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J.K. Rowling's new book, about a character accused of transphobia, raises eyebrows

Rachel Treisman

J.K Rowling has said publicly that her new book was not based on her own life, even though some of the events that take place in the story did in fact happen to her as she was writing it. Tolga Akmen/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

J.K Rowling has said publicly that her new book was not based on her own life, even though some of the events that take place in the story did in fact happen to her as she was writing it.

J.K. Rowling, who rose to fame as the author of the Harry Potter series, is known for writing about magical subjects and fantasy worlds. But her latest book bears more than a passing resemblance to reality — and, critics say, not in a good way.

The Ink Black Heart is the sixth installment of Rowling's thriller series Cormoran Strike , which she penned under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. The 1,024-page tome started raising eyebrows as soon as it hit stores on Tuesday.

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Observers noted that the plot appears to mirror Rowling's own experience of taking heat and losing fans for expressing transphobic views in recent years. Rowling has said publicly that the book was not based on her own life, even though some of the events that take place in the story did in fact happen to her as she was writing it.

"Although I have to say when it did happen to me, those who had already read the book in manuscript form were [like] – are you clairvoyant?" Rowling wrote in a Q&A on Galbraith's website . "I wasn't clairvoyant, I just – yeah, it was just one of those weird twists. Sometimes life imitates art more than one would like."

In the book, a popular artist gets harassed for her opinions

The book centers the story of Edie Ledwell, a popular cartoonist who, according to the official description , is "persecuted by a mysterious online figure" — and ultimately found dead — after her cartoon was criticized for being racist, ableist and transphobic (at least partly over a bit involving "a hermaphrodite worm," Rolling Stone reports ).

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"The book takes a clear aim at 'social justice warriors' and suggests that Ledwell was a victim of a masterfully plotted, politically fueled hate campaign against her," the magazine continues, adding that the character gets doxxed — with "photos of her home plastered on the Internet" — and faces threats of rape and death because of her opinions.

Parts of the story seem to mirror Rowling's experience

Rowling has made her own opinions known, particularly in regards to the transgender community, over the last several years .

She faced backlash in 2019 for publicly supporting Maya Forstater, a researcher who had lost her job over transphobic tweets. The following year, Rowling posted several controversial tweets, including one opinion piece that mocked the term "people who menstruate" ("I'm sure there used to be a word for those people," she tweeted . "Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?"), and published a long statement expressing her concerns with "the consequences of the current trans activism."

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Rowling said in November that she's received death threats. She also publicly accused three activists of doxxing her when they posted photos of themselves holding pro-trans rights signs outside of her house in Scotland, "carefully positioning themselves to ensure that our address was visible," she said.

The activists, who had been demonstrating in honor of International Transgender Day of Remembrance, later deleted the photo and deactivated their accounts because of the amount of transphobic backlash they had received online. Scottish police later investigated the so-called doxxing and determined no crimes had been committed (notably, Rowling's home is a popular tourist attraction, as Them points out ).

Critics say the book is self-serving and "beyond parody"

News of Rowling's book release has taken Twitter by storm, even prompting dueling hashtags – #IStandWithJKRowling and #ICantStandJKRowling .

Critics have decried the book as "hilariously self-persecuting " and " beyond parody ," with some drawing attention to the real-world problems facing transgender people, deriding its length ("500 pages longer than Dune , 300 pages longer than Infinite Jest and 100 pages longer than the Bible," wrote one ) and calling for people to boycott her work.

Lark Malakai Grey, co-host of the queer Harry Potter podcast "The Gayly Prophet" told NPR over email that he finds the situation "deeply embarrassing" for Rowling.

"She has published a 1,000-page self-insert fanfiction where she's the victim—it's the kind of behavior that you'd expect from a petulant teenager, not a grown adult with immense wealth and power," he added. "I have no idea what she expected, but seeing the internet fill with jokes about the book has been an absolute joy after all the harm she has caused my community over the past several years."

Rowling's transphobic comments have lost her many fans

Rowling's stance has alienated many in her fanbase — which includes a large number of LGBTQ people — as well as a slew of prominent Harry Potter cast members: Actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint are among those who have condemned her comments and expressed their support for the trans community.

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Rowling was noticeably absent from the Harry Potter 20th anniversary special, a de facto reunion for much of the franchise's cast and crew that aired on New Year's Day 2022. She told Graham Norton's "Radio Show" podcast on Saturday that she was invited to participate in the special but chose not to come because she saw it as "about the films more than the books."

In that same interview, she stressed that she had written her new book before the events of the past year.

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"I said to my husband, 'I think everyone is going to see this as a response to what happened to me,' but it genuinely wasn't," she said. "The first draft of the book was finished at the point certain things happened."

Correction Sept. 1, 2022

A previous version of this story misspelled Grey.

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J.K. Rowling on the Magic of ‘Things’

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By J.K. Rowling

• Dec. 24, 2021

I own a cuddly tortoise sewn by my mother, which she gave me when I was 7. It has a floral shell, a red underbelly and black felt eyes. Even though I’m notoriously prone to losing things, I’ve managed to keep hold of that tortoise through sundry house moves and even changes of country. My mother died over 30 years ago, so I’ve now lived more of my life without her than with her. I find more comfort in that tortoise than I do in photographs of her, which are now so faded and dated, and emphasize how long she’s been gone. What consoles me is the permanence of the object she made — its unchanging nature, its stolid three-dimensional reality. I’d give up many of my possessions to keep that tortoise, the few exceptions being things that have their own allusive power, like my wedding ring.

The most valuable thing I ever lost, at least in a strictly monetary sense, was a pair of spectacular diamond earrings I won many years ago at a charity ball auction. Though very beautiful, my new clip-ons were heavy and turned out to be exceptionally painful to wear, so tight they made my earlobes throb. I wore them to a formal event in London and found them so uncomfortable I discreetly removed them and stowed them in my evening bag. The following day, having flown back to Scotland, I opened my suitcase and they were nowhere to be found; irrevocably lost.

I put those departed earrings into my new children’s book, “The Christmas Pig,” which is a story of objects lost and found, of things beloved and things unregretted. I made my lost earrings grand and snooty, as befitted objects that demanded the wearer suffer for their beauty. When they reach the Land of the Lost, where the hero must go to rescue his most beloved toy, my earrings are angry that they aren’t treated with the respect they think they deserve. They soon find out that being made of diamonds counts for very little in the strange world where human-made objects go when lost, because a thing’s importance there depends on how much it’s truly loved.

There can be a strange magic in human-made things. Not in all of them: not in plastic bottles or Q-Tips or batteries; but in those that are interwoven with our pasts, with our homes, with our great loves. These are things that have been mysteriously imbued with humanity — our own or other people’s.

The magic of “things” often goes unnoticed until they break or are lost. We have favorite mugs and tea towels, comforting in their familiarity and utility; we treasure the lopsided objects our children made for us in nursery school, and we may still own those toys that soothed us when we were tiny. “The Christmas Pig” was inspired in part by one of those achingly necessary toys without whom sleep is impossible: a cheap cuddly pig around eight inches tall, with a belly full of plastic beans, that belonged to my son, David.

David was so attached to that pig, but so prone to losing it, that I became scared it would one day be lost and never found again. I therefore bought an identical replacement and hid it. David was 3 when he went rummaging in the cupboard where I’d stowed his pig’s twin and took it out, slightly confused. He declared it to be his pig’s brother and kept both of them. They’re both still with us, though their names are different from the pigs’ names in the story. Only David’s habit of hiding his beloved pig, then forgetting where he put it, is taken from real life.

Every writer is asked where ideas come from. It’s a relief to have an answer for once, because more often than not I don’t know — the ideas simply arrive. “The Christmas Pig” sprang from my musings on what it means to be a replacement toy. I’d always wanted to write a Christmas story, and once I’d dreamed the Land of the Lost into being I realized I’d found one at last. Christmas was the perfect backdrop to a tale of loss and love, sacrifice and hope.

Of course, it isn’t necessary to actually celebrate Christmas to grasp that element of the story. Every culture has its sacred, celebratory days when feasts are made and consumed, when the grown-ups are making a special effort, when the whole family assembles, when gifts are exchanged.

“The Christmas Pig” explores a deep attachment to an old object, with all its half-understood associations and meanings, at a time when we’re supposed to be in thrall to acquiring the new. It’s about the journey of a boy, Jack, who has a complicated family life, and is consequently a little lost himself, but who discovers his bravery and deep capacity for love in a strange new world. Of all the books I’ve written, this is the one that made me cry the most, because I was dealing with emotions that run deep in all of us. Loss and change are hard for children, but acceptance of these inevitable parts of life isn’t much easier for adults. There was a particular poignancy in finishing the book (which I began to think about in 2012) during a pandemic that has plunged us all into a frightening new world. “The Christmas Pig” shows how human beings — even small, lost ones — are capable of wonderful, heroic, transformative acts. It’s a story in which hope triumphs over despair and individual acts of kindness bring about huge, positive change.

A very strange thing happened on the day I finished editing “The Christmas Pig.” After emailing the final manuscript to my editor, I set about the mundane job of clearing out a cupboard. Sorting through its items — half my mind still in the story, with Jack and the things that came alive on Christmas Eve — one of the last objects I picked up was a small, nondescript box. It rattled. I opened it.

Now, you might believe this or you might not. I can’t blame you if you don’t; after all, I make things up for a living. Nevertheless, this is the truth: There, twinkling up at me as though they’d just been cleaned, were my long-lost diamond earrings, which I hadn’t seen for decades. How they came to be in that box, in that cupboard, I have no idea, nor can I fathom how they moved house with us without my knowledge. Nor do I understand how they escaped the careful search I made of the evening bag and the suitcase from which they disappeared.

Doubtless there’s a prosaic explanation, though I can’t for the life of me imagine what it is. Sitting on the floor amid the piles of dusty things I’d been sorting, utterly astonished by my discovery, I tried the earrings on again. They were exactly as painful as I remembered.

I’ve decided to sell them and give the proceeds to my charity, Lumos, which works to end child institutionalization. I think it rounds out my earrings’ story rather nicely, to have them return from their long exile humbled, wanting to do some good for children in the Land of the Living. I’ll write a note for the new owner — whose earlobes, with any luck, will be made of sterner stuff than my own — and explain their history, in hopes that they’ll give somebody as much pleasure as their rediscovery gave me.

How many times have I been asked whether I believe in magic? On the day I finished “The Christmas Pig,” for a few shining moments I really did.

J.K. Rowling’s most recent novels are “The Ickabog” and “The Christmas Pig.”

Follow New York Times Books on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram , s ign up for our newsletter or our literary calendar . And listen to us on the Book Review podcast .

