Not sure if I liked the illustrations all that much, but the format was cute (fantastical epistolary elements in children's non-fiction, we love to see it), and I was of course very charmed by the Greek-ness of the fictional cryptozoologists starring in this novel. Preferable to JKR's approach in every aspect of course.

It is no secret that I am a mythology fan. I also pride myself on knowing quite a bit about mythological creatures so I was happy to see someone I was not that well acquainted to!
This book takes us on a journey to all 7 continents and talks about lesser known groups such as Xhosa (Africa), Wemba Wemba (Australia) and Maori (New Zealand) as well as many more. Hawkins explains the features, diet, behaviour and habitat of each amazing creature.
The watercolour illustrations are magnificent and rich.
Highly recommend

This is a delightful collection about magical beasts. A great addition to any collection of magical books. Amazing graphics and easy reference.

A Natural History of Magical Beasts, written by Emily Hawkins and illustrated by Jessica Roux, is currently scheduled for release on September 5 2023. Tales of magical creatures have been told across the world for generations, but are these stories merely flights of fancy, or is there any truth to the legends of unicorns and dragons, centaurs and griffins? Presented as the notebook of a 1920s zoologist, this book sets out to answer this question, revealing the hidden world of the magical beasts that live among us. Within these pages you will meet bizarre and beautiful creatures from around the globe, discovering their habits, habitats and the legends surrounding them. Learn about the anatomy of a unicorn, the life cycle of a phoenix, incredible dragon courtship dances and much more in this ultimate guide to magical creatures.

A Natural History of Magical Beasts is a whimsical look at the mythical creatures of the world, framed in a way that just might leave readers thinking about what might really be lurking in the forest or down by the stream. I like that the book is divided by geographical region, and included a number of creatures I had heard of, and some I had not. As someone that has read a great deal of fantasy and related things over the years new creatures to discover always make me happy. I liked the balance of text and illustrations, they keep the readers focus and interest high on the book. I really enjoyed that the book seemed to emphasize the legends of indigenous people in each of the regions, and referred to similar creatures in other areas that were included in the text. I also like that there is a sense of humor to the book, threaded through some of the 'first hand accounts' and mentions of the importance of respect and preserving nature and habitats.

A Natural History of Magical Beasts is a well balanced and enjoyable read, and I think it will be a fast favorite for many.

The author presents a gorgeous field guide to cryptids, mythological beasts, and magical critters from all over the world, stunningly illustrated by Jessica Roux. I love that readers are encouraged to protect, rather than exploit these special beings.

This lovely book would be a perfect gift for Harry Potter fans of all ages, and for anyone who still possesses an imagination.

Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced copy!

“A Natural History of Magical Beasts” is a lovely picture book. It’s exactly the sort of thing I would have obsessed over as a kid. I’d probably be studying all the entries for the different magical creatures and imagining my own adventures finding them in the wild. The art by Jessica Roux is beautiful and the storyline and entries from Emily Hawkins are engaging and a great mix of fantasy and realism. I especially appreciated that creatures from all over the world are included and that care was made to respect the cultures that they originated from. I will be recommending this book to children at my library looking for books with magical beasts, fantasy, or adventure.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I adored "A Natural History of Magical Beasts by Emily Hawkins and Jessica Roux (Illustrator)." The cover alone is so beautiful, I bet the physical book itself would be even more amazing. I’m a big fan of books like this. I just love flipping through them and soaking in all the gorgeous illustrations. And let me tell you, the illustrations in this one are just next level. They’re so detailed and captivating.

The layout of the book is also on point. It’s like a scrapbook dedicated to magical beasts, filled with cool fonts and fun facts about all kinds of mythical creatures. Seriously, it’s visually appealing and super engaging. I have a feeling that readers of all ages will eat this up. It’s definitely a big hit waiting to happen.

So, in case you couldn’t tell, I’m totally giving this book two huge thumbs up! If you’re into magical creatures or just appreciate stunning artwork, you gotta get your hands on A Natural History of Magical Beasts. Trust me, it’s worth it!

**ARC Via NetGalley**

I tend to really like these books, that fictionalise the hunt for mythical creatures while presenting said beasts as fact. This looks better than, well, practically any – until you get to the meat of the book. And then I found things far too busy for its own good. Just take the unicorn – yes, you get a wonderful image, to go with all the other superlative design features here, but you get the databank about the species (which comes in thin, faint font), a caption about this, a sub-set of the text about that, a box-out regarding the other – and then the cursive text from one of the explorers on their fated mission that allegedly has provided for this long-lost volume.

