Saturday, February 25, 2017

Review - Do Fairies Bring the Spring?

Do Fairies Bring the Spring?
by Eliza Gardner Walsh
illustrated by Hazel Mitchell
Date: 2017
Publisher: Down East Books
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 34
Format: e-book
Source: library

After a long winter's rest with little to do,
are the fairies ready to start something new,

Do they use tiny brushes and oil pastels
to paint crocuses, lilacs, and daffodils?

Everyone knows fairies love spring flowers and summer sun, but is it the fairies who wake up the earth as the snow melts? Do they entice the trees to turn green and the flowers to grow? In this charming follow up to Where Do Fairies Go When It Snows, Liza Gardner Walsh, acclaimed author of the Fairy House Handbook and Fairy Garden Handbook, explores the matter in a children's picture book of rhyming questions. Combined with delightful illustrations by Hazel Mitchell this whimsical book will help children discover the world of fairies and learn to enjoy and appreciate the outdoors.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This little book has cute pictures, but for me the illustrations were a little too cute. The bright pastel colours are a bit much, and as an adult I really wasn't a fan of the look (little kids would probably love it, though).

The premise is interesting, though it's taken a bit too far for my taste. I would've preferred not to have the bit in the back about how to support butterflies and birds--the fairies' friends--in the garden, as the implication is that fairies are completely real. I'm all for magic in childhood, so I'm not quite sure why this rubbed me the wrong way. But it did.

The verse left me cold. The meter isn't terrible, but it doesn't exactly flow off the tongue. For a book that's likely meant to be read over and over again, out loud, I was hoping for the rhyme and rhythm to be a little cleaner.

All in all, it's not a terrible book, but it has limited appeal. My favourite picture books are ones that can be enjoyed by adults as well. This one seems more like it was intended for preschoolers who are going through a fairy-princess phase.

Quotable moment:

Does this pitter-patter wake
the natural world up
so we'll soon have
lovely flowers to pluck?

Recommended to: very young children

Premise: 2/5
Meter: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 2/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 1/5

Overall: 2.33 out of 5

2 comments:

  1. My niece would ADORE this I think. She's so obsessed with fairies/princesses/ballerinas...she's a complete stereotype basically but at least she has fun.😂 Sadness about the rhyme meter being weird though. That always bugs me if I'm reading aloud and it just doesn't flow well...

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    1. Yeah... If you're reading it to yourself (in your head), it's probably not as bad. I gave it a try out loud, though, and had to give some of the rhymes more than one attempt before I got the rhythm right.

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