Harry Potter and The Tales of Beedle the Bard
I was doing some research on movies and feminism this morning when a book title caught my attention. It’s by JK Rowling, no less, and it’s called “The Tales of Beedle the Bard.” According to Amazon.com, it’s going to be released on December 4.
Indeed, for the millions of Harry Potter fans like myself, it’s something to look forward to! (I hope I can persuade my brother Ogie to buy me one, in the spirit of Christmas. 
)
Another thing that excited me about the book is its title, particularly the word BARD. What a coincidence that just after I’ve renamed my blog to Bard and Brain (as suggested by my Sweetie), I’d find that a book from a phenomenal author also carries the word Bard in its title. Already I’m projecting that my hits stats would climb dramatically, especially when the book’s released! Hahaha. (Oh, friends. Just let me be. Come on, my stats just went down to zero, from almost hitting the 10,000 mark, because of the changes I made. So it doesn’t hurt if my blog get some hits from that book, eh?)
Anyway, Bard means ‘lyric poet’. According to Wikipedia, a bard “was one of a caste of poets and scholars of medieval and early modern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Cornwall.”
There are other definitions of the word, and I can’t wait to find out which definition JK Rowling used in the book.
But before we move on to this new book by JK Rowling, why don’t we sit down once again and talk about her hit book, Harry Potter?
Let me start by posting some of the best quotes in the book…
“The truth… is a beautiful and terrible thing, and therefore should be treated with caution…” —Albus Dumbledore“
It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, just as much to stand up to our friends.” —Albus Dumbledore
“It is our choices… that show what we are, far more than our abilities.” —Albus Dumbledore
“The best of us must sometimes eat our words.” —Albus Dumbledore
“You can exist without your soul, you know, as long as your brain and heart are still working. But you’ll have no sense of self anymore, no memory, no….anything. There’s no chance at all of recovery. You’ll just exist. As an empty shell.” —Remus Lupin
“If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.” —Sirius Black
“Curiosity is not a sin…. But we should exercise caution with our curiosity.” —Albus Dumbledore
“Numbing the pain for a while will make it worse when you finally feel it.” —Albus Dumbledore
“You place too much importance on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be! —Albus Dumbledore
“It is my belief… that the truth is generally preferable to lies.” —Albus Dumbledore
“Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts are open.” —Albus Dumbledore
“Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery.” —Albus Dumbledore
“The mind is not a book to be opened at will and examined at leisure. Thoughts are not etched on the inside of skulls, to be perused by an invader. The mind is a complex and many-layered thing.” —Severus Snape
“Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than outright dislike.” —Albus Dumbledore
“Youth cannot know how age thinks and feels. But old men are guilty if they forget what it was to be young.” Albus Dumbledore
“It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more.” —Albus Dumbledore
“We must try not to sink beneath our anguish… but battle on.” — Albus Dumbledore.
“People find it far easier to forgive others for being wrong than being right. — Albus Dumbledore.
Ron: “He [Dumbledore] must have known I’d run out on you.”
Harry: “No, he must have known you’d always want to come back.”
And here’s a confession:
I am in love with the school headmaster. Yes, I love Albus Dumbledore. Even after reading JK Rowling’s revelation that he was gay. I don’t mind at all. And I love him more when his mistakes were revealed at the last book. It goes to show he was just human. Besides, what’s more important is the humility he had to accept that he had made some mistakes. I guess, it takes a great deal of security on oneself and humility for a man of his stature to accept and confess his mistakes. I deeply respect him.
What do you love (or hate) about Harry Potter? What do you suppose JK Rowling’s book would be like?
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August 5th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
HAH! Like Dumbledambel, I think I’ll start growing my beard now. I’ll start pulling down my ears too to make them long and droopy and pinch and fashion my nose hawkish with a pair of pliers to make me look a real sorcerer!
Habra-catabra BT! Salawahan ka pala!
HAK HAK HAK!
August 5th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
Sowi, Buddy. Can’t resist it. He’s just so intelligent. I get attracted to the mind! Hah!
