As a huge Harry Potter fan, there was no way I was skipping this book, which is essentially a collection of information from Pottermore, the official website dedicated to all things Harry Potter. I’ve read other supplemental texts affiliated with the series, but this feels like the least substantial of them all.
The story is a small guide to Hogwarts – how to get there, fun facts about the school and its inhabitants – presented both as general information, and then commented on by Rowling herself as a creator. It provides very little that serious fans don’t already know.
More problematically, it was obviously created before Cursed Child, the sequel play written by Jack Thorne with story contributions from John Tiffany and Rowling herself. There is a section on Time Turners and the mistakes Rowling felt she made with allowing time travel at all that directly contradict everything about Cursed Child. While this is technically not a problem, as these things do not *have* to work within the same continuity, I found myself irritated to read it nonetheless. It made me wish that either Rowling had always wished to explore that element further, or that Cursed Child hadn’t happened, and I was a fan of the play (although only watching it; the reading was less of a thrill).
If you are an HP completionist, read it; otherwise, it’s pretty unremarkable. I am one, so I’m still happy to have it!
I’m going with the play being pure (bad) fanfiction, and so it doesn’t count. Because it was dumb.