“Beyond The Wand” by Tom Felton

I mentioned on this blog before that I love reading biographies so it is no surprise I picked “Beyond The Wand: The Magic And Mayhem Of Growing Up A Wizard” by Tom Felton. I like the Harry Potter series but I would not say that I am a huge fan. Mostly, I like them because it was a bonding experience with my dad when I was younger – we would watch movies together and it was our way to spend time with each other. The reason why I picked up this book is perhaps that I was mainly interested in the behind-the-scenes of a big movie project rather than in Tom Felton himself.

The book definitely gave me a glimpse of what happens on a huge movie set and it was truly fascinating to see that part. However, I did not like how the book itself was written. Each chapter started and progressed in the same way – first, the author would describe his experience and then say what lessons he learned from it and how grateful he is to the people mentioned in that chapter. At some point, it felt like a book of “thanks” to everyone he met rather than a candid and honest account of how he felt, what he went through of what he thought during a particular time of his life. The part of the book where I got really into it was about his experience of going to rehab and escaping from there because it felt like the most genuine part that really focused on his life. Other than that, the book fell a bit flat for me.

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“I didn’t appreciate it in that moment, but my tears were teaching me another important lesson. An audience can go back and watch a film any number of times they want. It’s always there for them. For the cast and crew, the relationship with a film is more complex. The magic is in the making, and that process is a discreet unit of time in the past.”

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“Nobody took me to one side and said, “Son, this is how you are supposed to behave on a film set.” I learned just as much from what these people didn’t do as from what they did. They didn’t demand special treatment. They didn’t raise their voices or make a fuss about anything. It was much later in my career that I learned this is not always the norm.”

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“So here it goes. I’m no longer shy of putting my hands up and saying: I’m not okay. To this day I never know which version of myself I’m going to wake up to. It can happen that the smallest chores or decisions – brushing my teeth, hanging up a towel, should I have tea or coffee – overwhelm me. Sometimes I find the best way to get through the day is by setting myself tiny, achievable goals that take me from one minute to the text. If you sometimes feel like that, you are not alone, and I urge you to talk about it to someone. It’s easy to bask in the sun, not so easy to enjoy the rain. But one can’t exist without the other. The weather always changes. Feelings of sadness and happiness deserve equal mental screen time.”

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“The only true currency we have in life is the effect we have on those around us.”

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The last quote I can definitely agree with 🙂

If you are a fan of Harry Potter, you will probably enjoy this book. If you are a fan of biographies, you can skip this one.