219
Talisman 221
Tea-Leaf Reading 224
Three-Beaded Dog 230
Toad: Toadstones 232
Transfiguration 235
Troll 239
Unicorn: Hornswoggled 242
Vampire 246
Veela 249
Werewolf: "Real" Werewolves 250
Witch: The Witch's Familiar 254
Witch Persecution: Why Were Witches Women? 259
Wizard 265
Yeti 268
Zombie 270
Acknowledgments 273
Bibliography 275
Illustration Credits 281