One "Harry" Year

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

This year will be the return of many things like the Avengers, Pokemon, and yes, even “Harry Potter”. With “Harry Potter”, we’ll be receiving a play (“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child”), a book of said play, a movie (“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”), and a concert series.

Yes that’s right, a concert series. Throughout the summer of 2016, the United States will host a concert series with music from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”. It will begin on June 23^rd at the Mann Center in Philadelphia and will have the movie played in accompaniment with the music.  

Tickets for the Mann Center venue are already on sale and run from $20-55.

However, for those of you who don’t live near the city of brotherly love, this concert series tour will be roaming throughout the nation. It will also be stopping in San Diego, Nashville, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids, and Silicon Valley areas.

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to subscribe, share, comment, and critique.

So tell me, are you ready for a “Harry” year?

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

First off, I would like to say that my last post has accumulated 190+ likes on Tumblr and I could not be more grateful for that. The topic of fanfiction is not one that is taken as seriously as most writers (like myself) do and it’s terrible because it’s a form of writing which constitutes as an art. Art is an important topic in our lives, it allows us to express, to feel, to be strengthened, to be inspired, and to be educated.

So I would like to thank those who have given that particular post an incredibly high population on Tumblr. Also thank you to my followers in general for making this blog successful, awesome, and amazing. Keep on writing whatever makes you happy, from fanfiction to sonnets and let nothing stop you.

Anyway, onward with tonight’s entry!

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them” has been in the news the past few days. We now have a picture of our main character, Newt Scamander (played by Eddie Redmayne) with a wand in hand, a briefcase in the other, and standing before a regal set of stairs. If we examine the ground closely, we will see it reads: Congress of the United States of America.

This ties into our next point wherein JK Rowling has deemed American Muggles as ‘No-Maj’. Pronounced as ‘no madge’ it’s simply short for no magic. Newt finds himself in 1926 New York with a suitcase that has Timelord technology that houses various habitats for creatures that he collects and researches as a magizoologist. In New York, wizards are threatened by the No-Maj and are fearfully hiding their magical abilities. Their exposure is incredibly dangerous and apparently it’s far worse in the United Kingdom, causing Salem With trial like events to occur.  Somehow the creatures break loose from Newt’s magical suitcase and from there onward Newt goes on an adventure that could only predate the existence of Harry Potter.

So far we’ve seen some photographs of the new film, featuring the title screen and the cast. We see Newt Scamander in these pictures, but we also see Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein (played by Katherine Waterston), Queenie Goldstein (played by Alison Sudol), and Jacob Kowalski (played by Dan Folger). From what the pictures reveal, some of the film was shot in Leavesden, United Kingdom.

I’m not sure about you guys, but my internal Potterhead is bursting with excitement for this movie.  While we only have another year to go (November 18^th, 2016), I believe the wait will definitely be worth it. After all, this is one of JK Rowling’s pieces and her work is phenomenal – just like her Harry Potter movies and theme parks. Here’s hoping “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” stays true to the book and does not disappoint!

Thank you for reading tonight’s entry. If you enjoyed it, feel free to share, subscribe, comment, and critique.

So tell me, are you excited about “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”?

Tolkien Tries His Hand at Beowulf

Good evening everyone and welcome to The Magical Mystery Blog.

Show of hands, who likes J.R.R.Tolkien? For those of you who raised their hands, fantastic. For those of you didn’t, dear Hell what is wrong with you? Go out and read his books, your brain will thank you (and so will I).

The famous writer of “Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” is long gone, but in his place we have his legacy: his literary works. His books have entered our culture, creating whimsical worlds to entertain us. However, there is another piece of Tolkien literature that very few know of that was just recently published.

Tolkien was an Oxford English professor who often dappled in Old Norse and Old English languages. From these topics, arose “Beowulf” the classic Norse tale that was not only Tolkien’s early love, but was also touched by his hand.

“Beowulf” is a famed Norse epic in which Grendel, a monster, raids Beowulf’s dining hall. Beowulf, one of the strongest men in existence easily smites Grendel and his mother, an evil dragon. This piece attracted the eye of Tolkien as he attempted to translate it from such an ancient language, to a more modern, understandable read. The translation was abandoned for many years so he could pursue “The Lord of the Rings” series. However, he would go back to it every now and then. Picking away a section or a sentence and translating it, as many scholars have done before.

Now Tolkien’s translation of “Beowulf” has been published to the public. People will be able to see how the master of literary language tried his hand at translating a classic epic.

So what are you waiting for? Go out there and enjoy a good read.