As to his fashion sense… well… uhmm…
August 5th, 2008 at 3:01 pm
And hey, you’re curse won’t work. You got it all wrong, Buddy.
Careful… it might backfire.
August 5th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
agree! dumbledore, is so fatherlike. His love for wisdom moves its readers. Rowling really had a great way of building Dumbledore’s character with such impact.
As to his fashion sense, he reminds me of merlin…
With Beedle the bard, am curious how Rowling will present this to the public. Of course, there will be readers who, in time, when the book releases, will compare it with the harry potter series, and how Rowling delivers it.
nyanyas last blog post..emo na naman…
August 5th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
No sé mucho about this Potter thing Buddy. I tried the first 10 pages of the first book but can’t convince myself to enter into the make-believe world of toads, magic wands and flying tsu-tsu trains hehehe!
But seeing now the quotes you mentioned above, I may consider listening while you read me the book! :D
I like this one best: “Youth cannot know how age thinks and feels. But old WOmen are guilty if they forget what it was to be young.” :P
August 5th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Hello, Nyanya! I like what you said… hehehehe, especially the fashion thing, hehehe! And yes, you’re spot on when you said that readers will compare the two books. Definitely.
The expectations will surely be very high.
August 5th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Heheheheh! Hello Buddy! Sure, I can sit down and read one chapter everyday. One one condition. You cannot doze off! Huuuuu!
Looks like you’re trying to start something again. Women, eh? Sows…
August 6th, 2008 at 12:42 am
Sorry, I should have said, woEman
. Blame Dumbledambel!
Ei, in the movie version, did you notice that there wasn’t even a single woman to admire?
Dumbledore could be a woman. Look at the name, the ending is very feminine. Isn’t that the English version of Dora?
Hello Nya2!
August 6th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
I liked the first Harry Potter book. Too bad, I didn’t love it enough to read the other books except the sixth one and the last two chapters of the last book! hahahah
Mightys last blog post..How Piracy Helps the Movie Industry
August 7th, 2008 at 9:44 am
Hey Mighty! Hahaha. Nice to meet a non-HP fan.
VF doesn’t like the book very much either… but only because he hasn’t read it yet. Hahahaha!
Guess that’s what they call individual differences.
VF! Such a wild imagination you have! Hah! Dore = Dora? Hmp! I admire several women in the movie as well as in the book: McGonagall, Hermione, Mrs. Wisley, Tonks
August 7th, 2008 at 9:49 am
The characters I hated the most are also women: Rita Skeeter, Dolores Umbridge, and that woman who killed Sirius Black… what’s her name again?
August 7th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Honestly, I haven’t read a single Harry Potter book. The only Harry Potter flick I’ve seen is the prisoner of azkaban upon the persistence of friends who have gone totally crazy over the lead actor, daniel something.
I believe the Harry Potter installments are great because practically everybody is raving about them. Pero si Ryan Agoncillo kasi ang nakikita ko whenever I see Harry Potter’s pic kaya nawawalan ako ng gana hehe:)
August 7th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
Apir Sonnet! I just can’t imagine a guy riding a broomstick chasing an oversized fruitfly hehehe!
Ah Buddy, I only admire women of strong characters; the likes of Mariko and KC created by J. Clavel. Yay, what is there to admire on those witches wielding baguettes magic! Peace Buddy :P
August 7th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
i stopped reading harry potter with the 3rd book… well I think I listened too much wit Harold Bloom’s crtique, hehehe…
apo nagmayat man daytoy website mo kabsat… wow swerte natiambaam iti mayat nga keywords hehehe…
by the way do you read this site: aldaily.com it is my source of literary delight (criticism, book reviews, essays, etc.) check it out…
gayam, baka adda time mo nga agbisita iti forvo.com, impa-add ko ti ilokano ket nirugiak iti letra nga “A”. I also add to Tagalog words.
masadsadutak nga ag-blog these days, tapos baka ma-busy kami gapo iti folk school for the next 3 weeks so ti focus ti posting ko ket diak office blog mi.
sure do add me up…
agyamanak…
August 7th, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Tales of Beedle the Bard was the book Hermoine Granger inherited from Albus Dumbledore in book 7! It’s written in runes, a children’s book that only Ron Weasley knew about. The book gave Hermoine lots of hints about the deathly hallows.