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J.K. Rowling’s transphobic new novel sees her at the mercy of all her worst impulses

In the detective novel Troubled Blood, Rowling spends most of her time explaining why she’s mad at modern feminism.

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J.K. Rowling’s latest novel made headlines for generating controversy well before its US release date of September 29. That’s because Troubled Blood , the newest installment of the detective series Rowling publishes under the pen name Robert Galbraith, features a serial killer who lures his victims into a false sense of security by dressing as a woman.

Fears of a bad man in a dress are one of the main justifications for anti-trans legislation across the globe. In the US and the UK over the past few years, that’s taken the form of the bathroom bill controversies : Trans people want to be able to use public restrooms and changing rooms that correspond to their gender identity.

But opponents argue that if trans people were allowed to use the public bathrooms that corresponded to their gender identity, women and children will undoubtedly be menaced by sexual predators using this legal loophole to ogle women in their most vulnerable state. In practice, however, US states that have allowed trans people to use the facilities corresponding to their gender have seen no increase in sexual harassment or assault in public restrooms .

Rowling, however, has stated that it is “the simple truth” that allowing trans women to use women’s bathrooms will lead to violent men using those loopholes to attack “natal girls and women.” She began outlining her views on gender in a series of tweets last fall, then elaborated on them in a long essay published this June . There, Rowling perpetuated a series of outdated myths about trans people while repeatedly stating that she’s not transphobic, because she knows and likes trans people. She just also thinks that trans women aren’t real women, that they’re taking advantage of resources meant for “biological women,” and that they are enabling predatory men to commit violence against those “biological women.”

To be clear, regardless of Rowling’s personal feelings toward trans people, all of the ideas she expressed in her essay are transphobic. They actively seek to take rights away from trans people, and they treat trans identity as something that is up for debate, rather than an intrinsic part of human beings who deserve to be treated with dignity. But Rowling has threatened to sue publications who describe her and her views as transphobic, forcing at least one children’s site to issue a public apology .

So to some critics , Troubled Blood is just the latest sign of J.K. Rowling’s increasingly outspoken and retrograde ideas about gender. Others have countered that the book contains no trans characters , that detractors were judging the book without reading it, and that dismissing Troubled Blood before its publication over worries about a trope is cancel culture at its worst. What it would mean to cancel J.K. Rowling, a billionaire with theme park attractions built around her intellectual property, remains unclear. But in any case, Troubled Blood debuted at No. 1 in the UK .

I’ve read all of Troubled Blood ’s many pages, and I can say that this book is transphobic. But it’s also just not very good.

What Troubled Blood is, above all else, is an example of Rowling at the mercy of all her worst impulses.

Troubled Blood is the fifth volume in Rowling’s Cormoran Strike books, a series of noir-inflected murder mysteries. The name of the series comes from their protagonist, a grizzled army police officer-turned-private detective named Cormoran Strike, who solves crimes with his partner/obvious eventual love interest, Robin.

The Cormoran Strike books have never been perfect, but they’re usually fun. The part of writing that Rowling is best at is constructing a mystery, so her whodunnits are always absorbing and twisty. And writing under a (masculine) pen name seems to grant Rowling freedom to be playful and flippant in a way she hasn’t been since the very first Harry Potter novels. (Rowling published the first volume in the Strike series, 2015’s The Cuckoo’s Calling , in genuine anonymity. She was unmasked a few months after the book came out, but she’s continued to use her Robert Galbraith pen name for all the books in the series that have followed.)

But Troubled Blood is not fun, and it’s not playful. It feels bloated and resentful, turgid with an ethos of grim duty. It’s the writing of someone who feels she has no choice but to bring some home truths to you, the reader, and damn the consequences.

Troubled Blood also reads like nothing so much as a stylistic sequel to Rowling’s incredibly boring 2012 novel Casual Vacancy .

Casual Vacancy was a dour class satire that seemed to be animated most strongly by Rowling’s desire to be taken seriously as an author of literary fiction for adults. Troubled Blood seems to be animated most strongly by Rowling’s desire to share her political opinions on feminism and other gender issues with the world.

It features Strike and Robin setting out together to solve the disappearance of one Margot Bamborough, a feminist doctor who vanished from the world in 1974. The police strongly suspected that Margot was abducted by the serial killer Dennis Creed (the one who wears women’s clothes), but they were never able to solve the case. And now, 40 years later, Margot’s daughter Anna — a lesbian, Rowling notes with an air of triumph, as if to say, see, she’s not homophobic — has hired Strike and Robin to try to bring her closure on the mystery once and for all.

Over the course of the year-long investigation that ensues, Strike and Robin manage to establish the following: Fourth-wave feminism , with its Slut Walks and pro-porn stance, is nothing but a bunch of idiotic children having airy, academic discussions about words, while enabling the sexual assault of women and the sex trafficking of children.

In contrast, Margot’s brand of ’70s second-wave feminism was correct and righteous, except for its lamentable pro-choice stance. (All sympathetic characters in Troubled Blood , except for poor misguided Margot, are pro-contraception but anti-abortion.) Moreover, women are all bound together by their biological destiny, which leaves them in danger of being victimized by predatory men. And the most dangerous predator of all is the predator who cloaks themselves in femininity.

This final category of dangerous predators includes Creed the serial killer, who is obsessed with women’s clothing. Creed wears a wig and a women’s coat and lipstick to abduct his victims, because his disguise makes the drunk women he targets perceive him first as another woman and then as a harmless drag queen. But his interest in cross-dressing isn’t purely utilitarian. He also steals trophy garments from his victims and masturbates into them.

“I felt I stole something of their essence from them,” says Creed of his penchant for taking women’s underwear, “taking that which they thought private and hidden.” ( Per Rowling’s Galbraith website , Creed is loosely based on two real serial killers. Per the Guardian , both of them stole women’s clothes from their victims, and one of the two may have worn them, although the evidence there seems to be fuzzy.)

But there are other predators besides Creed in this most dangerous category of deceptive femininity, and one of them manages to fool Strike. “Like the women who’d climbed willingly into Dennis Creed’s van,” Strike muses of this villain at the end of Troubled Blood , “he’d been hoodwinked by a careful performance of femininity.”

This particular predator who manages to best Strike is cis. But within the world of Troubled Blood , it’s this predator’s cold-blooded and inauthentic performance of femininity that makes them monstrous. And in her nonfiction writing, Rowling has strongly suggested that she believes trans women are cold-bloodedly performing a gender identity that does not truly belong to them, and that, in the process, they are stealing away resources that exist to help what Rowling calls “biological women” cope with the world’s misogyny.

In Troubled Blood , the overt performance of gender is done with an eye to deceive, to misdirect, to harm. Cis women may experiment with their femininity — there’s a recurring motif that sees Robin test driving different perfumes as she decides what kind of woman she wants to be in the wake of her divorce — but men who take an interest in femininity are dismissed even by open-minded Robin as “camp.” Meanwhile, the good gay man who Robin lives with is clean-cut enough to get an acting job playing a straight army vet. Anna the good lesbian is non-threateningly feminine, by which Rowling usually means pretty. (When Rowling writes a woman in touch with her masculine side, the result tends to look like Harry Potter’s wicked Aunt Marge.)

And anyone in this book who wields their gender across boundaries with deliberate intent is a monster.

All of these political ideas are what Troubled Blood is, broadly speaking, “about.” They are where the narrative tension lies, where the juice of the book is. But Troubled Blood is also ostensibly a murder mystery, and the murder plot provides the skeleton from which the political ideas are hung.

So is it a good murder mystery? Not really. It is way, way, way too fucking long.

Rowling’s always had a tendency to go long and sprawling whenever the pressure is on. The Harry Potter books turned into doorstoppers with Goblet of Fire , right at the time they’d become such a phenomenon that the midnight release parties were starting. And Troubled Blood , which comes just as Rowling is beginning to speak more and more publicly about her views on gender, is even longer — it clocks in at a hefty 927 pages, with a plot stretching out across a full year.

Within that year, Strike and Robin sift their way through innumerable red herrings. Ordinarily, this is a part of plotting at which Rowling excels; she’s very good at flashy authorial sleight of hand, directing the reader’s attention this way while she seeds the information that will turn out to be vital just where you’re not looking. But in this case, the red herrings pile on so heavily and for so long that they begin to feel meaningless. There’s no pleasure to be had in trying to figure out what’s worth paying attention to and what can be discarded, because there’s just more information than any reader could possibly hold on to.

I began to feel unpleasantly reminded of that part of Deathly Hallows that turns into a long, sad, pointless camping trip where nothing happens: Are we really just checking every random tree in this forest for clues? That’s how we’re going to solve this one?

In a way, the plotting in Troubled Blood is even less satisfying. While the second half of the Harry Potter series is bloated, there’s still pleasure to be had in those books from all the genre-blending Rowling is doing. When the mystery fails, the fun of the magic and the friendships and the boarding school coziness can take over. Maybe you don’t particularly care about where Voldemort’s Horcruxes are, but there’s still magical camping and teen angst and wizarding revolutionary radios to be had, right? Maybe you’re getting distracted by the frankly wild ethics of the house-elves and their slavery, but boy, that Marauder’s Map sure is a blast, right?

In Troubled Blood , when the mystery falters and you aren’t taken by the political ideas animating it, what’s left for you to care about is the long slow-burn romance between Robin and Strike. And I do more or less want Robin and Strike to be together, in the same way I sort of vaguely wanted Ron and Hermione to be together but never bothered over it much. I definitely don’t care about Robin and Strike one-thousand-pages-of-refusing-to-talk-about-feelings much. At this point, with both of them single and both of them gazing endlessly at each other, what is even keeping them apart anymore? It’s exhausting just to contemplate.

There’s a plotline in the Cormoran Strike books that I’ve been thinking about ever since Rowling first began to talk about trans issues in public.

Other critics have already discussed the way she treated trans women in the second volume of the series, The Silk Worm . In that book, the two trans women Strike meets in the course of his investigation are ostensibly sympathetic characters, but Strike treats them as mockable. When one of them isn’t forthcoming with the information he wants, he casually threatens her with prison rape.

But what’s haunting me is a subplot from the series’s third volume, Career of Evil .

In Career of Evil , Strike’s investigation leads him to a subculture built around people who want to become physically disabled. On hidden forums, they discuss the operations they plan to get in order to manifest the disabilities they believe they already spiritually possess, and they complain bitterly that the rest of the world doesn’t understand their plight. Does anyone think they would choose to live like this, with such inaccessible and easily mocked desires? Don’t people understand that they were born with these wishes, that these desires are an intrinsic part of their identity?

