The wide appeal of Rowling's books and the success she has had in creating a world of magic influenced this author to create this "textbook" and its companion book, Quidditch Through the Ages. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is geared to people of all ages, and to Harry Potter fans specifically, but also to anyone who peruses any kind of bestiary or mythological reference book and to anyone who finds themselves captivated by the idea that a world may exist that is not readily recognizable to humans. Fantastic Beasts serves as an actual bestiary, providing information about unicorns and kelpies and many other creatures that appear in myths and legends around the world: Even people who have never read a "Harry Potter" book will find many of these beasts familiar.

On first inspection, it appears that Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, as...