I’ve been wondering the rest of Beedle’s tales, good thing J.K. Rowling came up with a book. :D Babasahin naman natin yun diba?
The woman who killed Sirius Black is his cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange; aunt to Draco and Tonks.
:D
August 8th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Kasi naman virtualfriend of all objects, why pick a broomstick to ride di ba? It’s so passe, an overused element in story books hehehe:) Peace brainteaser:) Naku, baka di na mag-order sa akin ng VCO si Sherma:(
August 8th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
Waaa! Avi, I need your help! Everyone here is non-HP fan! Helppppppp!
Sonnet! That’s a crack up! Ryan Agoncillo? Huh? Kaloka. That’s your overactive imagination playing a trick on you, girl. Ryan Agoncillo, Danielle Radcliffe look-alike? LOL!
I guess the use of broomsticks is to conform to popular children’s tales about witches riding broomsticks. Perhaps so the kids won’t get confused? Hehehe. Afterall, the book is a children’s lit. Huuuu!
VF. James Clavell’s Mariko (Sho-gun) and KC (The Noble House) are well-loved characters. They are the epitome of the strong, level-headed, and beautiful woman. I admire them very much.
Hello Pete! How are you friend? Thanks. Will fix my blogroll soon.
And will go check those links out. 
Hope you’ll stay around.
SALVE. Girl, thankie for the info. I’ve read the Wiki enrty on TBB sometime yesterday and was so shocked to find the book mentioned in HP 7. Already forgtotten about it. Ahh… I really do have a terrible memory. I forget details. Hmmmp!
August 8th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Sonnet. HAhahaha. Don’t worry about your VCO. HP got nothing to do with my quest for a silky, smooth skin. Nyehehehehe! LOL!
August 8th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
Haynaku. VCO na naman! Di ba yan yung ginagawang oil ng mga lola natin tuwing Biernes santo? Maganda daw na panakot sa mga witches hehehe! Sige Buddy, uminom ka ng VCO para kagaya ka namin ni Salve na hindi makakalimutin.
I cannot include Sonnet. She just started using VCO kaya makakalimutin pa rin. Di kagaya namin ni Salve, naliligo na ng VCO ni lola since birth hehehe!
August 8th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
Di kaya, matagal na rin ako nagv-VCO VF noh. May mga lola rin kaya ako. Pero ngayon lang ang nakagamit ng VCO bar kasi di pa uso noon:)
Oo nga naman Sherma, why should we let Ryan A a.k.a HP get in the way of attaining beautiful skin? Long live VCO!:)
Sonnets last blog post..Yesterday, Today and…your turn
August 11th, 2008 at 12:31 am
sherma, no amount of anti-HP statements can ever change my love for the magical world ms. rowling created. reading the hp books is a good exercise. makes you remember the span of imagination you have as a child and somehow got lost when you became an adult.
i’m a fan of children’s fiction: from picture books to YAs. :D
Salves last blog post..Go Dark!
August 25th, 2008 at 11:25 am
These are some great quotes here, particularly the one by Black: ““If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.” That’s some good wisdom indeed.
October 15th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Salve! So true, girl. Basta ako, I love HP! Hah!
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Sonnet, oo naman noh. Hehehhe.
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Hiya Edinburg Lover. Welcome to my abode! I agree.
June 8th, 2009 at 12:44 pm
wahhh nagma-marathon ako ng HP nitong weekend. di ko napansin na gay pala sya. sino kaya ang naging type at papa niya.
i agree na karespe-respeto sya. mabasa nga yang librong yan at na-feature dito. heheh
kakarinig ko palang nito kagabi - “You place too much importance on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be! —Albus Dumbledore.
at last nakuha ko na yan. sa sinehan di ko naintidihan e. hahaha