LAWRENCEBURG, Ind., Oct. 14, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- On the surface, J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series is a magical, clever tale about the mysterious happenings at a preparatory school for wizards. But there's more to these whimsical stories than meets the eye, writes Mary C. Baumann in her new book, A Detective's Analysis of Harry Potter and the Mysteries Within (now available through AuthorHouse).
A lifelong student of history and literature, Baumann delves into the underlying meaning of names, locations and phrases Rowling uses to relay clues about characters. Interesting hidden motifs abound through the five fantasy books, and Baumann offers informative and humorous commentary on the coded messages Rowling leaves for fans of the young wizard.
Historical, mythological and even astrological interpretations help readers unlock some of the clues about the students, professors and evil mages. They help predict characters' future actions, how to recognize them when they are in disguise and how they might impact the story as a whole.
Baumann's insight even led her to ask certain pertinent questions about the storyline before many die-hard fans did. At the Edinburgh Book Festival in August, Rowling was quoted as saying that readers had not asked her two important questions about the plot of the Harry Potter series: Why didn't Voldemort die? Why didn't Dumbledore try to kill Voldemort in the scene at the ministry? Rowling encouraged readers to speculate about these events. In A Detective's Analysis of Harry Potter and the Mysteries, Baumann writes that she recognized these revealing circumstances and raised those questions quite some time ago.
Witty, funny and entertaining, A Detective's Analysis of Harry Potter and the Mysteries Within delves into the characters, literary themes and phrasing of the popular series and provides a new layer of mystery to these enchanting tales.
Baumann went to Indiana University and earned a degree in political science with a minor in history. She has backpacked extensively through Europe and earned her certification to teach English as a second language at the Boston Language Institute. Baumann currently lives in the Cincinnati area.
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