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"They bought Harry’s school books in a shop called Flourish and Blotts where the shelves were stacked to the ceiling with books as large as paving stones bound in leather; books the size of postage stamps in covers of silk; books full of peculiar symbols and a few books with nothing in them at all."
— Description of Flourish and Blotts[src]

Flourish and Blotts Bookseller was a bookshop in North Side, Diagon Alley, about halfway down the street on the left hand side.[1] Established in 1454,[3] it was where most Hogwarts students purchased their schoolbooks. The shop was filled with bookshelves stacked to the ceiling.[2]

The shop had had a few problems with certain books, such as The Invisible Book of Invisibility which cost them a great deal of money to buy and had gone missing very early in its hours of being sold due to its invisibility, and The Monster Book of Monsters which tore itself apart and bit the manager when he tried to get a copy off the shelf.[4]

The shop held occasional book-signings, such as when Gilderoy Lockhart stopped by in 1992 to sign copies of his latest book Magical Me.[5] Flourish and Blotts also ran a service which enabled purchasers to buy books via owl delivery.[6] They also took advance orders for books that were in high demand, such as The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore.[7]

History[]

Establishment[]

Flourish and Blotts was first established in Diagon Alley in the year of 1454.[3]

1927[]

Newt Theseus Leta and Bunty at Flourish and Blotts

Newt Scamander, Theseus Scamander, Leta Lestrange, and Bunty inside the shop

On 19 March 1927, Flourish and Blotts and Obscurus Books held a book launch party for Newton Scamander's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.[8]

1984–1985 school year[]

Before the start of the 1984–1985 school year, Jacob's sibling visited Flourish and Blotts to buy all their textbooks required for their first year at Hogwarts.[9]

1987–1988 school year[]

Around the time of Valentine's Day in February 1988, Gilderoy Lockhart held a book signing for Voyages with Vampires at Flourish and Blotts that his fans attended, including Molly Weasley. During this event, he announced that a special group of fifth year Hogwarts students in attendance (Andre Egwu, Barnaby Lee, Jacob's sibling, Merula Snyde, Penny Haywood and Talbott Winger) would become his "apprentices" for a special Valentine's Day project.[10]

1988–1989 school year[]

Villanelle talking to Merula and Jacob's sibling HM510

Villanelle talking to Jacob's sibling and their friend in Flourish and Blotts

During the 1988–1989 school year, Jacob's sibling and either Merula Snyde, Bill Weasley or Jae Kim came to the shop to ask Madam Villanelle about Mundungus Fletcher.[11]

In February 1989, around Valentine's Day, Gilderoy Lockart held a book signing in the shop. Jacob's sibling approached him and asked him for advice about love to help them write an essay for a competition.[12]

At the end of this school year, Jacob's sibling and Bill came again to purchase some books about curse-breaking.[13]

Also during this school year, the Walter Aragon Wizard Chess Competition was hosted in Flourish and Blotts, which the Beauxbatons Wizard's Chess champion Celine Castillon competed in.[14]

1989–1990 school year[]

Jacob's sibling approaching Villanelle HM66

Jacob's sibling approaching Villanelle in Flourish and Blotts

During the 1989–1990 school year, Jacob went to the shop to buy books about Mahoutokoro School of Magic. Jacob's sibling later came and Madam Villanelle told them what their brother had done there.[15]

Jacob's sibling later came to talk to Chester Davies about infiltrating the Ministry of Magic.[16]

Jacob's sibling, Chiara Lobosca and Talbott Winger later came to read up about Grindylows, but found some information on the Whomping Willow instead.[17]

Jacob's sibling and Chiara later returned to research about Merpeople and found that the local Merpeople were fond of music.[18]

At some point near the end of the school year, Jacob's sibling returned to Flourish and Blotts with Mundungus Fletcher to ask Madam Villanelle for information of the dark witch who had been gathering information of Jacob's sibling and their wand (who turned out to be Verucca Buckthorn-Snyde).[19]

1990–1991 school year[]

During the 1990–1991 school year, Jacob's sibling and Ben Copper paid Madam Villanelle a visit in Flourish and Blotts during their investigation of Garrick Ollivander's misfiring wand.[20]

Jacob's sibling and Ben Copper in Flourish and Blotts HM741

Jacob's sibling meeting Ben Copper in Flourish and Blotts

Later during this school year, Jacob's sibling encountered Ben Copper in the shop, who was there studying for his upcoming N.E.W.Ts and to remember his deceased friend Rowan Khanna, who loved going to the bookshop.[21]

1991[]

Flourish and Blotts was briefly closed during the summer of 1991, as they were dealing with an outbreak of bookworms.[22]

