The Real Fairy Storybook: Stories The Fairies Tell Themselves

The Real Fairy Storybook: Stories The Fairies Tell Themselves

Georgie Adams, illustrated by Sally Gardner, Orion

(US$9.95, from Amazon)

It's not often that you get a backstage pass to Fairyland. In The Real Fairy Storybook, winged wonders Blossom ('Royal Dressmaker, if you please'), Nightwing, Fancy, Trip and Pod tell fairy life like it is - while racing to finish the Fairy Queen's dress by midnight. This book, which alternates between charmingly haphazard fairy deeds and Blossom's witty narrative, will make any reader gurgle with delight.

That's because these fairies are not perfect. They do menial sewing jobs, they have trouble counting beyond single digits and they make groggy mistakes while temping as Tooth Fairies. But for all their flaws, or perhaps because of them, this motley crew is refreshingly engaging and down to earth - as far as that applies in a land of flying cakes and backfiring magic wands. Blossom's cajoling narrative ('Did you like that story? Do nod if you did') draws the reader in, as does Sally Gardner's riotous artwork.

Still, Fairyland may be fun, but if you're spoilt, greedy or dishonest, watch out. One fairy smothers the particularly spoilt Princess Curly Long Locks in her own ever-growing hair, and another casts a spell to make sure that robbers who walked off with a shopful of shoes keep on walking ... forever. An ungrateful, greedy stepmother ('I did not hear her say thank you') ends up back in the pumpkin house she hates, but hardworking and kind people get the riches they are ultimately worthy of.