The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies

Product Information

Seamus Heaney’s deeply felt interpretation, widely acknowledged as the greatest Beowulf translation of modern times, is presented in parallel with the Old English verse in this fabulous Folio edition. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. This new Folio Society box set sees Barker’s exquisite paintings and nature-inspired poems presented as a complete collection, in an exclusive new layout that best displays these imaginative illustrated verses. Printed full-colour throughout, featuring all existing fairy illustrations, plus further decorative line drawings.

This collector's favorite has been redesigned and now features a lavish, eye-catching jacket with silver foil. If I'm being honest, some of the poems are better than others, but I love the whole concept so much and the art is always five stars in my book. It taught me to recognise many flowers, a lot I remember to this day and her poems accompanying them are charming. The bloodthirsty biographies of the world’s most infamous pirates are reproduced in this Folio edition of Captain Charles Johnson’s renowned work, including original woodcut illustrations and a fascinating introduction by Margarette Lincoln. Enjoy the classic, complete collection of Cicely Mary Barker's original Flower Fairies books in this brand-new edition.Obviously I was planning on slowly tracking down the remainder of the flower fairies books for my collection, and this book proves why we collectors make a point of gathering multiple editions or reissued work! An exclusive new Folio edition, Letters from Fairyland features exquisite miniature envelopes filled with heartfelt letters from Fairyland, and is lavishly illustrated with Charles van Sandwyk’s enchanting illustrations. This complete collection of Cicely Mary Barker’s Flower Fairies features a brand-new enchanting cover.

This complete collection of Cicely Mary Barker's Flower Fairies features a brand-new enchanting cover. She found wider acclaim as an artist with her delightful Flower Fairies books, the first of which, Flower Fairies of the Spring, was printed in 1923. Years ago I wore out my little Flower Fairy books and it's delightful to be able to replace them - poor broken tatty things that they are - with a big, fancy all inclusive book! The connection of seeing and then writing what I see is a art form not often done or done well, but Cicely Mary Barker did it with absolute perfection!Mary Shelley's darkly disturbing tale is illustrated by Angela Barrett and newly introduced by Richard Holmes. The characters of all the humble flowers and trees we can see along the lanes, in the fields and gardens are charmingly captured, with little asides that immortalise country sayings and wisdom. The first adventure in the Folio Society editions of ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’ series, Enid Blyton’s The Enchanted Wood features Jonathan Burton’s enchanting illustrations and a new introduction by Michael Morpurgo. This exclusive Folio collection features 12 classic tales, including The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck and The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies. This collection is most complete and authentic that I've found, though reading a review elsewhere it sounds like editions pre-1990s are best as even these "complete" books in recent years have left out a few of the fairies.

My daughter has the earlier version and I purchased the newer version for my niece, as they both adore it. There were also several other memorable poems (for very different reasons though) such as: Traveller’s Joy, which sounds kind of ridiculous when read aloud, but this did elicit a lot of giggles from us; "Toadflax" sounds like a Harry Potter-esque swear word; and the Nightshade Berry fairy is straight up trying to murder children with his berries! El repartidor dejó el envío en el ascensor, evidentemente para no responder ante qué le había ocurrido al paquete para que estuviese así.

There is a useful index, an introduction about Cicely Mary Barker – which is fairly short but long enough that most children will probably read it - and (of course) the poems and the pictures are just gorgeous. From Victorian Britain to the tech-savvy 20th century, the gentle enchantment and intimacy of the Flower Fairies ensure their enduring fascination and connection with the natural world. The groundbreaking debut novel of Hugo Award-winning author Becky Chambers, one of the most imaginative voices in contemporary science fiction, is a truly galactic limited edition.