On 31 July 1991, Harry Potter and Rubeus Hagrid visited Flourish and Blotts whilst shopping in Diagon Alley, in order to purchase all of Harry's assigned Hogwarts textbooks. Harry also was interested in a copy of Curses and Counter-Curses, however Hagrid made him put the book down after telling him he was too young to begin casting curses.[2]

1992[]

"We can actually meet him! I mean, he's written almost the whole booklist!"
Hermione Granger's excitement at meeting Gilderoy Lockhart in Flourish and Blotts[src]
Harr Potter takes image with Lockhart

Lockhart and Harry Potter during the book signing

Sometime in early 1992, Flourish and Blotts was closed as it attempted to locate its order of Disappearing Ink. In August of 1992, famous wizard author Gilderoy Lockhart held a book signing at the shop and used it as an opportunity to announce his taking of the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry that year. In an effort to gain more publicity, he dragged Harry Potter into the spotlight against his will and gifted Harry a complete set of his books.

1992 Quidditch spectator beside Irma Pince

Draco Malfoy mocking Harry Potter in Flourish and Blotts

That same day, a fistfight occurred between Lucius Malfoy and Arthur Weasley, and Lucius Malfoy secretly gave Tom Riddle's Diary to Ginny Weasley.[5]

During the Christmas holidays, the bookshop was temporarily closed, as they were still tidying up after Gilderoy Lockhart's book signing in August.[23]

1993[]

"Harry got a surprise as he looked in at the bookshop window. Instead of the usual display of gold-embossed spellbooks the size of paving slabs, there was a large iron cage behind the glass that held about a hundred copies of The Monster Book of Monsters. Torn pages were flying everywhere as the books grappled with each other, locked together in furious wrestling matches and snapping aggressively."
— Copies of The Monster Book of Monsters fighting each other in Flourish and Blotts[src]
Monster book

The inside of Flourish and Blotts, during 1993

In late summer of 1993, the front window of Flourish and Blotts held an iron cage filled with hundreds of copies of The Monster Book of Monsters. To deal with the vicious books set for the third year Care of Magical Creatures class taught by Rubeus Hagrid, the harassed manager had to gear up with thick gloves and jab at them with a knobbly walking stick, as the books tend to viciously rip and tear each other apart.[4]

When Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley went to the shop to buy their schoolbooks, the manager almost cried when Ron and Hermione said they wanted two copies of The Monster Book of Monsters, but was very relieved when Harry noted that he already had a copy. Harry also asks for a copy of Unfogging the Future to which the manager leads them to a small corner in the back of the shop where a small table lies for books on Fortune Telling, such as: Predicting the Unpredictable: Insulate Yourself Against Shocks, Death Omens: What to Do When You Know the Worst is Coming, and Broken Balls: When Fortunes Turn Foul.[4]

1994[]

In the summer of 1994, Molly Weasley went to Flourish and Blotts to get three copies of The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 4 for Harry, Ron, and Hermione.[24]

1996[]

"Mum, d'you honestly think You-Know-Who's going to be hiding behind a bookshelf in Flourish and Blotts?"
Ron Weasley to his mother in 1996[src]

In the summer of 1996, Harry, Hermione and Ron went to Diagon Alley to buy their school supplies for their upcoming sixth year, with Ron's parents Arthur and Molly, along with his sister Ginny. Because Molly was feared of entering Diagon Alley without her husband Arthur Weasley due to the return of Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, Ron joked to his mother that Voldemort would not be hiding behind a bookshelf in Flourish and Blotts. When they were all at Diagon Alley, Molly, Arthur and Ginny went to Flourish and Blotts, whilst Harry, Hermione and Ron went to Madam Malkin's instead.[25] When the school year had started, as Harry and Ron thought they would not make the cut to proceed to N.E.W.T.-level Potions class, they did not buy the necessary textbook.[26]

However, with the new Potions Master Horace Slughorn lowering the entrance standards to "Exceeds Expectations" (as opposed to Severus Snape's only admitting "Outstanding" students to his classes), Harry and Ron took the subject,[26] and wrote to Flourish and Blotts to get a copy of the book delivered to them.[26][6]

Layout[]

Flourish and Blotts was filled to the brim with books. Shelves upon shelves lined the walls, from ceiling to floor. The books were of all sizes and different varieties.[2] In fact, there were so many books that various signs were posted throughout the shop, as a means of helping customers find what they needed. The front windows usually contained displays of gold-embossed spellbooks the size of paving slabs.[4]

Staff[]

In addition to the store's manager, who at times helped customers himself,[4] the store also employed an assistant manager (paid 42 Galleons a month)[27] and an assistant.[5] The job was not altogether easy, as wizarding books might have attempted to bite or simply gone completely invisible,[4] and fights — like the scuffle between Arthur Weasley and Lucius Malfoy in 1992, that sent books raining down on everyone's heads[5] — were apparently commonplace enough that a classified posting for a new assistant manager required that he or she be "good at breaking up fights".[27]

