“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. You can reflect on that unit of time, you can be proud of it, but you can’t revisit it.” – 3.75/5 stars!

Attention! This book contains: long trains, amazing performances, perfect roles, child actors, old friendships, rehabilitation centers, a lot of magic and several “breaths of fresh air”.

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.

This was a very pleasant reading experience! I truly enjoyed this more than I thought I would and I flew through the pages in no time.
In this memoir, Tom Felton takes us through his personal journey, starting from the moment he became a child actor to his most recent struggles with addiction. This book was mostly focused on his work as an actor, but we also get a glimpse of his childhood and the years after the Harry Potter movies were shot.
A big part of the book is what we already expected: a lot of Harry Potter set stories and fun moments shared with the rest of the cast. I enjoyed these chapters the most because we get so many fun stories! Tom was born to play Draco. Just like Daniel, Rupert and Emma were perfect for the roles of Harry, Ron and Hermione, Tom was a perfect Draco. The casting directors did an amazing job finding kids that acted like their characters! Tom speaks very fondly of his castmates and it was a joy to listen!
I came to the conclusion that what makes this memoir so cool – besides all the cool Harry Potter references, of course – is Tom’s honesty. He seems like a very sweet and down-to-Earth person, and he is very appreciative of everyone around him. I had no idea he went to rehab, or even that he had a problem with substance abuse. Fortunately he didn’t give up and he went through the recovery process! He talks about his problems very openly, and I appreciate his honesty as a reader.
This is a great book for Harry Potter fans for obvious reasons, but now I have a new respect for Tom. I’m surprised by his talent, honesty and personality. Definitely worth checking out!