Delivered Thursday evening - a wide, flat parcel, wrapped in green paper, with a note attached.
Lucy,
I'm sure it's a bit odd to be receiving a Christmas gift over a week before the actual day (well, maybe only just over). However, I'm going to be spending the holiday in Sweden with my family and we've been very busy packing things and otherwise preparing to travel and leave everything in order at home. And of course, once we're there, we'll be similarly occupied with the usual.
So, I thought I'd send this early and if you'd want to wait til the actual day or not is up to you. I was at Diagon Alley with my sister and this seemed like something you'd like (and I didn't see it in the books you had before). They stopped publishing this about 100 years ago, so it's not exactly up-to-date. But it's probably quite interesting for someone studying the topic seriously. And you Ravenclaws all like old books, right? Kidding.
Happy Christmas - I hope all is going well for you at home.
- Nikolas
(the book is entitledA Comprehensive History of Animagus Studies & Other Beast-Related Magical Arts (3rd Edition, published 1886, foreword by Protea Delphine).