Beatrice Groves – The Running Grave: Strike 7, the I Ching and the Yarrow Stalks

January 17, 2023 by 15 Comments

New information is coming thick and fast for Book 7, which we now know is called The Running Grave! Are you, like me, confused about ancient Chinese divination? Do you know your yarrow stalks from your divination coins? What on earth can this have to do with Norfolk? Help is at hand: Beatrice Groves, Research Lecturer and tutor at Trinity College, Oxford, and author of  Literary Allusion in Harry Potter, has written a Hogwarts Professor Guest Post: The Running Grave: Strike 7, the I Ching and the Yarrow Stalks.

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Filed Under: Beatrice Groves, Cormoran Strike, Twitter

Beatrice Groves – The Winter Solstice and Beira, Queen of Winter

December 21, 2022 by 7 Comments

We are today (21st December 2022) at the darkest part of the year for the Northern Hemisphere: the winter solstice. The shadows are long and the golden days of Summer seem a long time ago. Now is the perfect time to push your stool a little closer to the fire, and warm your hands on a mug of tea the colour of creosote. Beatrice Groves, Research Lecturer and tutor at Trinity College, Oxford, and author of  Literary Allusion in Harry Potter, has written a Hogwarts Professor Guest Post: The Winter Solstice and Beira, Queen of Winter. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Beatrice Groves

Rowling Library Magazine – the Christmas Edition

December 13, 2022 by Leave a Comment

Always eagerly anticipated, the latest Rowling Library Magazine has dropped with a special Christmas feature from Beatrice Groves:

For a wonderful exploration of how Harry Potter, The Christmas Pig and indeed Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women all use Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress as story scaffold and Christian message, do check out Beatrice’s Potter’s Progress – The Christmas Pig and Harry’s quest.

 

 

Filed Under: Beatrice Groves, Christmas Pig

Beatrice Groves – Silkworm and Ink Black Heart

November 26, 2022 by Leave a Comment

As the first flush of excitement after the publication of Ink Black Heart has passed, many serious readers are now on to our first (or more!) re-reads. We are fortunate to have some enticing revelations from J. K. Rowling delivered during both her scripted and unscripted Q&A sessions.  Beatrice Groves, Research Lecturer and tutor at Trinity College, Oxford, and author of  Literary Allusion in Harry Potter, has written a Hogwarts Professor Guest Post: Silkworm and Ink Black Heart.

 

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Filed Under: Beatrice Groves, Cormoran Strike, Ring Composition

Dobby’s Grave Pilgrimage Site Preserved

November 7, 2022 by Leave a Comment

It turns out that Harry Potter fans believe they have found the location of Shell Cottage and Dobby’s grave on the coast of Wales — and turned it into something of a pilgrimage site. Read the Daily Star twitter thread above and follow the links there for the whole story.

If you find the idea of making pilgrimage to the real-world locations of fictional events where make-believe personages ‘lived,’ or, in the case of Dobby, ‘died’ exotic, peculiar, fascinating, or preposterous, check out this podcast, ‘So What Is a Harry Potter Pilgrimage?‘ featuring Beatrice Groves, who in addition to her other areas of expertise happens to know an astonishing amount about religious and literary pilgrimages.

And then go to PotterPilgrimage.com — I kid you not! — and schedule your own tour of the UK’s Hogwarts Saga principal points for homage, reflection, or imagination re-shaping. Enjoy — and let us know what you left as a token at Dobby’s grave on your visit!

Filed Under: Beatrice Groves, Hog Pro Notes, Reading Writing Rowling Podcast