Strike, who lost a leg in the war, takes this group’s obsession personally. He is incensed and offended by them. How dare they try to playact at an identity which became his so painfully, at such great cost? How dare they try to appropriate his own personal, private pain?

He has lunch with two people from the forum, and they rudely force him to pay while ordering the most expensive options on the menu. One of them is in a wheelchair. Strike at last loses his patience and pushes her out of the chair, only to find that she can walk just fine without it.

I don’t know what’s going on in J.K. Rowling’s mind or how she sees the world. But she writes about trans people the way Strike thinks about this particular subculture: as people appropriating a disability — and Rowling does write about womanhood, and its attendant dangers, as if it were a disability — that is rightfully hers. And that idea is becoming more and more central to every book she writes.

I don’t know what to do with J.K. Rowling anymore. I don’t know what anyone should do with her and her books.

I don’t believe that it’s sustainable or valuable or even really possible to ask every author you follow to enact some sort of ideologically pure, progressive worldview in every book they write. Most readers, I think, would agree with me on that . That’s part of why so many readers stuck with Rowling despite the politics embedded in the subtext of the Harry Potter novels, which have always been centrist at best , and through the increasing crankiness of the Cormoran Strike series.

I don’t think that you have to throw away the Harry Potter series to prove you’re a good person. I don’t know if it’s even possible to avoid those books: They’re so embedded into the grid of pop culture by this point that they feel like a utility, like an electric company. How do you avoid electricity every single day without becoming a hermit? How do you choose to throw out a series you grew up on, that you built beloved childhood memories around?

Every reader has to have their own dividing line between what they are willing to work with and what they are not. Every reader has to choose the way they will approach a text , and what they’re going to take out of it and what they’ll leave behind. And that’s a choice you have to make for yourself.

I’ve written positively about the Cormoran Strike books before, despite what happened to the trans women in book two and that bizarre trans-disability subplot in book three, and despite that ongoing thing where Rowling always treats fat people as inherently grotesque and probably evil. I thought the mysteries were fun, and I found it easy to ignore the politics. That was a choice I was used to making after growing up on Harry Potter , and because I am a thin cis non-disabled woman, it was easy for me to make that choice without thinking too hard about it.

But I can’t ignore the politics of Troubled Blood , and I don’t think that’s just because of all of the essays and tweets Rowling’s written over the past year. I think that’s because the politics are the only part of Troubled Blood she really cares about, and that shows in the writing.

So here is what I do know.

Troubled Blood is a book in which aesthetics have been rendered subordinate to politics. There is no “there” there besides Rowling’s political ideas. And those ideas are reactionary and hateful.

I don’t see anything left in this book worth sticking around for.

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J.K. Rowling’s New Book Just So Happens to Feature a Character Persecuted Over Transphobia

By Cheyenne Roundtree

Cheyenne Roundtree

Although J.K. Rowling ’s Harry Potter series was rooted in fantasy and make-believe, the author seems to be drawing inspiration from something a little more realistic for her latest book: her own life. 

Rowling’s new novel, The Ink Black Heart — part of her crime-thriller series Cormoran Strike  and penned under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith — involves a storyline that appears to mirror Rowling’s public downfall after she continually made statements that have been widely condemned as transphobic.

Rowling liked tweets that described trans women as “men in dresses,” mocked an opinion piece that used the term “people who menstruate,” backed activist Maya Forstater after she was fired for her transphobic tweets, and penned a lengthy statement in June 2020 about the reasons she was “worried about the new trans activism.”

In her new book, Rowling introduces readers to Edie Ledwell, a creator of a popular YouTube cartoon who sees internet trolls and her own fandom turn on her after the cartoon was criticized as being racist and ableist, as well as transphobic for a bit about a hermaphrodite worm.  

The creator is doxxed with photos of her home plastered on the internet, subjected to death and rape threats for having an opinion, and was ultimately found stabbed to death in a cemetery. The book takes a clear aim at “social justice warriors” and suggests that Ledwell was a victim of a masterfully plotted, politically fueled hate campaign against her. 

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“I had written the book before certain things happened to me online,” she continued. “I said to my husband, ‘I think everyone is going to see this as a response to what happened to me,’ but it genuinely wasn’t. The first draft of the book was finished at the point certain things happened.” 

So far, critics aren’t buying her explanation, with The Sunday Times and The Telegraph both pointing out the obvious connection and giving the novel bleak reviews.

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• Younger Readers

Christmas at Hogwarts – a heartwarming and joyfully illustrated gift book sure to delight readers of all ages, celebrating Harry Potter’s first Christmas in the wizarding world is to be published globally on October 15th 2024.

• Harry Potter
• The Christmas Pig
• The Ickabog

27 November 2023

Introducing The Christmas Pig Readalong!

Throughout the month of December, join us on our Instagram and Facebook channels for this year’s The Christmas Pig readalong. Find out more about how you can join in at home below!

13 October 2023

The Christmas Pig paperback now available!

The Christmas Pig by J.K. Rowling, featuring art from renowned illustrator Jim Field, is now available in paperback!

10 October 2023

The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac published today!

Which potion gives you the appearance of another person? Which of the Hogwarts towers is the tallest? What does the incantation ‘Oppugno’ do?

3 October 2023

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban : MinaLima Edition published today

The new edition of  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban  by J.K. Rowling includes over 190 brilliant illustrations and eight interactive paper-engineered elements.

1 September 2023

Celebrate Back to Hogwarts 2023

The Wizarding World invites fans to come together and celebrate a very special date in the Wizarding World calendar: Back to Hogwarts.

21 August 2023

An exclusive interview with Pham Quang Phuc, one of the illustrators of The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac

Ahead of the publication of The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac , publisher Bloomsbury have taken the opportunity to interview the illustrators who brought this companion title to life.

3 August 2023

Join Evanna Lynch for a magical event this Harry Potter Book Day! ⚡

Write about a magical place, learn how to draw Hogwarts and even cast a spell or two…

10 July 2023

Get ready for Starting Harry Potter 2023

Welcome back to another summer of storytelling, as we introduce J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world to the next generation!

3 March 2023

First Look at The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac

Lift the lid on everything you ever needed to know about the world of Harry Potter with the first official magical companion to J.K. Rowling’s series.

16 January 2023

It’s official – Harry Potter Book Day is happening on 12 th October 2023!

Bloomsbury’s global celebration of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter stories is back in 2023, with a few changes …

29 November 2022

One billion hours of listening landmark surpassed for Harry Potter audiobooks on Audible

Pottermore Publishing and Audible have announced an extraordinary milestone – over one billion hours of the Harry Potter stories have now been listened to on Audible globally, since the audiobooks were first made available there seven years ago!  Mind you, that’s just a number (even if it is a massive one)! What’s immeasurable is the love that fans have for these stories.  To help you visualise that figure, in one billion hours you could hypothetically:

17 February 2022

First Look at the Order of the Phoenix Illustrated Edition

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is set to be brought to life this October by award-winning illustrator Jim Kay and guest collaborator Neil Packer

8 December 2021

The Christmas Pig: An Online Event

Just in time for the holidays, Scholastic have released a very special virtual event for all to enjoy. J.K. Rowling is joined by a group of children from across the U.S. for an intimate conversation about the spirit of giving and the meaning of hope, all inspired by her latest book The Christmas Pig.

26 October 2021

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets: MinaLima Edition published today

The stunning new edition of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling has over 150 full colour illustrations and 8 paper craft interactive elements.

17 October 2021

The Christmas Pig Family Event

J.K. Rowling was joined by families to celebrate the launch of her new book The Christmas Pig .

12 October 2021

The Christmas Pig is here!

The wait is over! J.K. Rowling’s new children’s book The Christmas Pig is out today.

7 October 2021

A Magical Year published today

A Magical Year takes readers on an unforgettable journey through the seasons at Hogwarts and pairs the beautiful illustrations by Jim Kay with 366 quotations from the Harry Potter novels by J.K. Rowling.

27 September 2021

Two Illustrations Revealed From The Christmas Pig

We are delighted to reveal two illustrations from J.K. Rowling’s new book The Christmas Pig .

Cover for The Christmas Pig Revealed

The cover design for J.K. Rowling’s new book for children,  The Christmas Pig , has been revealed! Award-winning illustrator, character-designer and animation director Jim Field has produced a stunning illustration for the cover as well as nine black and white spreads and design features for the interior of the book.

The Christmas Pig is Announced!

J.K. Rowling’s new children’s book has been announced!  The Christmas Pig  will be simultaneously published on Tuesday 12th October 2021 in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and India by Hachette Children’s Group, in the US and Canada by Scholastic, in over twenty other languages by other publishers and as an audiobook in English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese and Italian by Audible, making it a truly global publication.

Meet The Ickabog!

J.K. Rowling’s fairy tale The Ickabog is published today as a hardback, e-book and audiobook.  The beautiful new gift hardback edition is brought to life with full-colour illustrations by the young winners of The Ickabog illustration competitions around the world, which will also be available to purchasers of the audiobook as a full-colour PDF.  The audiobook is performed by Stephen Fry and published by Audible.  The book is now available in English, Italian, German, Spanish. Brazilian Portuguese, Bulgarian, Dutch,  Simplified Chinese and Russian with more translations to follow.

28 September 2021

Quidditch Through The Ages Illustrated Edition published today

The Hogwarts Library book  Quidditch Through The Ages,  written by J.K. Rowling as esteemed fictional Quidditch expert Kennilworthy Whisp, has been reimagined by award-winning illustrator Emily Gravett. This colourful new edition is published today in Hardback and Deluxe editions by Bloomsbury in the UK and Scholastic in the US.

The Ickabog to be published this autumn

J.K. Rowling’s  The Ickabog,  an original fairy tale, is to be published as a hardback, ebook and audio book in the English language in November, with international editions to follow soon after.

J.K. Rowling Introduces The Ickabog

About The Ickabog

The Tales of Beedle The Bard Now Available in Audio

Stars from the Wizarding World including Jude Law, Warwick Davis, Noma Dumezweni, Jason Isaacs, Evanna Lynch, Sally Mortemore and Bonnie Wright have joined forces to record individual stories from J.K. Rowling’s Hogwarts Library book  The Tales of  Beedle the Bard:  the first time the book has been brought to life in audio, which is also supporting J.K. Rowling’s international children’s charity Lumos.

Goblet of Fire Illustrated Published Today

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire  has been brought to life by award-winning illustrator Jim Kay. This is the fourth book in the Harry Potter series to be illustrated by him and has been published today by  Bloomsbury  in the UK and  Scholastic  in the US.

