I think ideally you'll get some peer validation on this of what it feels like to be in the metaphorical gutter staring up at the stars going "Yeah, how the fuck am I ever gonna get there?"
But, 15+ years out from being in that place, I can say, "Shit, idk kiddo, it just kind of happens. One thing leads to another and one day you wake up married to a woman you love more than anything in an apartment full of both of your things and everything is ok."
When I was a kid my high school library had two gay books. TWO. GAY. BOOKS. And you had to special request them. Which just about sealed I was never looking at them unless some kind of rulebreaking happened. (And I know we've got someone roaming around here going - "back in my day we had 0 gay books" - also, true. You dear reader win the extra bonus surviving the gay loneliness trophy!)
One was Am I blue? and the other was Annie on My Mind. And I snuck into the locked library of my VERY CATHOLIC school on off periods and read "Annie on My Mind" with another more "sensible" book as an outside sleeve. Contraband lesbianism. It was a revelation.
I thought I was the first gay person on earth (despite holding that book). I thought. OH SHIT, I'VE RUINED EVERYTHING. MY MOTHER WILL NEVER FORGIVE ME. NO ONE WILL EVER LOVE ME. I WILL NEVER FIND MY PERSON. LIFE IS DARKNESS. It was all very real. And very scary. And I wouldn't wish that kind of being young again on anyone.
But, seriously, it does get better. SO MUCH BETTER. Ridiculously better. Eventually with wife too!
Yeah not as simplified as if they simply Transfigured themself into an animal. In that case they wouldn't even keep their human mind. The book said:
>While in their animal form, they retain most of their ability to think as a human, their own sense of identity and their memories. [...] However, feelings and emotions are simplified and they will have many animal desires
I had a book called "Two-Minute Mysteries" when I was a kid. The mysteries were a lot like what you're describing. Amazon also shows a lot of similar knockoffs, although I believe "Two-Minute Mysteries" was the original.
Yeah, I second the Pottermore notes. They're a lot of fun and especially good for backstory on some of my favorite characters.
You can find them on Amazon too, here's one example - https://www.amazon.com/Hogwarts-Hardship-Dangerous-Pottermore-Presents-ebook/dp/B01JLXETNK/ref=sr\_1\_1?crid=1KYL3870UEPU6&keywords=pottermore&qid=1663022132&sprefix=pottermore%2Caps%2C127&sr=8-1
This is one of the ebooks Rowling published with the most important writings she did for the old Pottermore. I don't know if this is on the Wizarding World website nowadays. The new website sucks.
Not exactly clear, but in the description of how to become an Animagi which Rowling wrote in one of her E-Books it is noted that it's always the animal that becomes your patronus.
>The animal into which one turns, if an Animagus, seems always to be that which becomes the Patronus. There is no known instance of the Animagus form changing to match the Patronus if the latter changes, but the Animagus who can also produce a Patronus is highly unusual and no study has ever been done on sufficient numbers to draw firm conclusions.
So stuff like personality probably plays a role. Though names probably also affect things somewhat, as Sirius Black turned into a large Black Dog(Sirius himself being named after the Dog Star)
I'll give an off-the-wall recommendation: Two stories by Rosemary Timperley - "Christmas Meeting" and "Harry". She is not a popular author now, but was prolific in her time.
Roald Dahl had this to say about her, in the intro to his 1983 collection of hand-picked ghost stories ("Roald Dahl's Book of Ghost Stories"):
'The first batch of fifty or so stories I read were so bad it was difficult to finish them. They were trivial, poorly written and not in the least spooky. Spookiness is, after all, the real purpose of the ghost story. It should give you the creeps and disturb your thoughts. The stories I was reading did none of this. Some of the worst ones were written by the most famous writers... Then suddenly a bright star flashed across the murky sky. I had found a good one. The end of it gave me the shivers. It was called 'Harry' by Rosemary Timperley. That bucked me up and I went on with my labours... After I had read altogether some three hundred published stories, I had succeeded in discovering seven good ones.'
Fun fact: Rosemary Timperley was the only author to be featured twice in this collection!
At any rate, her work is highly recommended.
Short stories from hogwarts. They are digital releases from jkr! It’s great! I had a great time reading all 3 of them. Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies (Kindle Single) (Pottermore Presents Book 1) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01JLXETNK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_H.CaGb7GMHDNR
Yes, but that is an advanced ability.
It's mentioned as part of the process of becoming an animagus in one of the E-books Rowling wrote.
> 10.To return to a human form, visualise your human self as clearly as you can. This should be sufficient, but do not panic if the transformation does not occur immediately. With practice, you will be able to slip in and out of your animal form at will, simply by visualising the creature. Advanced Animagi can transform without wands.
Highly recommend Short stories written as a supplement to the books. Also if you're interested in some fan fiction I really enjoyed Herminone's POV
Its already revealed in the the E-Books Rowling wrote, Short Stories from Hogwarts of Heroism, Hardship and Dangerous Hobbies.
Someone posted the specific part about the process of becoming a Animagus here on Tumblr.
They're really cool illustrations! In case you missed my edit, there's another version called The Chronicles of Harris Burdick, where famous authors have written stories to accompany the illustrations: https://www.amazon.com/Chronicles-Harris-Burdick-Fourteen-Introduction/dp/0547548109
I remember being really pleased by the Jewish vampire story in this book: https://www.amazon.com/Vampires-Collection-Original-Jane-Yolen/dp/0060502223
Also, apparently there's a long history of Jewish werewolf stories, sometimes commingling with miracle-working rebbe stories.
This is definitely it, OP -- the story in particular is "The Case of the Home Bakery", from the first Two-Minute Mysteries.
Am I Blue? Coming Out From the Silence is a collection of short stories, both fiction and non-fiction. I really enjoyed this one, hope you do as well. :)
I love the His Dark Materials trilogy. If this helps, Amazon has the trilogy as a single volume.
A modern classic;
In order of preference; The Subtle Knife, The Golden Compass, then The Amber Spyglass. While I liked much of how he handled the last book, I think there was some room for improvement on how the heavenly hordes and the final bad guy were characterized.
Have you seen The Chronicles of Harris Burdick: Fourteen Amazing Authors Tell the Tales , it's got 14 famous authors writing short stories about the original Chronicles.
Here it is. It's an anthology of zombie stories and unicorn stories; It's kind of funny, it's two teams of authors trying to prove which is better.
Whoohoo!
Speaking of unicorns --> Zombies Vs Unicorns. Awesome, fun read.