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A review by fairpersephone
A Natural History of Fairies by Emily Hawkins
4.0
I received a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. Thank you, Frances Lincoln Children's Books!
As a child, I was absolutely obsessed with fairies. I adored my Cicely Mary Barker collection (which I still have today), and it seems to me that A Natural History of Fairies could easily provoke the same joy and wonder in a child.
Not only is the art beautiful enough to inspire any little girl or boy, but there are nature facts skillfully woven in so that a young reader may learn something about the world. For example, we're informed that fairies have a fused collarbone like that of a bird and that their bones are hollow to allow them to fly, and the author goes into the migratory patterns of certain fairies and birds. Similarly, it's explained how fairies have evolved defences against predators like snakes, foxes, or spiders!
Other well-done aspects worth mentioning is that this book does not solely focus on European fairies, but rather imaginatively designs fairies suited for life in Amazonian, Arctic, or Asian climates. There's such wonderful diversity in skintones for the fairies, too, so that each reader may be able to find a fairy who looks like them - which is what I always did when poring over my Cicely Mary Barker!
Flipping through this lovely book was such a nostalgic experience for me and made me want to go out and explore. For a young child or adult with a sense of imagination, A Natural History of Fairies might well be the perfect gift!
As a child, I was absolutely obsessed with fairies. I adored my Cicely Mary Barker collection (which I still have today), and it seems to me that A Natural History of Fairies could easily provoke the same joy and wonder in a child.
Not only is the art beautiful enough to inspire any little girl or boy, but there are nature facts skillfully woven in so that a young reader may learn something about the world. For example, we're informed that fairies have a fused collarbone like that of a bird and that their bones are hollow to allow them to fly, and the author goes into the migratory patterns of certain fairies and birds. Similarly, it's explained how fairies have evolved defences against predators like snakes, foxes, or spiders!
Other well-done aspects worth mentioning is that this book does not solely focus on European fairies, but rather imaginatively designs fairies suited for life in Amazonian, Arctic, or Asian climates. There's such wonderful diversity in skintones for the fairies, too, so that each reader may be able to find a fairy who looks like them - which is what I always did when poring over my Cicely Mary Barker!
Flipping through this lovely book was such a nostalgic experience for me and made me want to go out and explore. For a young child or adult with a sense of imagination, A Natural History of Fairies might well be the perfect gift!