Fantastic Beasts Illustrated Edition published today

Newt Scamander’s Hogwarts Library classic  Fantastic   Beasts   and   Where   to   Find   Them  has been brought to life with stunning illustrations by award winning artist Olivia Lomenech Gill. The colourful new edition is now published by  Bloomsbury  in the UK and  Scholastic  in the US

Harry Potter brought to life with Kindle in Motion

Pottermore revealed on 5th September that the 2015 illustrated print edition of  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone , featuring magnificent illustrations by award-winning artist Jim Kay, is now available as a Kindle in Motion eBook. Featuring never-before-seen animations, this is the first time that Jim Kay’s Harry Potter illustrations are available in a digital format.

Two new books for British Library’s exhibition

Harry Potter UK publisher, Bloomsbury and the British Library are creating two magic-filled books to accompany this autumn’s exhibition  Harry Potter: A History of Magic  at the library in London, in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the publication of  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.  Both books will publish in the UK on 20th October 2017- the day that the exhibition opens its doors to visitors in London.

New illustrations for Fantastic Beasts library book

Publishers Bloomsbury and Scholastic on Monday revealed two striking covers for the fully-illustrated edition of  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them , which hits bookshops later this year.

Six new fantastic beasts unleashed today

A new edition of  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them  is available today, with six extra beasts and a new foreword from the pen of Magizoologist Newt Scamander, bringing the original classic book up to date with the exciting developments in J.K. Rowling’s  Wizarding World.

Jim Kay’s Prisoner of Azkaban illustrations revealed

Bloomsbury and Scholastic today revealed award-winning illustrator Jim Kay’s cover of the third book in the Harry Potter series.

Eddie Redmayne narrates Fantastic Beasts library book

Eddie Redmayne – Newt Scamander himself – has narrated Pottermore’s new audiobook version of  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them , the Hogwarts textbook that inspired the film of the same name.

J.K. Rowling Announces New Children’s Book ‘The Ickabog’

By Mackenzie Nichols

Mackenzie Nichols

Staff Writer

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“ Harry Potter ” author J.K. Rowling announced that she is releasing a new children’s book, “The Ickabog.” It marks her first novel aimed toward younger readers that doesn’t take place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The first two chapters of the fairytale “The Ickabog” are available online for free, with daily installments being released between May 26 and July 10. The full book will be available in November.

Rowling started writing “The Ickabog” while she was still working on “Harry Potter” more than a decade ago, but kept it only for her own children, until now. According to Rowling’s website, the book was written for children aged 7 to 9 to read to themselves, and for parents to read aloud to their children.

“A few weeks ago at dinner, I tentatively mooted the idea of getting ‘The Ickabog’ down from the attic and publishing it for free, for children in lockdown. My now teenagers were touchingly enthusiastic, so downstairs came the very dusty box, and for the last few weeks I’ve been immersed in a fictional world I thought I’d never enter again,” Rowling said on her website.

Unlike her spinoff stories “Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them” or “Quidditch Through the Ages,” “The Ickabog” has no relation to the “Harry Potter” series. And while plot details about “The Ickabog” were scarce, the author said its thematic elements are timeless.

“‘The Ickabog’ is a story about truth and the abuse of power,” Rowling said. “To forestall one obvious question: the idea came to me well over a decade ago, so it isn’t intended to be read as a response to anything that’s happening in the world right now. The themes are timeless and could apply to any era or any country.”

Rowling also started an illustration contest for young kids to submit drawings for the book. Artists can enter their illustrations starting on May 29.

“Having decided to publish, I thought how wonderful it would be if children in lockdown, or otherwise needing distraction during the strange and difficult time we’re passing through, illustrated the story for me. There will be suggestions about the illustrations we might need for each chapter on ‘The Ickabog’ website, but nobody should feel constrained by these ideas. I want to see imaginations run wild! Creativity, inventiveness and effort are the most important things: we aren’t necessarily looking for the most technical skill!” said Rowling.

All of Rowling’s author royalties will go towards those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with details to be revealed later in the year.

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10 things we know so far about jk rowling's new harry potter books (& what it means for the cinematic universe).

Pottermore just announced that J.K Rowling will release four eBooks based in the Harry Potter universe starting on June 27—here's everything we know.

A post on Pottermore has announced that J.K Rowling is set to release some new eBooks based in the Harry Potter universe starting on June 27 of this year. The main seven-book Harry Potter series was completed back in 2007. However, JK Rowling has since released several other titles based in the same world, with this new ebook series being the latest.

RELATED:  Fantastic Beasts: What Is An Obscurial? 10 Facts To Help You Understand Them

Most recently the Hogwarts curriculum book, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them , has been adapted into its own spin-off series. While Fantastic Beasts offers us a glimpse in wizarding history, these upcoming books are set to explore a different side to Hogwarts. Here’s what we know so far.

There Will Be Four Fully-Illustrated Books In Total

Rowling’s Pottermore Publishing is releasing these upcoming ebooks, of which there will be four. The first two will be released on June 27 with the third and fourth books said to follow soon after.

RELATED: 10 Things From Harry Potter That Kids These Days Won't Understand

All four ebooks have been illustrated by London-based artist Rohan Daniel Eason and will be available in English, French, Italian, and German. These ebooks are likely to be similar to titles such as Quidditch through the Ages , and Rowling considers them to be nonfiction.

The Series Is Inspired By The 2017 Library Display

The eBook shorts will be called Harry Potter: A Journey Through… and they'll be adapted from the audiobook Harry Potter: A History of Magic . The audiobook and accompanying hardback book were in turn inspired by the British Library exhibition with the same name.

The exhibition contained rare books, manuscripts, and objects from the British Library’s collection. These were said to capture the traditions of magic that underpin the Harry Potter series. They included a 16 th century Ripley Scroll which explained how to create a Philosopher’s Stone.

The Books Are Themed By Hogwarts Lessons

Each of the short books is inspired by a different lesson from Hogwarts. The first will take you through Charms and Defence Against the Dark Arts and the second though Potions and Herbology. These two titles will make up the first part of the series. The second half will comprise of book three, A Journey Through Divination and Astronomy , and book four,  A Journey Through Care of Magical Creatures.

RELATED:  Harry Potter: 10 Times Ron Should Definitely Have Been Expelled (Or Imprisoned In Azkaban)

The titles as a whole cover the entire Hogwarts curriculum, with the exception of History of Magic itself. It looks set to offer some insight into the subjects studied by Harry and his cohorts.

They Contain Some Intriguing Extras

The books will explore the origins of magic through history and folklore. They will offer deeper insight into the areas which wizards and witches study. Alongside this, they will also feature notes, manuscript pages, and sketches, as previously seen in Harry Potter: A History of Magic.

This book was originally published to celebrate twenty years of Harry Potter and contains an in-depth look at the history of magic. These adapted ebooks look likely to contain similar information but in bitesize chunks.

There Should Be Some New Material

While diehard Harry Potter fans may wonder if there is a point to these books, they are likely to contain at least some new material. This is despite being based on previously published books.

RELATED: Harry Potter: 10 Scenes We Wished The Movies Had Shown

The Pottermore post mentions some new line drawings as well as some content from the audiobook, which readers may not have heard. Hopefully, this is also combined with a few new things to discover about the history of magic and the content of the Hogwarts curriculum.

They Aren’t Telling A New Story

There is no new story contained within these books and there will be no new characters. They are purely focused on magical history and giving more details about the Wizarding World itself, rather than its inhabitants.

Harry Potter as a series concluded with Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows , and that won't be changing any time soon. These new titles are simply extra content for fans to read in order to further their knowledge of the Wizarding World. Given what we know about the library exhibition, they are also likely to feature information about the real-world inspiration behind the magic in the books.

What Does This Mean For The Cinematic Universe?

So far, the bulk of the Harry Potter cinematic universe focuses on the core series of seven books. Split over eight movies, we see the story of Harry Potter's journey through Hogwarts played out on the big screen. The cinematic universe may well expand in the future, but these new titles aren't likely to be related.

While they may help add some details to any Hogwarts lessons we see on screen, their relevance to the wider cinematic universe is negligible at best. There are many journeys to explore within Harry's world, but they all take place outside of these new ebooks.

Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them was such a successful concept that it spawned its very own franchise. The reason it has been so successful is that the book itself explored aspects of the life of Newt Scamander, which later intermingles with other characters we see or hear about in Harry Potter . It also explores aspects of the Wizarding World that are only touched upon in the main series. By discovering Newt’s story, we are also finding out the story of Grindlewald and, later, the tale of the great wizarding war.

RELATED: Harry Potter: 10 Things That Need To Happen Before The Fantastic Beasts Series Ends

Fantastic Beasts allows us to really explore in-depth the reasons for the war and the rise of Voldemort. It’s through this understanding that we are also better able to understand the effects of this history on the characters we know from Harry Potter. It adds a new depth to the canon, one which we are unlikely to see replicated in these new books.

A History Of Magic

The new ebooks appear to be focusing on less specific aspects of wizarding history and more on general areas of magical studies. They will hopefully give us more insight into the Hogwarts lessons and into some of the aspects taught to students. However, they are very unlikely to affect anything in the cinematic universe.

Fans can expect these books to simply flesh out some information that we already know. The notes, drawings, and manuscript pages will no doubt be fascinating to see but won’t affect the overall canon of either the Harry Potter or Fantastic Beasts series.

The Cursed Child

If the Harry Potter cinematic universe is to expand beyond Fantastic Beasts , then these new books won’t be paving the way for it. A much more likely scenario is that The Cursed Child stage show is adapted for the big screen. This would bring to life the tale of Hogwarts years later when Harry’s son and his cohorts are attending. The story of Albus and his friends is a much more likely target for adaptation.

Nonetheless, the new ebooks will no doubt be enjoyed by Harry Potter fans young and old. Anyone with an interest in finding out more about the wizarding world and the inspiration behind the magic should look them up.

The new ebooks are set to launch on Amazon UK, Amazon US, Apple, and Kobo stores and pre-orders are priced at £1.99/$2.58.

NEXT: Harry Potter And The Cursed Child Movie Updates: Will It Happen?

• J. K. Rowling

J. K. Rowling books in order

Joanne Rowling, best known as J. K. Rowling, is a British novelist, philanthropist, screenwriter and film producer.

She is the creator of the Harry Potter Series which is the best-selling book series in history with over 500 million copies sold across the globe in 80 different languages.

J. K. Rowling became the first author in the world to become a billionaire, although she has since lost the billionaire status having donated much of her wealth to charity.

She currently lives in Edinburgh with her husband, Dr Neil Murray, and their two children; David (born 2003) and Mackenzie (born 2005).

