Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Someone Found The Italian Cover Of The First 'Harry Potter' Book, And Even J.K. Rowling Is Baffled By It

Someone Found The Italian Cover Of The First 'Harry Potter' Book, And Even J.K. Rowling Is Baffled By It
Taylor Hill / Getty Images

One would imagine that an author with as much clout as J.K. Rowling would be able to control the cover designs of her best-selling books.

That may be reality now, but there was a time before Rowling took the world by storm; a time before all the sequels, prequels, spinoffs, musicals and alternate universes.


It was that time that gifted us with an absolute mess of a cover so out-of-nowhere that Rowling still has literally no idea what is happening on it.

Typically speaking, the covers of these types of books depict characters, settings and circumstances from the plot. As the series advanced, plotlines "evolved" and movies were made, the covers began to take on a more bold and graphic look.

Also there are limited editions, special editions, collector's editions, numbered editions, house cover art editions, movie editions...

You get the point.

forrest gump cooking GIFGiphy

But again, we're not there yet.

This was the point where the covers were simple line drawings of magical kids who went to a magical school and hung out with magical friends and got up to magical shenanigans. It was a simpler, more pure, less Voldemort-y time.

The innocence and wonder translated onto covers from around the world. One cover featured Harry in front of the Hogwart's Express. Another gave us Harry on his broomstick, flying between pillars. A few gave us glimpses of Harry, Hermione and Ron together.

And then there's Italy, who gave the world this.

@aryastarkno/Twitter

What is even happening? Is this the Christmas thing ... but with wizard drugs?

As far as we can recall, at no point did Harry visit his local Chuck E. Cheese and throw a chess party.

Did we miss the chapter where ya boy HP was wizard-napped by NYC subway rats and taken to one of those sewer-dwelling-geniuses we see in movies all the time (lookin' at you, August Rush... and Ninja Turtles) but never in real life?

And the only way he could win his freedom was to live among them, as one of the rats, working his way up their social ladder via their chosen method of battle, chess? Until finally he can chess-battle the boss rat and return to Hogwarts?

Is that a thing in the Italian version? 'Cause that wasn't a thing in the one we read.

Apparently that didn't happen in Rowling's version, either, as she too has absolutely, positively, no idea what is going on in this cover.





We love how graciously she phrased her total bewilderment.

#WriterGoals right there. So eloquent in one's befuddlement.

Twitter had some fun with this...


And then, like magic, an answer actually appeared.

We don't know how true it is, but here is the story according to ye olde experts, some people on Twitter.




Like we said, we don't know how true it is, but if it does happen to be factual, then this illustrator is our new favorite person. Imagine being an illustrator given a chance to draw the cover of the book that will literally change the children's fiction world ... and you end up drawing a cover that pretty much has nothing to do with anything.

And then later, when you're asked about it, you just shrug and go "Eh. That's kinda my thing."

Yeah ... Yeah. We feel that. That's the energy we need right now. Big ups to you, Italian illustrator Serena Riglietti. You da real MVP.

The Harry Potter Hardcover complete Book Set in Collectible Trunk is available here.

More from Trending

Donald Trump
Carlos Barria - Pool/Getty Images

Donald Trump Called Out After Awkwardly Misspelling His Own Name In Post About Iran Attack

President Donald Trump was ripped by critics after he awkwardly misspelled his own name while praising the B-2 pilots who flew the strikes on Iran—only to later delete the post and repost it as if nothing happened.

On Saturday, Trump authorized a series of intense U.S. air and submarine strikes targeting three Iranian nuclear facilities, amid ongoing uncertainty about the status of Tehran’s nuclear program.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman sitting up in bed as a man sleeps next to her.
Florida State University Researchers Find Predictors for Infidelity in New Study
(Wodicka/ullstein bild via Getty Images)

The Biggest 'They're Definitely Cheating On Me!' Signs People Ignored

When our partner commits suspicious behavior, it's easy for us to jump to conclusions.

Most of the time, the conclusions we jump to are 100% wrong and are just our imaginations playing tricks with us.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @cassdamm's TikTok video
@cassdamm/TikTok

Woman Shares Why She Refuses To Tell Her Late Dad's Mistress Of 30 Years That He Died

While it doesn't always happen, sometimes we get to see karma at work—and sometimes, the revenge is sweet.

TikToker @cassdamm, who previously went viral for sharing the unhinged, five-page letter her 15-year-old son's principal sent, complaining about him "wandering the halls" and "being truant" for buying a drink on his way back to class, is openly celebrating the death of her father, but it's not for the reason you'd think.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from Kristin Hughes' TikTok video
@im.krispy/TikTok

Woman Sparks Debate About What Color Her Furniture Is—Only To Discover She's Colorblind

We've all heard the saying that there's no way of knowing everything that you don't know until you're faced with it directly. For some people, that could even be the color of the world around them.

Kristin Hughes, or @im.krispy on TikTok, reached out to the platform for a second opinion while she was trying to list a chair on Facebook Marketplace. Even though she wasn't charging anything for it, the woman who was interested in it continued to inquire for more photos and to know more about the color of the couch.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @budget.audit.save's TikTok video
@budget.audit.save/TikTok

Woman Shares Hack For Keeping Lettuce Fresh For Two Months—And TikTok's Minds Are Blown

It's no secret that groceries are expensive and that they're more expensive than they've ever been before.

Add to this the fact that many items, especially produce, tend to expire very quickly, so people often find themselves spending the money, only to figuratively throw that money into the trash a few days later when they didn't get around to using the produce fast enough.

Keep ReadingShow less