The Ickabog was J.K. Rowling’s 2020 children’s fantasy book first shared online for free.
Rowling published the story in instalments on a dedicated website between May and July 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic. She had originally written it years earlier and described it as a political fairy tale. The plot takes place in the fictional kingdom of Cornucopia, where a feared creature called the Ickabog becomes entangled with deception and political power.
A print edition followed in November 2020, and the project included a children’s illustration competition. Rowling donated her royalties from the book to her charitable trust, Volant, to support groups affected by the pandemic. The Ickabog is separate from Harry Potter and is not set at Hogwarts, despite both works involving fantasy, invented creatures, and young readers.