3 new ‘Harry Potter’ books coming this fall

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the publication of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” and fans of the Harry Potter universe have an ever-growing list of reasons to celebrate.

Harry Potter theme parks are thriving and expanding. The play “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is taking over the world stage.

And this fall, an exhibition at the British Library called Harry Potter: A History of Magic, will be added to the list. According to the British Library website, the exhibition will “showcase a fascinating display of wizarding books, manuscripts and magical objects, and combine centuries-old British Library treasures with original material from Bloomsbury’s and J.K. Rowling’s own archives.”

For example, the phoenix is a mythical creature that figured heavily into the book series. The library exhibition will feature medieval manuscripts and art depicting the phoenix as part of the “Care of Magical Creatures” section of the exhibit.

The interweaving of muggle history and wizard history sounds fascinating, doesn’t it?

The exhibit is shaping up to be a must-see for fans, but it’s actually some supplemental materials for the exhibit that are brewing up the most excitement.

Two new books will be released to accompany the official library exhibit. The first, “Harry Potter: A History of Magic, The Book of the Exhibition,” will delve into the academic subjects at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The second, “Harry Potter, A Journey Through a History of Magic,” provides an in-depth historical perspective on all the spells, creatures, and wizard lore that fans can’t get enough of.

The exhibition books are being heralded as new books in the Harry Potter series, which isn’t quite accurate; rather, these exhibition-inspired books help flesh out the vivid, complex world of Harry Potter. They’re not new stories, but more like scholarly texts for fanatics to build and deepen their existing knowledge.

Either way, they’re definitely an important text to add to your magical library. Plus, an illustrated version of “The Prisoner of Azkaban” will be released on Oct. 3. It’s from the same illustrator who did the illustrated versions of “Harry Potter and “The Sorcerer’s Stone” and “Chamber of Secrets”, so if you liked the visuals from the first two books, you’re sure to love this one as well.