August 25, 2025 By Maria
While stores and social media are preparing for Halloween and back to school, I am intent on enjoying what’s left of the summer with my family. Especially the time we have left before school starts again. Don’t get me wrong, I love autumn. It is probably my favorite season between the weather, gorgeous leaves, and that cozy feeling I get preparing for winter. However, summer has its own magic and that’s what I am focusing on today. I love flowers and fairies, and I especially love stories with beautiful art that combine the two. The books I chose to write about here are a mix of both.
As Peter Pan asked in J.M. Barrie’s classic book, “Do you believe in fairies?” Well, I think you might if you read The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz. It is an absolutely charming middle grade novel about the mishap and adventures of a tiny fairy, named Flory. The story is sweet and enduring, and Flory’s character development took me by surprise. The illustrations by Angela Barrett in this book are even more lovely than her gorgeous version of Hans Christian Anderson’s The Wild Swans that I loved as a kid. I read The Night Fairy last summer and then aloud to my kids right after I finished it the first time. I would have absolutely loved reading it as a child. We enjoy watching for “signs” of fairies as the seasons grow colder and comparing our neighborhood squirrels to Flory’s friend, Skuggle. Do you ever watch for fairies in your neighborhood?
Another magical and fairy themed middle grade novel I read last summer was The Hidden Forest by Dainty Jensen and illustrated by Alan Baker. It checked all my childhood imagination boxes. There are fairies, talking animals, mermaids, a secret magical forest and adventure. This story is about a girl working through her grief after her father’s passing. The focus was not on Adelaide’s grief, but on her journey back to living and enjoying life in the present through the healing of her imagination. I also loved the setting of the book – her grandparents’ home in a small island town with a beautiful garden and spectacular town library. I really enjoyed reading this book. It sparked my childhood imagination and warmed my heart.
This summer, my oldest son found a very fun and imaginative book for me to read. He brought it to me in the library with a little smile on his face saying, “I think you would like to read this.” He was definitely right. If Flowers were Little Monsters by Claire Le Men is part field guide and part fantasy. It is translated from French and contains cultural background and history of each flower’s cultivation and use. After the factual information, the author describes each flower as very imaginative monster versions. The illustrations are lovely. The monsters are creative and fun, and the information was intriguing. I learned things I hadn’t learned before, especially about the diversities within a species. My younger son asked me to read it aloud last night and we finished about half of it snuggled on a cozy chair together before bedtime.
Even though the summer is more than half over, let’s try to enjoy the rest of it. What’s magical about the summer to you? Is it the laid-back schedules and beach days or the fact that you can go out without a coat or jacket? I love how time slows down a bit or at least it feels that way. We spend more time together, more time outdoors or traveling, and on fun or creative projects. That feels a little magical, doesn’t it?
More Bookshelves Please 