Genres: Fantasy / SF, Mystery, Non-fiction, Thriller, Young Adult

United Kingdom

Pseudonym: Robert Galbraith

Website: https://www.jkrowling.com

Website: https://robert-galbraith.com/

• Career of Evil
• Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – Parts One and Two
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
• Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide
• Lethal White
• Of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies
• Of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists
• Quidditch Through the Ages
• The Casual Vacancy
• The Christmas pig
• The Cuckoo's Calling
• The Ickabog
• The Secrets of Dumbledore: The Complete Screenplay
• The Silkworm
• The Tales of Beedle the Bard
• Very Good Lives: The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination
• The Casual Vacancy (2012)
• The Ickabog (2020)
• The Christmas pig (2021)

Fantastic Beasts

• Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them (2016)
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018)
• The Secrets of Dumbledore: The Complete Screenplay (2022)

Hogwarts Library

• Quidditch Through the Ages (1999)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2001)
• The Tales of Beedle the Bard (2008)

Non-fiction

• Very Good Lives: The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination (2015)

Pottermore Presents

• Hogwarts: An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide (2016)
• Of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies (2016)
• Of Power, Politics and Pesky Poltergeists (2016)

Cormoran Strike Series

• The Cuckoo's Calling (2013)
• The Silkworm (2014)
• Career of Evil (2015)
• Lethal White (2018)

Harry Potter Series

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (1997)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007)
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – Parts One and Two (2016)

Detailed book overview

The town of Pagford is left in shock following the death of Barry Fairbrother who passes on while in his early forties.

It at first seems like a peaceful town, but under the cobbled market square and ancient abbey, lays a town at war.

The rich are at war with the poor, teenagers are up against their parents, wives against their husbands, and teachers against their pupils.

After Barry’s death, an empty seat is left on the parish council; one that soon triggers quite rightly the biggest war the town ever witnessed.

Who will triumph in an election characterized with passion and marred by duplicity and shocking discoveries?

Once upon a time there was a tiny kingdom called Cornucopia, as rich in happiness as it was in gold, and famous for its food. From the delicate cream cheeses of Kurdsburg to the Hopes-of-Heaven pastries of Chouxville, each was so delicious that people wept with joy as they ate them.

But even in this happy kingdom, a monster lurks. Legend tells of a fearsome creature living far to the north in the Marshlands... the Ickabog. Some say it breathes fire, spits poison, and roars through the mist as it carries off wayward sheep and children alike. Some say it's just a myth...

And when that myth takes on a life of its own, casting a shadow over the kingdom, two children — best friends Bert and Daisy — embark on a great adventure to untangle the truth and find out where the real monster lies, bringing hope and happiness to Cornucopia once more.

"One boy and his toy are about to change everything..."

Jack loves his childhood toy, Dur Pig. DP has always been there for him, through good and bad. Until one Christmas Eve something terrible happens -- DP is lost. But Christmas Eve is a night for miracles and lost causes, a night when all things can come to life... even toys. And Jack’s newest toy -- the Christmas Pig (DP’s replacement) – has a daring plan: Together they’ll embark on a magical journey to seek something lost, and to save the best friend Jack has ever known...

An accredited textbook at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry since publication, the masterpiece by Newt Scamander has thrilled wizarding families through the generations. Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them offers a thorough introductory insight into the mystical creatures of the wizarding world.

Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them first made an appearance as the title of one of Harry Potter’s school books within the novels.

Newt Scamander helped with the capturing of Gellert Grindelwald in New York, but the powerful Dark wizard manages to escape from custody; embarking on a mission of gaining unsuspecting followers who he wants to transform into blood wizards who will reign over all non-magical beings.

Determined to bring an end to Grindelwald’s plans, Albus Dumbledore seeks the help of his former Hogwarts student, Newt, who willingly agrees to assist; oblivious of the dangers that lurk ahead.

But love and loyalty will be tested; not sparing even family and the truest friends.

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald is the second of a five-film series screenplay written by J.K. Rowling.

Professor Albus Dumbledore knows the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald is moving to seize control of the wizarding world. Unable to stop him alone, he entrusts Magizoologist Newt Scamander to lead an intrepid team of wizards, witches, and one brave Muggle baker on a dangerous mission, where they encounter old and new beasts and clash with Grindelwald's growing legion of followers. But with the stakes so high, how long can Dumbledore remain on the sidelines?

NB: Co-authored with Steve Kloves.

Quidditch Through the Ages is not only a perpetual bestseller in the world of wizardry but also one of the most popular books in the Hogwarts School library.

This book contains everything you will need to know about the history, the rules, and circumventing of the rules in the noble sport of Quidditch.

Here, acclaimed Quidditch writer Kennilworthy Whisp expounds on the rich history of the game; from its early origins in the medieval Queerditch Marsh, all the way to the modern-day sport that is adored by many wizard and Muggle families across the globe.

As every fan of the Harry Potter stories knows, the shelves of the Hogwarts Library are home to all sorts of fascinating books. There are three in particular you might have heard mentioned by certain Hogwarts students, and that you can add to your reading list too, including Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

A set textbook at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry since publication, Newt Scamander's masterpiece has entertained wizarding families through the generations. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is an indispensable introduction to the magical beasts of the wizarding world.

Flipping through the pages of Newt's famous journal, you'll journey around the globe and discover the many and varied creatures that he made it his life's work to study and protect. Some of the beasts will be familiar to fans of the Wizarding World - the Hippogriff, the Niffler, the Hungarian Horntail... while others will surprise even the most ardent amateur Magizoologist.

For centuries, The Tales of Beedle the Bard have been the most preferred bedtime reading in wizarding households.

With magic and trickery at every corner, these vintage tales entertain and enlighten whilst still remaining as capturing to young wizards in the present day much like it was in the fifteenth century.

There book itself is composed of five tales: ‘The Tale of the Three Brothers‘; ‘The Fountain of Fair Fortune‘, ‘The Warlock’s Hairy Heart‘, ‘The Wizard and the Hopping Pot‘ and ‘Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump‘ .

Professor Albus Dumbledore further offers explanatory notes in the book; notes which prove that the book is made up of more than just simple moral tales.

In 2008, J.K. Rowling delivered a passionate and enlightening commencement speech at Harvard University.

Seven years later, it was published for the very first time in the form of a book.

How can we embrace failure?

Pottermore Presents is a collection of J.K. Rowling's writing from the Pottermore archives: short reads originally featured on pottermore.com. These eBooks, with writing curated by Pottermore, will take you beyond the Harry Potter stories as J.K. Rowling reveals her inspiration, intricate details of characters' lives and surprises from the wizarding world.

Hogwarts An Incomplete and Unreliable Guide takes you on a journey to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You'll venture into the Hogwarts grounds, become better acquainted with its more permanent residents, learn more about lessons and discover secrets of the castle...all at the turn of a page.

Pottermore Presents is a collection of J.K. Rowling's writing from the Pottermore archives: short reads originally featured on pottermore.com with some exclusive new additions. These eBooks, with writing curated by Pottermore, will take you beyond the Harry Potter stories as J.K. Rowling reveals her inspiration, intricate details of characters' lives and surprises from the wizarding world.

These stories of heroism, hardship and dangerous hobbies profile two of the Harry Potter stories' most courageous and iconic characters: Minerva McGonagall and Remus Lupin. J.K. Rowling also gives us a peek behind the closed curtains of Sybill Trelawney's life, and you'll encounter the reckless, magical-beast-loving Silvanus Kettleburn along the way.

These stories of power, politics and pesky poltergeists give you a glimpse into the darker side of the wizarding world, revealing the ruthless roots of Professor Umbridge, the lowdown on the Ministers for Magic and the history of the wizarding prison Azkaban. You will also delve deeper into Horace Slughorn's early years as Potions master at Hogwarts - and his acquaintance with one Tom Marvolo Riddle.

Having lost his leg after a land mine incident in Afghanistan, Cormoran Strike is having a hard time working as a private investigator. The creditors are calling and he is living in his office having broken up with his longtime girlfriend.

Then one day, John Bristow walks in with a story that has more questions than answers. His sister, the celebrity supermodel Lula Landry also fondly known as the Cuckoo, fell to her death a couple of months earlier in what police ruled out as suicide. John however believes otherwise; plunging Strike into a world of filthy rich beauties, rock-star boyfriends and desperate designers.

From the book, you’ll discover that there has never been a detective quite like Strike!

Written by J. K. Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith.

Owen Quine's wife enlists for the help of private eye Cormoran Strike after her husband goes missing. Owen, a novelist, occasionally goes off for a few days all by himself but this is time round something feels amiss.

As Strike buries himself with the investigation, he soon realizes that the disappearance is much more serious than it looks.

Quine just completed a manuscript about poisonous pen-portraits of almost everyone he knows; a discovery that could ruin the lives of many people.

His body is however discovered soon afterwards, and Strike won’t rest until he finds the perpetrator behind the heinous crime.

Career of Evil is the third installation of the acclaimed detective series featuring private investigator Cormoran Strike alongside his assistant Robin Ellacott.

Robin Ellacott is shaken by the discovery of a woman's severed leg inside a mysterious package sent to her. Cormoran Strike on the other hand is surprised but not necessarily alarmed.

Four figures from his past quickly come into mind and Strike believes that any one of them is more than capable of such brutality.

As the police narrow down to one of the suspects, Strike and Robin turn their sights on the remaining three men.

But far more unspeakable acts are yet to come.

Detective Strike is deeply troubled after Billy, a troubled young man, walks into his office requesting for help about a crime he believes he witnessed as a child. Although Billy isn’t mentally stable to remember vital parts of the story, there is a genuine and truthful aura to his story.

With the help of his former assistant Robin Ellacott, who now works as a partner in the agency, the two embark on a thrilling investigation that will take them through the backstreets of London and deep into the countryside.

All Harry Potter has ever known with the Dursleys is a life of misery. His aunt and uncle are terrible, as is their son who is spoiled and bullish. He lives a despondent life in a small closet at the foot of the stairs, and hasn't had a birthday celebration in a staggering eleven years.

Harry Potter had never heard of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry so when strange letters start arriving on his doorstep, his aunt and uncle doesn’t waste any time in seizing the letters.

Everything however changes on his eleventh birthday when a strange man storms in with some life-changing news that Harry Potter is a wizard; on course to study at Hogwarts.

With this, the first Harry Potter adventure begins.

Dobby, a house-elf, has been sending Harry Potter stern warnings all through the summer holidays that followed his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The creature warns that disaster will strike if Harry returns to Hogwarts.

When Harry returns to school to commence his second year, he begins hearing strange whispers echoing through the corridors.

It doesn’t take long before the strikes begin.

Dobby’s horrifying prophecy is coming to pass.

