Fairy Hunters, Ink: 10/18/09

Fairy Hunters, Ink by Sheila A. Dane is most like Gnomes and the numerous Monstrology books that seem to be coming on the market now. It is presented as an oversized heavily illustrated encyclopedia / fictional memoir of fairy hunting.

The book mostly focuses on fairies in domestic environments: pockets, teacups, sock drawers and so forth. With the bright color illustrations and the inclusion of every day items Fairy Hunters, Ink attempts to bring magic and whimsy into the mundane.

Fairies though outside of Disney and Barrie are usually dangerous and sneaky creatures. Having read a large number of Neil Gaiman books this year, I came to Fairy Hunters, Ink seeing fairies in their traditional fashion.

The "button" fairy ends up being very creepy in light of Coraline. They have an unhealthy fascination with buttons, stealing loose ones off clothing and hoarding them for their own use. Button Fairies only hang out with "True Friends" who are creatures who sport buttons. Can anyone say "button eyes?"

Another unfortunately named type of fairy is the "blue bottle." "Blue Bottles" make me think immediately of a large type of fly whose larvae are often found on corpses and other rotting meat. Again, this may be true to spirit of traditional fairies but probably not the direction the book was aiming for.

If you have a less jaded view of fairies you will probably like this book more than I did. I have since released my review copy to a bookcrossing friend.

Comments (0)