Fairy School Dropout

The picture is too small to really read the blurbs on the cover, so let me just type them out for you (clockwise):

Pointing to Hair - hair isn't neat and shiny
Pointing to Backpack - backpack isn't full of perfect homework
Pointing to Wand - wand hasn't been charged
Pointing to Skateboard - fairies are not supposed to skateboard
Pointing to Pants - should be wearing itchy tutu, not cool jeans
Pointing to Wing - wings are showing - what if a human saw them?

This is of course the awesome cover to Fairy School Dropout. Also Fairy School Dropout is a fantastic title, every time I see it I hear the tune to Beauty School Dropout in my head, with an image from the movie Greece. I really liked the movie Greece, I think I saw it over 30 times in high school and college. It's been a while though, maybe I should netflix it. Tom (my husband) would be very annoyed if I did, the movie Greece was not made for men, and then neither is the book Fairy School Dropout. With it's pink cover and purple print inside (yes purple) this is a book for girls, youngish girls 7 to 10-year-olds will love it. And it isn't all packaging, it is a cute story too. Who can dislike a rogue fairy?

Ode to Cicely Mary Barker

Cicely Mary Barker

1895-1973

Cicely Mary Barker suffered from epilepsy, so that she was unable to go to school and was educated at home. When she was 15 her father submitted her drawings to a stationery printer, who bought four of them for greeting cards. Her father died when she was 17, and Cicely Mary Barker's art sales became the main source of income for herself, her sister, and her mother. Her first book, Flower Fairies of the Spring was published in 1923, and it was a hit.

I love her illustrations because the fairies look like real children.This is appropriate as Cicely Mary Barker used live models for all her illustrations, usually children from her sister's kindergarten class. She would paint the child with a flower in his or her hand, enlarging the flower to the size of the child in the paintings. These flower fairies were often given characteristics similar to their live models.

In today's world of Barbie, and overly sexualized Disney Pixies, I love to see beautiful fairies that haven't reached puberty. Her poems are lovely, though not really geared to kids. In fact when Flower Fairies of the Spring first came out I think it was marketed to adults. She wrote a total of seven books, complete with flower fairy illustrations and accompanying verses. These books are all still in print, and I think they just put a new "cooler" cover on them this year.

But more than what she wrote, I love the books that Cicely Mary Barker's work inspired. Penguin, the publisher that owns the rights to her work, has stories about the fairies that are based on the characteristics she gave each one in her original verses. They have pop-ups and newly discovered flower fairy journals. These are the books for kids, and they are wonderful.

Fairy & Princess Books

I just found out my friend's 4-year-old daughter, Mollie, has cancer.

http://www.allaboutmollie.blogspot.com/

With a situation so frightening, I tend to feel helpless, and worse, unable to help. But Mollie likes fairies and princesses, so the least I could do was send some books. This list includes the four books I sent Mollie, and some additional favorite fairy titles.

Princess Fairy Tales by Margaret Clark
In opening "The Classic Treasury of Princess Fairy Tales" one will find refuge in a quiet, sun-dappled forest where magic still can and does happen. Featuring eight of the best loved princess heroines of all time, from Cinderella to Sleeping Beauty, little girls will revel in the fantasy world the beautifully rich artwork creates and long for the stories to never end. (Click on the picture to link to Spellbinder's Website to see details.)


Flower Fairies Alphabet Colouring Book by Mary Cicely Barker
Mary Cicely Barker is the queen of the flower fairies. She has beautiful books of poetry and her illustrations are incredible. This colouring (British spelling) book introduces young children to the alphabet with the help of Barker's delightful Flower Fairies. From A to Z, there is a Flower Fairy to color in for each letter of the alphabet. Constructed of heavy paper suitable for crayons, marker, or paints. Line drawings. (Click on the picture to link to Spellbinder's Website to see details.)

Everything Princess!: My First Tiara & Gemstone Activity Book with Sticker and Other Jewelry by Alex Toys
The title really says it all, but the official description is: "This lavish kit is perfect for every little girl who dreams of being a princess Inside you'll find a pretty pink tiara, die-cut and visible through the front cover, 120 gemstone stickers, 5 large jewels, an adjustable ring, cuff bracelet, and best of all--a special pop-up vanity mirror So not only can girls decorate, then wear, their very own princess creations, but they can also check out their new princess looks in their very own mylar mirror Inside the full-color book are fun princess-themed activities on 40 card stock pages, including 8 punch-out pages to make a magic wand, a princess fan, a picture frame, and so much more." (Click on the picture to link to Spellbinder's Website to see details.)

Fairies: Clipboard Activity Pack with Sticker & Poster & Stencils & Note Pad & Activity Guide by DK Publishing
I have biases for and against certain publishers, and DK is one of my favorites. I love their graphics and the quality (paper and binding) of their books. While this fairy activity pack isn't quite as extensive as the princess one listed above, it's still quite nice, and it is less than half the price. (Click on the pictures to link to Spellbinder's Website to see details.)


Fairyopolis & How To Find Flower Fairies by Mary Cicely Barker
I know I said it before, but Mary Cicely Barker is the queen of flower fairies. Fairyopolis is supposed to be her long lost journal. It is very cool, though a little hard to read. How To find Flower Fairies is an incredible pop-up book, it's my favorite of the two. Robert Sabuda is coming out with a separate fairy pop-up book this summer, and I'm sure that will be wonderful as well. (Click on the picture to link to Spellbinder's Website to see details.)


Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg by Gail Carson Levine
This chapter book introduces young readers to the fairy community that Tinkerbell lives in when she is away from Peter Pan. There may be a TV series attached as well, I'm out of the TV loop. This is a Disney book and I have to admit that Disney is one of those publishers I am biased against. However, this book is not only beautiful, it is written by Gail Carson Levine, who received a Newbery Honor Award for Ella Enchanted. Disney or no Disney, Gail Carson Levine can write! This book is great. (Click on the picture to link to Spellbinder's Website to see details.)