'Harry Potter Smart Talk' is a Greatest Hits Collection from the Potter Pundits. the three literary mavens on the wildly popular PotterCast of The Leaky Cauldron. Four transcripts of Harry Potter fandom's favorite podcasts along with two talks each from James Thomas, Travis Prinzi, and John Granger make this a reading experience that will delight the casual Hogwarts reader and 'wow' even the most serious Potter maniac. From the secret code of Harry Potter names - why all those doubled letters and initials - to the real world Muggles and Seekers of the English Civil War that are the historical backdrop to Harry's adventures, with sidetrips to discuss Christmas at Hogwarts and the esoteric meaning of Luna Lovegood's lovable lunancy, 'Harry Potter Smart Talk' is a must-have guide to the world's best selling books by three geeks who love to laugh almost as much as they love a great book. The Perfect Gift for your favorite Potter-phile As Melissa Anelli, author of 'Harry, A History, ' wrote in the Foreword to 'Smart Talk, ' "here is the Ivory Tower in Hagrid's Hut

"Aberforth Two more fire whiskeys for these friends Welcome, HARRY POTTER readers, to the Hog s Head, the gathering place for members of Dumbledore s Army and the historic rallying point before the Battle of Hogwarts. We scholars of the Hogwarts Saga (Harry Potter s triumph over the Dark Lord) have come together here to share our researches on the meaning of Harry s seven adventures. Listen attentively to discover hidden secrets of the series and learn why the books are worthy to be studied more closely Sip that fire whiskey slowly. Sit back and enjoy the ten best Hog s Head conversations of the past year, edited into this handy collection. And don t forget to throw your peanut shells to the goat in the corner. includes essays by John Granger, Colin Manlove, Amy H. Sturgis, James W. Thomas and many others].

"What we achieve inwardly will change outer reality." Those words, written by Plutarch and quoted by J.K. Rowling in her 2008 Harvard commencement speech, sum up both the Harry Potter series and Travis Prinzi's analysis of the best-selling books in Harry Potter & Imagination: The Way Between Two Worlds. Great imaginative literature places the readers between two worlds - the story world and the world of daily life - and challenges readers to imagine and to act for a better world. Starting with Harry Potter's great themes, Harry Potter & Imagination takes readers on a journey through the transformative power of those themes for both the individual and for culture by placing Rowling's series in its literary, historical, and cultural contexts. Prinzi explores how fairy stories in general, and Harry Potter in specific, are not merely tales that are read to "escape from the real world," but stories with the power to transform by teaching us to imagine better. . - . Endorsement]: . - . "Harry Potter & Imagination offers a challenging and rewarding tour of the inspirations for and meanings behind J.K. Rowling's lauded series. Travis Prinzi ably explores how the Harry Potter books satisfy fundamental human yearnings, utilize mythological archetypes, and embody their author's social vision. From Arthurian romance and Lovecraftian horror to postmodernism and political theory, Prinzi provides new insights into the Harry Potter phenomenon. Harry Potter & Imagination will not only fascinate and entertain readers, but will also convince them that fairy tales matter." Dr. Amy H. Sturgis, editor of Past Watchful Dragons] - . - Endorsement]: . - . "There is no more insightful commenter on the HarryPotter novels than Travis Prinzi - and Harry Potter & Imagination is an ideal showcase for his original thinking and lucid writing. This trail-blazing guidebook into the world of Harry Potter - showing the imaginative way between two worlds - is a must read." John Granger, author of The Deathly Hallows Lectures and other books]