The feared fortress of Azkaban had for twelve long years been the home of a notorious prisoner named by the name Sirius Black. Cast into Azkaban for destroying thirteen people with a single curse, many believe that he is the heir to Voldemort—the Dark Lord.

But Sirius Black escapes from prison, and is going after Harry Potter.

Professor Trelawney, during his first Divination class, sees an omen of death in Harry’s tea leaves.

Even more unsettling is the fact that the Dementors patrol the school ground looking for new victims.

It turns out that Harry Potter isn't safe, even within the confines of his magical school.

With the Triwizard Tournament about to take place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the most apparent rule is that only wizards above the age of seventeen are allowed to participate.

So for Harry Potter, it’s something that he can only fantasize about winning.

But when the Goblet of Fire makes its selection on Hallowe’en, his name is surprisingly selected out of the magical cup.

Facing dangerous tasks, dragons and Dark wizards, Harry will have to count on his friends for help in order to stay alive.

Dumbledore’s wand hand ends up blackened and shrunken one summer night when he arrives at Privet Drive to pick Harry Potter, and he refuses to reveal why.

When rumors start running riot throughout the wizarding world, it becomes a general feeling that Hogwarts itself could very well be under threat.

Harry Potter on the other hand believes that Malfoy bears the Dark Mark. Could a Death Eater surely be amongst them?

He will not only need powerful magic but also true friends as he embarks on the dangerous mission of investigating Voldemort’s darkest secrets.

Harry Potter is on his way out of Privet Drive for the last time.

As he makes his way into the sidecar of Hagrid’s motorbike and they shoot to the skies, he knows all too well that Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters will be closely monitoring them.

With the protective charm—one that has shielded him from danger now broken—Harry knows that he can’t keep hiding from the Dark Lord who is relentlessly breathing fear into everything dearest to him.

As such, Harry must trace the remaining Horcruxes and destroy them if he is to end Voldemort’s reign of terror.

He will have to face his sworn enemy in an epic final battle.

Harry Potter’s life has never been easy, and things aren’t any easier nineteen years after the Battle of Hogwarts.

Nowadays, Harry is not only a husband and a father of three school-going children but also an overburdened employee at the Ministry of Magic.

As he struggles with a personal history that just won’t stay in the past, Albus—his youngest son—has to cope with the burden of the family legacy he never solicited for.

When the past unites with the present, both father and son will discover that evil sometimes comes from unexpected places.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child —the work of J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne—is the eighth installment in the Harry Potter series.

The play, which is scripted Jack and directed by John, is the first ever Harry Potter story to be presented on stage.

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Stephen King praises new JK Rowling book despite past row over trans views

King praised ‘the running grave’, the latest novel in rowling’s cormoran strike detective series, article bookmarked.

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Stephen King fans were left somewhat surprised on Thursday (26 October) after the horror author commended JK Rowling on her new book.

King took to Twitter / X to praise The Running Grave, the latest novel in Rowling’s Cormoran Strike detective series , which she writes under her crime fiction pseudonym Robert Galbraith.

“This is JK Rowling at her best, recalling the sheer readability of the Harry Potter books, but much darker,” King wrote. “This got me through a difficult time.”

In the replies, fans expressed their confusion over the review, as King has previously disagreed with Rowling over her views on transgender people.

The Harry Potter author, 58, is known for her outspoken and repeated criticisms of trans rights . Last week, she suggested that she would “happily” spend two years in prison for misgendering a transgender person.

In June 2020, she deleted a tweet expressing her love of King, after he confirmed that he supports trans women.

When asked about the incident in an interview with Daily Beast in 2021, King said: “Jo cancelled me. She sorta blocked me and all that. Here’s the thing: She is welcome to her opinion. That’s the way that the world works.

“If she thinks that trans women are dangerous, or that trans women are somehow not women, or whatever problem she has with it – the idea that someone ‘masquerading’ as a woman is going to assault a ‘real’ woman in the toilet – if she believes all those things, she has a right to her opinion.”

He added: “And then someone tweeted at me, ‘Do you think trans women are women?’ and I said, ‘Yes, I do.’ And that’s what she got angry about – my opinion. It’s like the old saying, ‘I don’t agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.’ So, nobody has ‘cancelled’ JK Rowling. She’s doing fine. I just felt that her belief was, in my opinion, wrong. We have differing opinions, but that’s life.”

He added that people should keep in mind that Rowling’s opinion on trans women “is an outlier in her entire political spectrum”, explaining: “She was very much anti-Brexit and very much anti-Trump. She’s on the side of the angels in most respects, but she does have this one thing that she’s very vehement about. No doubt.”

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J.K. Rowling

J.k. rowling book releases coming in 2024 & beyond.

As of April 4th, 2024 , J.K. Rowling has 4 new or upcoming book releases .

Check out J.K. Rowling’s next book below as it could be your favorite yet. Be sure to bookmark this page to be the first to discover new books by J.K. Rowling!

J.K. Rowling New Books In Order

The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac

Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (Harry Potter # 3)

Harry Potter Paperback Boxed Set (#1-7)

The Secrets Of Dumbledore (Fantastic Beasts #3)

Looking for more new books? Check out the most anticipated 2024 Book releases – and in case you missed them, look back at the best books from 2023 .

J.K. Rowling Triva

One interesting fact about J.K. Rowling is that she was the first person to become a billionaire from writing books, according to Forbes. This was largely due to the massive success of the Harry Potter series, which has sold over 500 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 80 languages. However, Rowling later lost her billionaire status due to charitable giving and taxes.

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Piñata

The Messy Lives of Book People

After Sappho

The Best Laid Plans (The Best Men #1)

A Midnight Kiss On Ever After Street

Playing The Witch Card

Mediterranea: A Vibrant Culinary Journey Through Southern Europe, North Africa, and the Eastern Mediterranean

The Book That Wouldn’t Burn (The Book That Wouldn’t Burn #1)

Tiny Blessings

Three Fires

Desperate Acts (Pike, Wisconsin #4)

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Stephen King praises new JK Rowling book despite past row over trans views

• Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

Stephen King fans were left somewhat surprised on Thursday (26 October) after the horror author commended JK Rowling on her new book.

King took to Twitter / X to praise The Running Grave, the latest novel in Rowling’s Cormoran Strike detective series , which she writes under her crime fiction pseudonym Robert Galbraith.

“This is JK Rowling at her best, recalling the sheer readability of the Harry Potter books, but much darker,” King wrote. “This got me through a difficult time.”

In the replies, fans expressed their confusion over the review, as King has previously disagreed with Rowling over her views on transgender people.

The Harry Potter author, 58, is known for her outspoken and repeated criticisms of trans rights . Last week, she suggested that she would “happily” spend two years in prison for misgendering a transgender person.

In June 2020, she deleted a tweet expressing her love of King, after he confirmed that he supports trans women.

When asked about the incident in an interview with Daily Beast in 2021, King said: “Jo cancelled me. She sorta blocked me and all that. Here’s the thing: She is welcome to her opinion. That’s the way that the world works.

“If she thinks that trans women are dangerous, or that trans women are somehow not women, or whatever problem she has with it – the idea that someone ‘masquerading’ as a woman is going to assault a ‘real’ woman in the toilet – if she believes all those things, she has a right to her opinion.”

He added: “And then someone tweeted at me, ‘Do you think trans women are women?’ and I said, ‘Yes, I do.’ And that’s what she got angry about – my opinion. It’s like the old saying, ‘I don’t agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.’ So, nobody has ‘cancelled’ JK Rowling. She’s doing fine. I just felt that her belief was, in my opinion, wrong. We have differing opinions, but that’s life.”

He added that people should keep in mind that Rowling’s opinion on trans women “is an outlier in her entire political spectrum”, explaining: “She was very much anti-Brexit and very much anti-Trump. She’s on the side of the angels in most respects, but she does have this one thing that she’s very vehement about. No doubt.”

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Explained: Scotland's new hate crime law and JK Rowling's issue with it

Scotland's new hate crime laws have stirred controversy - but why? Sky News looks at what the new rules mean and what supporters and opponents have to say - including one of the law's most outspoken critics, Harry Potter author JK Rowling.

Wednesday 3 April 2024 10:48, UK

New hate crime laws have come into force in Scotland. 

Opinion is divided on whether the laws will make the country more tolerant - or stifle free speech.

What is included under the new laws, why are they so controversial - and what has the author of Harry Potter got to do with it?

What are Scotland's new hate crime laws?

The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act came into force on Monday 1 April .

It makes it illegal to "stir up hatred" based on prejudice towards the following characteristics:

• age • disability • religion • sexual orientation • transgender identity • variations in sex characteristics.

Sometimes called intersex, variations in sex characteristics or VSC is an umbrella term used to describe physical sex development that is different to what is generally expected of males or females that is present from birth.

The rules will apply in people's private homes and online.

They expand on existing laws relating to stirring up racial hatred that have been in place across the UK since 1986.

The rules were developed following Lord Bracadale's independent review of hate crime legislation which concluded that new specific offences relating to stirring up hatred were needed.

The legislation was passed by a majority of MSPs in the Scottish parliament in 2021.

The offence carries a maximum penalty of a seven-year prison sentence.

What about tackling misogyny?

Sex has been omitted from the act as a standalone bill designed to tackle misogyny is expected to be laid before the Scottish parliament at a later date.

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Why is the law controversial?

Critics of the law say it is draconian and could stifle free speech.

Women's groups, which have been vocal in the transgender debate in Scotland, fear social media posts could be used to target opponents.

Director of campaign group For Women Scotland Susan Smith branded the act a "mess" , telling Sky News "there will be a lot of malicious reports".

"Much of this is very vague as stirring up offences seems to be based on someone's perception that someone is being hateful towards them, and they can make a complaint and the police are saying they will investigate everything.

"We know that there are people out there who have lists of people they are looking to target. They are seeing this as an opportunity to settle scores and make political points."

Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said the fact that women are not given protection by the act was an "astonishing exclusion".

He told BBC Radio 4: "The big flaw in this bill is it does not protect women against hate."

Mr Tatchell also claimed the new legislation could "open the door to vexatious and malicious complainants who will go after people" - an issue the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents (ASPS) has also warned of.

In a letter to Holyrood's Justice Committee, it said the law could be "weaponised" by an "activist fringe" across the political spectrum.

What does JK Rowling have to do with it?

JK Rowling has spoken out against the new hate crime laws and was also a vocal critic of Scotland's gender recognition bill , which aimed to make it easier for people to legally change their gender but was blocked by Westminster .

The Harry Potter author, who has lived in Scotland since 1993, first entered the debate on trans issues in 2019, when she supported a researcher who was sacked after tweeting that transgender people cannot change their biological sex.

