Rating: 
Summary: Filling in the Spaces
Review: Pretty Cool! These two books add a great deal to Muggle knowledge about the hidden Magical world that is around us.I found the basic information in both books interesting, but thought that the things you could derive from the footnotes and other comments almost more interesting. Items I found interesting: A conversion rate between Muggle and Wizard currency, more details on the Ministry of Magic, rules and laws and several publishing companies and more books printed for muggles. Additional spells can be found also! Must read!
Rating:
Summary: Look for the details
Review: The charm of these books is in looking for some of the details, such as the price on the back -- given in American dollars, as well as galleons and knuts. There's a lot of attention to detail that makes these worth reading more than once. I do prefer the Fantastic Beasts -- the "notes" written by Harry and his classmates are a lot more fun than the Quidditch book.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointingly thin!
Review: These "books" would more aptly be called "pamphlets." There was much ado about Rowling writing these for charity, but, really, how hard was that? She probably wrote these in a couple of afternoons. Now, if Rowling donated the proceeds from the next three novels in the "Harry Potter" series, that would be something else. Rowling is a multimillionaire several times over; she can afford to donate all the income for the rest of her life to worthy causes. These tiny, cheap "pamphlets" just don't cut it. Rowling's creativity and humor is one thing, but please don't admire her for throwing these breadcrumbs at the poor.
Rating: 
Summary: Great info and humor!
Review: I found these books to be hilarious and enlightening (especially regarding the attitudes of Centaurs and the origins of Quidditch). I think they are more than worthy efforts to keep us occupied until Book 5 comes out. However, I was slightly disappointed at one nagging little detail that seems to have been forgotten. In "Fantastic Beasts", the Blast-Ended Skrewts were omitted. This was surprising to me as they were quite important to the story in Book 4. Nevertheless, these books are terrifically funny and invaluable supplements for understanding the world of Harry Potter.
Rating:
Summary: Great supplements to the Harry Potter series
Review: These books are a great addition to the world of Harry Potter. I enjoyed reading them straight through, and they will be wonderful as reference guides for future books and when I reread the series. The Fantastic Beasts book is a facsimile of Harry's own text book including the sly graffiti while the Quidditch book is a copy of the actual Hogwarts library book including a curse that librarians everywhere wish they could put on their books. Speaking of libraries, most public libraries have incredibly long waiting lists for the Harry Potter series. Getting extra copies of these two books as well as the books in the series would be greatly appreciated by public libraries, children's hospitals, and after-school reading programs.
Rating:
Summary: Step onto Platform 9 3/4 for a Harry Potter "fix"
Review: Being a Harry Potter fan at 42 can be a little embarrassing but here goes. This little set of books gives me a fun jaunt into the wizzarding world and a "fix" to my Harry Potter addiction that only JK Rowling can satisfy. While waiting for the next book I have resorted to re-reading and re-listening to the other 4 books in the series. Each time, finding new insights into the non-muggle world. These books are right out of Hogwarts! From the preface by Albus Dumbledore to the threats on behalf of Madame Pince, the books are a continuation of the dream that Hogwarts is real; that Quidditch exists and that the Magical Creatures are really worth learning about. These books stay "in character" the whole time which leads me to believe that there was some mistake when I was 11 that I did not receive my admission to Hogwarts by Owl Post! Have fun, let the dream live on until we get our next installment. By the way, The books were worth every Sickle and Knut! (14 Sickles and 3 Knuts each). Finally, as if just getting the books wasn't satisfying enough, the proceeds are going to Comic Relief UK.
Rating:
Summary: Novelty item only
Review: First of all, I'm tired of hearing everyone calling them textbooks used by harry potter. Only ONE, the magical beasts and where to find them is a text- Qudditch through the ages was a book given to Harry by his friends. Second, I was disappointed by Magical Beasts- for a textbook, it is extremely brief, has very few drawings, and even fewer anecdotes. I was not expecting an entire anatomical and habitat description of the animals, but still, a little more detail would have been very nice. The few dispersed notes from harry and gang was a nice touch, but too few. I've scribbled a lot more in school books back in my day. Quidditch through the ages was also a little too brief- although they reference several hundred possible fouls in the game, they only list a handful- Finally, I would recommend the books as some of the better merchandise you can buy- especially since the profits are to go towards charity. However, if you're buying these books for your kids, I seriously doubt many of them will come close to enjoying them. They are a novelty item, and part of the harry potter world, but completely seperated from the storyline. >o'
Rating:
Summary: A Very Quick, But Amusing Read
Review: Finally, we learn the truth (or at least it is hinted at) the true character of Hermione's cat. (The answer in ingrained in Fantastical Beasts). These books are very imaginary, creating an entire world of possible fantasy and intrigue. Any questions about Quiddich are certainly answered in a lengthy, but humorous account. I am glad J.K Rowling went into this detail to further create the world in which Harry lives. My only complaint? It took 20 minutes to read each book. But they are for a noble cause, so read on!
Rating:
Summary: Titanic Texts
Review: Leave it to J.K. Rowling to make school textbooks interesting. To appease the millions (and millions . . . and millions) of fans of the Harry Potter saga (who won't be getting a new novel until sometime after the next millenium . . . at least it feels that way), Rowling has written two brief books used by the Hogwarts students. One is a library book; the other is owned by Harry (but used by Ron as well). Clever and informative, both books contain references to all four books in the saga while whetting our appetite with new information from the world of Harry Potter. I especially liked "Quidditch Through the Ages" which had facts about the history of the wizard sport and many of the teams throughout the world. And wouldn't you know it? America isn't preoccupied with Quidditch like the rest of the world. We have our own wizarding sport--Quodpot, a basketball-type game with exploding balls. I guess we haven't taken to soccer like the rest of the world either, so we needed our own wizarding sport as well. "Fantastic Beasts," on the other hand, contains wonderfully hilarious notes by Harry, Ron, and Hermione in the margins of the text that had me flipping through the pages just to read them. The books are good and well written, but they are definitely for the Harry Potter initiated. Anyone diving into these without any knowledge of Bertie Botts or Hagrid or hippogriffs will find them about as comprehensible as a Quantum Physics book. For those in the know, enjoy! I did.
Rating:
Summary: Very Good Books!
Review: I just got these two books and I couldn't put them down! No wonder why they are on backorder. I would have given five stars, but some magical creature parts weren't interesting, and they aren't on the same level as the Harry Potter series. I am glad that all earnings of the book will go to a charity for the needy. Another thing that I liked about these books is the creative ideas. All of the quidditch history, beasts, and item descriptions were so much fun to read. I also liked the drawings and the comical side of the two books. Of all these great things, my favorite part of the set would be Harry and Ron's thoughts in "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them". There were handwritten statements by both Harry and Ron (with one by Hermione). I will probably refer to these books when reading other Potter books in the future. Thanks for writing yet another set of great books J.K. Rowling!
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