What it all means is that as a gazetteer, or bestiary, this would look to be extremely eye-catching. But the cluttered page really diminishes the visuals, negating their many merits, and also really interrupts the plot, if there ever was one, to the scientific mission. Sticking to the main text, the descriptions of the animals, as I felt compelled to do, I found the visual options still more of a disappointment, for the text is wonderful – really respectful of the indigenous American critters, for one, and giving us more of them than many similar books. It's no slouch on any corner of the planet, either. So I'm torn over this – it could be the coffee table volume in this category to end all coffee table books, but instead someone thought to drop so much text over everything it looks ungainly and reads clumsily and unflowingly. Ditch all pretence at fiction and treat it as an encyclopaedia, though, and it's bound to sparkle.

An absolute joy to read, this is a book that refuses to be rushed. Every page compels you to linger and savour. Jessica Roux’s illustrations are exquisite and perfectly complement the text in colour, detail and air of authenticity.
The backstory of Artemis and Dimi really sets the scene. Any child would be drawn into this adventure through the magical world of magical creatures and mythical monsters, with such a superb ending, open to questioning and inviting predictions.
As a reader, I was enthralled, but as a teacher, I was besieged by a myriad ways this could be used in a classroom: as a link to myths and legends, as a stimulus for non-fiction writing, as an inspiration for creating their own mythical creature, as an opportunity to write their own entry, detailing what they think happened to the characters. The ideas were endless.
I would certainly recommend schools and libraries have a copy of this for children to lose themselves in, and I will definitely be purchasing a copy for my own classroom.

I got this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoy this series and I love how it is made as if this is just a fun non-fiction explaining how the world works. It does a really good job explaining the theory and history of magical beasts, and draws such nice connections to the real world and actual things and processes that exists! Will definitely get a physical copy as well!

fictional "educational" book always fascinate me, including this book. this book brought you to he past where all these magical beasts are allegedly exist, even though some of them haven't been sighted for a long, long time. need the physical copy tbh.

My thanks to Quarto Publishing Group Frances Lincoln Children's Books for a temporary digital review copy of ‘A Natural History of Magical Beasts’ written by Emily Hawkins and illustrated by Jessica Roux.

This exquisitely illustrated book is presented as the travel journal of 1920s zoologist, Dr. Dimitros
Pagonis, who sets out on a journey to conduct a global survey of magical beasts. He is especially concerned about the destruction of their habitats by humans. He invites Miss Artemis Matsouka, a pilot, to join him. They begin their journey on the 1st May, 1927.

The artwork by Jessica Rouxt is breathtaking. The field notes that accompany the images contain fascinating information about each of the magical creatures.

Overall, I found this an immersive experience and a feast for the eyes. I feel that ‘A Natural History of Magical Beasts’ is sure to delight readers of all ages who love fantasy and magical creatures.

Highly recommended.

Absolutely adorable.


A natural history of magical beasts is a unique interactive book guaranteed to keep the interest of younger readers :)

The author introduces such a wide variety of creatures of all sizes, dimensions with all kinds of different powers. Truly the art in the book along with the information given makes this such a fun and quick read, the perfect book to read to children without getting bored yourself!

**I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and the publisher and this is my honest review**

I read this as an ebook, but I would want to buy it as a hardcover. The ebook just doesn't do the illustrations justice and in the ebook format I had to zoom in to read some text.

The illustrations are detailed and gorgeous, some covering both pages. There is a lot of information packed into this book covering mythical creatures from around the world including quite a number that were new to me!
The book is connected through a series of journal entries and letters from a Dr. Pagonis and Ms. Matsouka as they travel in search of the mythical creatures described. Each animal entry is similar to a nature field guide, with information about the creatures habitat, diet, behavior, and how to identify it.
I will be considering getting a hard copy of this book for my kids (and lets be honest for my own perusal as well.) While marketed to a younger audience, I think anyone with an interest in magical beasts would enjoy this book.

A Natural History of Beasts is an encyclopedia style entry of magical and mythical animals. It is grouped by area which was really nice. The art is stunning I wanted to frame the pages. The information was interesting and for the creatures I was familiar with 100% accurate. It did have more rare animals and even included my favorite the Grootslang (African Elephant Snake). I can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy.

5 stars.

looooved this so much, i love delving into the world and history of magical creatures and surreal creations. this was a delight to experience.

— thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the free digital ARC.

I love the Mimi, I just found out about this wonderful creature and I'm obsessed. This is a wonderful, magical guide to creatures I have never dreamt of. The creativity and imagery are simply amazing and I think would be a fun book to have in classrooms and at home.

This book is gorgeous. I love it. It is well written and illustrated. It is laid out beautifully. I can not wait to get my hands on a physical copy.

I love this style of book where you are finding out all about magical and mythical creatures and it is written as if it is first hand accounts. This will appeal to a wide range of children (and adults alike) and I was actually surprised at how many creatures I had already heard of. Even if I had heard of them before, it was good to read about the folklore behind them and whereabouts in the world they had been "spotted"

This is an entertaining compilation of magical creatures from a very interesting society. It includes unicorns, the phoenix and even the Loch Ness Monster, also known as Nessie. There is even mention of Tessie, the Lake Tahoe version.