In 2020, she criticised the term "people who menstruate" and later that year wrote an open letter about her reasons for speaking out on issues of sex and gender.

She argued trans activism was impacting spaces such as women's prisons and rape and domestic abuse services "because it's pushing to erode the legal definition of sex and replace it with gender".

In her essay, she said she wanted trans women to be safe, but not at the expense of cis women and girls. She argued allowing trans women to access women's spaces - without proving they had medically transitioned with the use of hormones or surgery - was equivalent to welcoming men, and put women at risk.

Rowling denies being transphobic but has been widely criticised for her views, including by fans and Harry Potter stars.

As Scotland's new laws came into force, Rowling made a series of comments on X lashing out against transgender women, among them offenders who had been placed in women's prisons.

The post was in reaction to comments from Siobhan Brown MSP, a Holyrood minister, who said people "could be investigated" for misgendering someone online.

Rowling said: "I'm currently out of the country, but if what I've written here qualifies as an offence under the terms of the new act, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment."

She said the new legislation "is wide open to abuse by activists who wish to silence those of us speaking out about the dangers of eliminating women's and girls' single-sex spaces".

The 58-year-old argued: "It is impossible to accurately describe or tackle the reality of violence and sexual violence committed against women and girls, or address the current assault on women's and girls' rights, unless we are allowed to call a man a man."

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What do its supporters say?

People who support the bill say it will make Scotland more tolerant.

Dr Rebecca Crowther, chief executive of the Equality Network, told Sky News the law was not designed to catch people online saying disagreeable things.

"Freedom of expression is really important and there's a defence for that within the legislation," Dr Crowther said.

"What it does legislate against is when that freedom of expression strays into something that is abusive, that could cause fear and alarm, and that also inctes hatred - or incites people to act on that hatred."

First Minister Humza Yousaf told Sky News he has confidence in police investigating matters appropriately and protecting freedom of expression.

He has repeatedly said there is "disinformation" being spread about the bill and what it entails, claiming there is a "triple lock" of protection for speech.

The three safeguarding measures in the "lock" are an explicit clause on free speech, a defence for the accused's behaviour being "reasonable" and the fact that the act is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

What have other political parties said about the law?

The Scottish Conservatives have called for the act to be scrapped and the resources diverted towards frontline policing instead.

Appearing to defend JK Rowling, Rishi Sunak promised his party will "always protect" free speech .

"People should not be criminalised for stating simple facts on biology," he said in a statement.

"We believe in free speech in this country, and Conservatives will always protect it."

Labour's shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden told Sky News that JK Rowling should not be arrested and is entitled to her view.

He added it was a pretty big omission not include misogyny in the legislation, and that Labour was "not planning to legislate for new crimes in this area" if it came to power.

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J.K. Rowling Challenges Police to Arrest Her Following New Scottish Hate Crime Law

The 'Harry Potter' author posted a series of anti-transgender social media posts in response to the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act

Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty

J.K. Rowling  has challenged Scottish police to arrest her following a set of social media posts in which she describes transgender women as men. On Monday, the controversial Scottish Harry Potter  author, 58, posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, in response to the  Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act , which went into effect on April 1, 2024.

In a series of social media posts, Rowling — who has  previously been criticized  for anti-transgender comments, as well as her  support for others  with anti-transgender views — listed the names and photos of a number of trans women, including both activists and convicted criminals, and described them as men.

Stuart C. Wilson/Getty 

“I'm currently out of the country, but if what I've written here qualifies as an offence under the terms of the new act, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment,” Rowling wrote. The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act aims “to make provision about the aggravation of offences by prejudice," including "racially aggravated harassment" and "offences relating to stirring up hatred against a group of persons."

The act was originally passed by Scottish Parliament in 2021 to address hate crime in the country, and has garnered concerns about freedom of speech, according to The Guardian . Rowling stated that “freedom of speech and belief are at an end” in Scotland in her social media post. According to the BBC , the law doesn’t protect women as a group from hate, and misogyny is expected to be addressed in a separate law. The maximum penalty under the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act is a seven-year jail sentence.

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Rowling has routinely come under fire for her anti-trans comments since 2020, which many LBGTQ+ organizations, activists and even Harry Potter fan sites have roundly condemned.

Numerous celebrities have also spoken out against the author's comments, including Cynthia Nixon and Pete Davidson . Others, including Harry Potter actors Robbie Coltrane and Ralph Fiennes , have disagreed with the criticism directed toward Rowling.

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J.K. Rowling will not be arrested for comments about transgender women, police say

J .K. Rowling shared a social media thread on Monday, the day a new Scottish hate-crime law took effect, that misgendered several transgender women and appeared to imply trans women have a penchant for sexual predation. On Tuesday, Scottish police announced they would not be investigating the “Harry Potter” author’s remarks as a crime, as some of Rowling’s critics had called for.

“We have received complaints in relation to the social media post,” a spokesperson for Police Scotland said in a statement. “The comments are not assessed to be criminal and no further action will be taken.”

Scotland’s new Hate Crime and Public Order Act criminalizes “stirring up hatred” against people based on their race, religion, disability, sexuality or gender identity.

“In passing the Scottish Hate Crime Act, Scottish lawmakers seem to have placed higher value on the feelings of men performing their idea of femaleness, however misogynistically or opportunistically, than on the rights and freedoms of actual women and girls,” Rowling wrote , in part. “The new legislation is wide open to abuse by activists who wish to silence those of us speaking out about the dangers of eliminating women’s and girls’ single-sex spaces, the nonsense made of crime data if violent and sexual assaults committed by men are recorded as female crimes, the grotesque unfairness of allowing males to compete in female sports, the injustice of women’s jobs, honours and opportunities being taken by trans-identified men, and the reality and immutability of biological sex.”

Rowling also appeared to test the new measure by sharing images of 10 transgender women — pairing a convicted rapist and sexual offender alongside an activist and a broadcaster — and referring to them all as men.

“I’m currently out of the country, but if what I’ve written here qualifies as an offense under the terms of the new act, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment,” she wrote. 

Rowling doubled down on her criticisms of the law on Tuesday and celebrated the announcement by police that she would not be prosecuted. 

“I hope every woman in Scotland who wishes to speak up for the reality and importance of biological sex will be reassured by this announcement, and I trust that all women — irrespective of profile or financial means — will be treated equally under the law,” she wrote on X .

Rowling has faced criticism for years for her comments about transgender people, including questioning whether more young people have come out as transgender in recent years as the result of a “ contagion ” fueled by social media. She has also contended that trans girls and women pose a sexual violence threat to cisgender women in restrooms, changing rooms and prisons, and reiterated those claims on Monday.

“It is impossible to accurately describe or tackle the reality of violence and sexual violence committed against women and girls, or address the current assault on women’s and girls’ rights, unless we are allowed to call a man a man,” Rowling wrote Monday. “Freedom of speech and belief are at an end in Scotland if the accurate description of biological sex is deemed criminal.”

Britain’s first trans broadcaster, India Willoughby — one of the 10 trans women Rowling shared an image of — slammed the author Tuesday in posts of her own on X . Before  the police said that Rowling would not be arrested, Willoughby called on the police to “start making prosecutions and protecting the trans community.” 

“If somebody put your name on a list of sex offenders, along with other innocent people, and then published that list to 14 million people would you be annoyed?” she said in a video, referring to Rowling, who has 14 million followers on X. “Would you maybe go to the police and ask them to do something? Would you be upset? Would you consider it hateful? Because that’s what happened yesterday.”

Speaking with the broadcaster Sky News on Tuesday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declined to comment on Rowling’s remarks specifically but characterized the new Scottish law as a violation of free speech.

“We should not be criminalizing people saying common sense things about biological sex,” Sunak said. “Clearly that isn’t right.”

Sunak himself has been criticized for his remarks on transgender Britons. In February, he mocked the Labour Party’s position on the definition of a woman within minutes of British lawmakers hearing that the mother of a murdered trans teenager was in Parliament at the time.

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J.K. Rowling calls for own arrest for anti-trans rhetoric amid Scotland's new hate crime law

J.K. Rowling is calling for her own arrest in protest of Scotland's new hate crime law as she continues to share anti-trans rhetoric on social media.

The " Harry Potter " author made the comments on Monday, the day that the crime of "stirring up hatred" relating to age, disability, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity came into effect.

Rowling tested the law by listing 10 trans women, including a convicted rapist, sex abusers and high-profile activists on X, saying they were men.

"In passing the Scottish Hate Crime Act, Scottish lawmakers seem to have placed higher value on the feelings of men performing their idea of femaleness, however misogynistically or opportunistically, than on the rights and freedoms of actual women and girls," she wrote in a lengthy thread .

Rowling continued: "For several years now, Scottish women have been pressured by their government and members of the police force to deny the evidence of their eyes and ears, repudiate biological facts and embrace a neo-religious concept of gender that is unprovable and untestable. The re-definition of 'woman' to include every man who declares himself one has already had serious consequences for women's and girls’ rights and safety in Scotland, with the strongest impact felt, as ever, by the most vulnerable, including female prisoners and rape survivors."

"I'm currently out of the country, but if what I've written here qualifies as an (offense) under the terms of the new act, I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment," she concluded.

Scotland's First Minister Humza Yousaf said the bill was about "protecting people from a rising tide of hatred."

"Unless your behavior is threatening or abusive and intends to stir up hatred, then you have nothing to worry about in terms of the new (offenses) being created," he said in a statement.

Scottish police reportedly not taking action following J.K. Rowling's hate crime law comments

Police Scotland, the U.K. country's national police agency, reportedly told BBC News Tuesday that Rowling's comments on the hate crime law will not be "treated as criminal." The agency added that while complaints on the author's social media posts had been made to police, no action would be taken.

USA TODAY has reached out to Police Scotland for comment.

In a follow-up X post Tuesday, Rowling applauded the news of Police Scotland's assessment.

"I hope every woman in Scotland who wishes to speak up for the reality and importance of biological sex will be reassured by this announcement," Rowling wrote. "And I trust that all women - irrespective of profile or financial means - will be treated equally under the law."

Who is protected under the Scottish Hate Crime Act?

Women are not protected as a group, but the Scottish National Party-led government in Edinburgh is looking at separate reforms to specifically target misogyny.

Scotland has been at the forefront of extending rights to the transgender community but a previous attempt to make it easier to change a legal gender was blocked by the British government over concerns it would impinge existing equality legislation.

The new hate crime law has also faced criticism over its impact on freedom of speech and concerns that it could be used to silence some views, including from those who advocate for women-only spaces.

