Beyond the Wand: The Magic & Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard by Tom Felton (2022)

Non-Fiction | Memoir

Blurb:

They called for a break, and Gambon magicked up a cigarette from out of his beard. He and I were often to be found outside the stage door, having ‘a breath of fresh air’, as we referred to it. There would be painters and plasterers and chippies and sparks, and among them all would be me and Dumbledore having a crafty cigarette.

From Borrower to wizard, Tom Felton’s adolescence was anything but ordinary. His early rise to fame saw him catapulted into the limelight aged just twelve when he landed the iconic role of Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films.

Speaking with candour and his own trademark humour, Tom shares his experience of growing up on screen and as part of the wizarding world for the very first time. He tells all about his big break, what filming was really like and the lasting friendships he made during ten years as part of the franchise, as well as the highs and lows of fame and the reality of navigating adult life after filming finished.

Prepare to meet a real-life wizard.

Goodreads | Amazon

pooled ink Review:

Tom Felton has a perfect storytelling voice: lyrical, honest, personal, and fun. Truth be told it made me think of my grandad so maybe it’s just a British thing. Regardless, Beyond the Wand does a fantastic job weaving together all things Potter, both on and off the screen, with the life of a boy named Tom who grew into an adult not so different or immune to reality as could be expected. We get the “behind the scenes” of Tom Felton and although the Potter stories are likely what will draw most readers to the book, and they were certainly a highlight for me as well, I found Tom’s storytelling to be of a nature that had me feeling like two people who met up for coffee and ended up wandering ’round the park, spending the entire day together catching up without even the slightest sense of how much time has passed. When I reached the end of the book it was like blinking and realizing for the first time that the sun had set and it was time to leave. I don’t really know if that makes sense to you, but that’s sort of how I describe the feeling of reading this memoir. 

I give this book two thumbs up and not just because I remain a massive Potterhead. It was truly a good read and I remain convinced if I ever met Tom Felton in real life that I’d get along rather well with him (part of which can be blamed for how many similarities he seemed to have with my brother which was an unexpected but amusing discovery).

P.S. The fact that American sets and actors are so different in attitude than British ones does not surprise me but does embarrass me as an American who used to work in that industry. Also the fact that LA wrecked Tom in a slow slippery toxic spiral does not surprise me. It’s perhaps the least original story that can be told which is a horrible truth.

Cheers.

Meet Tom Felton (aka Draco Malfoy)!

Website | Goodreads

Tom Felton is an English actor, best known for playing Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films. He has also appeared in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Belle, The Flash, A United Kingdom, The Forgotten Battle and 2.22 A Ghost Story in London’s West End. He lives in London with his dog Willow.