Books sold[]

Flourish and Blotts - hand pointing sign - MPF

A sign in the shop, which pointed to the direction of each book section

Behind the scenes[]

Gilderoy Lockhart at Flourish and Blotts (concept artwork)

Concept artwork for Gilderoy Lockhart while in Flourish and Blotts

  • The set for Flourish and Blotts was a redress of the set for Garrick Ollivander's shop, which reflects on the real-world as shops on Diagon Alley would most likely have similar layouts due to space requirements, as a row of mini-mall shops might.
  • The 2-disc DVD edition of the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets includes an interactive tour of Diagon Alley and this shop, which is the only shop interior in the tour to also be interactive.
  • Books in Pottermore could be bought in this shop in Diagon Alley.

Appearances[]

Wiki
The Harry Potter Wiki has 80 images related to Flourish and Blotts.

Notes and references[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Flourish and Blotts. It's about halfway down Diagon Alley on the left hand side. by J.K. Rowling on Twitter
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 5 (Diagon Alley)
  3. 3.0 3.1 LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 (see this image)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 4 (The Leaky Cauldron)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 4 (At Flourish and Blotts)
  6. 6.0 6.1 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 11 (Hermione's Helping Hand)
  7. 7.0 7.1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 8 (The Wedding)
  8. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
  9. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 1, Chapter 1 (Your Journey Begins)
  10. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 4, "Valentine's Day" Achievement - Part 2, Side Quest "Heartfelt Invitations"
  11. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 5, Chapter 10 (Knockturn Alley)
  12. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 5, "TICKET TO LOVE" Achievement - Part 1
  13. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 5, Chapter 33 (Bye-Bye Bill)
  14. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 5, Side Quest "The Curse-Breaker's Gambit"
  15. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 6, Chapter 6 (On Jacob's Trail)
  16. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 6, Chapter 10 (Cloaks and Conflicts)
  17. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 6, Chapter 28 (Moving On)
  18. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 6, Chapter 37 (Entering the Black Lake!)
  19. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 6, Chapter 45 (The Messenger)
  20. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 7, Chapter 12 (And Hello Magical Accidents and Catastrophes)
  21. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 7, Chapter 41 (That's Awkward)
  22. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game) - GBC version
  23. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game) - PS1 version
  24. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 10 (Mayhem at the Ministry)
  25. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 6 (Draco's Detour)
  26. 26.0 26.1 26.2 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 9 (The Half-Blood Prince)
  27. 27.0 27.1 Daily Prophet
  28. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
Diagon Alley North Side
Locations

Apothecary · Bats! Bats! Bats! · Belcher's Bottled Beers · Bernie Balls Fireworks · Blinkhorn's workshop · Boogermongers · Brigg's Brooms · Bufo's · Caput Mortuum · Creepy Scrawlers Stationers · Crispa Culpepper's Drugs & Preparations · Eeylops Owl Emporium · Flail & Hyde Furriers · Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour · Flourish and Blotts · Gaberlunzie Garments · Grandma Gramercy's Grandiloquent Gramophones · Gringotts Wizarding Bank · The Harpy's Bazaar · Herbert's Sherbets · Janus Galloglass · Krakens · Leaky Cauldron (1 Diagon Alley) · Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions · The Magic Lantern · Magical Menagerie · Mandrake Mufflers · Marcus Minucius Myomancer · Mourning & Starr Armourers · Mr Milvus Grizedale, Kitemaker · Mr Trismus, Mouth Magician · Mulligrubs Materia Medica · Nell's Bells · Nollikins for Scrolls & Skins · Noltie's Botanical Novelties · Oldknowe Books · Pettichaps · Potage's Cauldron Shop · Praedico Predico · Quality Quidditch Supplies · Shrew & Scold's Bridal Wear · S. Starling · Tangle & Noils Wigmakers & Perruquiers · The Three Sheets · Tut's Nuts · Twinkle's Telescopes · Vietch's Leeches · What Larks! Songbird Specialists · Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment

Known residents, shop owners and employees

Blinkhorn · Belcher · Bufo · Crookshanks (formerly) · Eeylops Owl Emporium female employee · Eeylops Owl Emporium male employee · Florean Fortescue (deceased) · Flourish and Blotts manager · Hedwig (formerly; deceased) · Madam Malkin · Noltie · Madam Potage · Magical Menagerie salesman · Magical Menagerie saleswoman · Milvus Grizedale · Marcus Minucius · Trismus · Tut · Twinkle · Vietch · Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment employee

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