Scottish ministers have previously said misgendering people would not be an offense under the new law. However, Minister for Victims and Community Safety Siobhan Brown told BBC radio on Monday that it would be a matter for police to decide.

Britain's prime minister supports J.K. Rowling amid Scotland's new legislation

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Britain had a proud tradition of free speech and that the new law had given the police the wrong priorities.

"We should not be criminalizing people saying common sense things about biological sex," he told reporters. "Clearly that isn't right."

India Willoughby condemns J.K. Rowling for being 'consumed by a hatred of trans people'

India Willoughby, Britain's first transgender broadcaster and one of those who was listed by Rowling, questioned why anyone should "publicly denigrate and mock" trans people.

"What a sad pathetic sight. The best-known author in the world sitting up all night to write a mega-long troll post about me, because she's consumed by a hatred of trans people. Completely deranged," Willoughby said on X .

Last month, the broadcaster said she reported the author to U.K. law enforcement for misgendering her on social media.

Willoughby, a co-host of the popular ITV network talk show "Loose Women," revealed in  an interview with Byline TV  released March 7 that she "reported J.K. Rowling to the police for what she said." Willoughby added that she'd contacted Northumbria Police "yesterday" regarding the matter.

The "Loose Women" co-host's name was brought up on March 5, after another social media user shared a GIF of Willoughby dancing in a comment thread under one of Rowling's posts on X, formerly Twitter. The British author  replied , "India didn't become a woman. India is cosplaying a misogynistic male fantasy of what a woman is."

In the interview, Willoughby said, "For J.K. Rowling to deliberately misgender me knowing who I am is grossly offensive. It is a hate crime.

"I don't know if (the police report is) going to be treated as a hate crime, malicious communications, but it's a cut-and-dried offense, as far as I'm concerned," she said.

A spokesperson for Northumbria Police declined to confirm the identities of the complainant and other involved parties but confirmed they had received "a complaint about a post on social media."

"We are currently awaiting to speak to the complainant further," the statement read.

J.K. Rowling on her controversial trans views: 'Time will tell whether I’ve got this wrong'

J.K. Rowling's comments about transgender people date back to 2019

Rowling  first came under fire in 2019  for posting a message of support for Maya Forstater, a researcher who lost her job at a think tank for stating that people cannot change their biological sex, on X.

In response, GLAAD shared a statement condemning Rowling for aligning "with an anti-science ideology that denies the basic humanity of people who are transgender. Trans men, trans women, and non-binary people are not a threat, and to imply otherwise puts trans people at risk."

Months later, Rowling made a similar stir in criticizing a headline on the website  devex.com . The op-ed piece included the phrase "people who menstruate" to be more inclusive. "I'm sure there used to be a word for those people," Rowling posted on X. "Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?"

J.K. Rowling's 'dehumanizing' misgendering post reported to UK police, TV personality says

After facing backlash, Rowling stood her ground, claiming her life "has been shaped by being female" and defended the exclusionary comments while arguing she still supports transgender people.

"I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives," she wrote in a  series of X posts . "It isn't hate to speak the truth ... I respect every trans person’s right to live any way that feels authentic and comfortable to them. I'd march with you if you were discriminated against on the basis of being trans. At the same time, my life has been shaped by being female. I do not believe it’s hateful to say so."

Last year, Rowling  addressed the criticism  she's received on the podcast  "The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling ."

"I absolutely knew that if I spoke out, many people who would love my books would be deeply unhappy with me," Rowling said. "Time will tell whether I've got this wrong. I can only say that I’ve thought about it deeply and hard and long and I’ve listened, I promise, to the other side." 

Contributing: Edward Segarra, Naledi Ushe, KiMi Robinson, Barbara VanDenburgh and Hannah Yasharoff, USA TODAY; Paul Sandle, Reuters

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• Younger Readers

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

J.k. rowling’s wizarding world.

The first  Harry Potter  book,  Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone , was published in 1997 to immediate popular and critical acclaim. Six further best-selling books and eight blockbuster films followed. The books have been translated into 85 languages, won multiple awards, and sold more than 600 million copies worldwide, becoming the best-selling book series in history.

In 2016, a new era of the Wizarding World was unveiled with the launch of  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them , an original screenplay by J.K. Rowling and the first in a major film series for Warner Bros.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them

Quidditch Through the Ages

The Tales of Beedle the Bard

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – Parts One and Two

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore

Robert galbraith.

Robert Galbraith is a pseudonym of J.K. Rowling. After Harry Potter, the author chose crime fiction for her next books, a genre she has always loved as a reader. She wanted to write a contemporary whodunit, with a credible back story.

Robert Galbraith’s Cormoran Strike series is classic contemporary crime fiction from a master story-teller, rich in plot, characterisation and detail. Galbraith’s debut into crime fiction garnered acclaim amongst critics and crime fans alike. The seven novels in the series so far, The Cuckoo’s Calling (2013), The Silkworm (2014), Career of Evil ( 2015), Lethal White (2018), Troubled Blood (2020), The Ink Black Heart (2022) and The Running Grave (2023) all topped the national and international bestseller lists. The series has also been adapted for television by the BBC and HBO.

J.K. Rowling’s original intention for writing as Robert Galbraith was for the books to be judged on their own merit, and to establish Galbraith as a well-regarded name in crime in its own right.

Now Robert Galbraith’s true identity is widely known, J.K. Rowling continues to write the crime series under the Galbraith pseudonym to keep the distinction from her other writing and so people will know what to expect from a Cormoran Strike novel.

The Robert Galbraith website can be found here -  robert-galbraith.com

The Cuckoo’s Calling

The Silkworm

Career of Evil

Lethal White

Troubled Blood

The Ink Black Heart

The Running Grave

Other works.

The Casual Vacancy

Very Good Lives

The Ickabog

The Christmas Pig

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25 classic film mockumentaries gallery: from ‘spinal tap’, ‘best in show’, ‘district 9’ to ‘punishment park’ & more, j.k. rowling mocks trans women to defy scotland’s new hate crime law: “i look forward to being arrested”.

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Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling posted her idea of an April Fool’s Day gag today, describing various criminals, a model, a TV presenter and others – all of whom identify as trans women – as women before writing, “Only kidding. Obviously, the people mentioned in the above tweets aren’t women at all, but men, every last one of them.”

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Rowling, whose opposition to recognizing the preferred pronouns of transgender people has been repeatedly denounced as transphobic, challenged the new Hate Crime law today, writing that if her April Fool’s posts qualify as an offense under the new act, “I look forward to being arrested when I return to the birthplace of the Scottish Enlightenment.” (A resident of Edinburgh, Rowling said she is currently out of the country.)

Wrote Rowling, “The new legislation is wide open to abuse by activists who wish to silence those of us speaking out about the dangers of eliminating women’s and girls’ single-sex spaces, the nonsense made of crime data if violent and sexual assaults committed by men are recorded as female crimes, the grotesque unfairness of allowing males to compete in female sports, the injustice of women’s jobs, honours and opportunities being taken by trans-identified men, and the reality and immutability of biological sex.”

Among those Rowling jokingly listed as women were convicted sex criminals Isla Bryson and Katie Dolatowski (in Rowling’s prank words, a “Lovely Scottish lass” and a “Fragile flower”); “Scottish woman and butcher” Amy George; athlete Giulia Valentino; Mridul Wadhwa, head of a Scottish rape crisis centre; Munroe Bergdorf, public campaigner for a children’s charity; Katie Neeves, UN Women UK delegate; and TV presenter India Willoughby.

🎉🌼🌸April Fools! 🌸🌼🎉 Only kidding. Obviously, the people mentioned in the above tweets aren't women at all, but men, every last one of them. In passing the Scottish Hate Crime Act, Scottish lawmakers seem to have placed higher value on the feelings of men performing their… — J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) April 1, 2024

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JK Rowling will not be arrested under new Scottish hate law, say police

‘No further action’ over posts by author and gender-critical activist despite complaints

Comments by JK Rowling challenging police to arrest her for online misgendering do not amount to a crime, Police Scotland said.

As the Scottish government’s contentious hate crime law came into force on Monday, the author and gender-critical activist posted a thread on X saying the legislation was “wide open to abuse” after listing sex offenders who had described themselves as transgender alongside well-known trans women activists, describing them as “men, every last one of them”.

She stated that “freedom of speech and belief are at an end in Scotland if the accurate description of biological sex is deemed criminal”.

On Tuesday afternoon, Police Scotland confirmed they had received complaints about the social media post but added: “The comments are not assessed to be criminal and no further action will be taken.”

The act brings together existing laws. Under the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021, it is a crime to make derogatory comments based on age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, transgender identity or being intersex.

As concerns continue about officers being overwhelmed, reports suggest Police Scotland has received at least 3,000 complaints under the new act in the two days since it came into force.

Responding to the decision, Rowling said: “I hope every woman in Scotland who wishes to speak up for the reality and importance of biological sex will be reassured by this announcement, and I trust that all women – irrespective of profile or financial means – will be treated equally under the law.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the force also confirmed that racist graffiti found on Monday near Humza Yousaf’s family home in Broughty Ferry had been recorded under the new act.

The first minister said the graffiti, which contained a racial slur against him, was a reminder of why Scotland must take a “zero-tolerance” approach to hatred. On X, he said: “I do my best to shield my children from the racism and Islamophobia I face on a regular basis. That becomes increasingly difficult when racist graffiti targeting me appears near our family home.”

The Scottish National party leader robustly defended the legislation, which has prompted a barrage of criticism about how it will be policed and how it could affect freedom of speech, as well as fears that it could be used maliciously against certain groups for expressing their opinions, in particular gender-critical feminists.

Yousaf said it “absolutely protects people in their freedom of expression” while guarding “people from a rising tide of hatred that we’ve seen far too often in our society”.

The prime minister, Rishi Sunak, asked about Rowling’s comment on Tuesday morning, said that while he would not comment on a police matter, “nobody should be criminalised for saying commonsense things about biological sex”.

Robbie de Santos, the director of campaigns and human rights at Stonewall, said: “The prime minister and high-profile commentators are simply incorrect when they suggest that misgendering or ‘stating facts on biology’ would be criminalised.

“This is no more true than stating that the existing law has criminalised the criticism of religion. This kind of misrepresentation about the act and its purpose only serves to trivialise the very real violence committed against us in the name of hate.”

He called on political leaders to address the trend of “rising hate and escalating violence” facing LGBTQ+ people. “We already have longstanding laws preventing the incitement of hatred on the basis of race and religion, and the new Hate Crime Act creates parity in the law in Scotland by expanding these protections to cover sexual orientation, transgender identity, age and disability,” he said.

• Scottish politics
• Scottish National party (SNP)
• Freedom of speech

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