The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies

Product Information

It was also very fun, because I took turns reading the poems with my neice, who sometimes put them to her own tunes. It is too bad that Barker did not have access to the internet, or she would have found flowers for "U" and "X": "ursinia" and "xylobium. We have the collection as smaller individual copies which also have their charm, sometimes bigger books seem overwhelming and lose the magic, however in this case, all is as it should be. Because of ill-health she was educated at home and largely taught herself to draw and paint, encouraged by a supportive family and assisted by membership of the Croydon Art Society.

Cicely Mary Barker was the illustrator who created the famous Flower Fairies; those ethereal smiling children with butterfly wings. 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. When Cicely Mary Barker wrote and illustrated her first book, Flower Fairies of the Spring, little could she have imagined that it would be the foremost title in a best-selling series that remains beloved almost 100 years later. Featuring a fascinating introduction by Val McDermid and new illustrations by Juan Esteban Rodríguez, each copy has been signed by both the introducer and the illustrator.I loved the Flower Fairies so much when I was young and now being able to read this with my daughter was such a lovely experience. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average.

She was only sixteen when she had her first work accepted for publication as a set of postcards, and from that time she devoted her career to painting. Folio commissioned Hokyoung Kim for the artwork, while the late author’s wife, Wendy Benchley, provides a fascinating new introduction. I bought this beautiful book as a gift for a friend's great-granddaughter who is 4 years old and still hoping to find her first fairy. 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.

I've already reviewed all the individual publications contained in this book, so I'll keep this review short and sweet and focused more onhte format details herein.

Barker does a beautiful job with the details--they were considered equal to "botanist" standards at the time (since things were drawn more than photographed in her time). The artist`s skill brings all her paintings to life, there is not one fairy that is not beautiful,unique,fascinating and completely delicious.CMB's fairies are full of exuberance and joy (and, sometimes, the gentle pause of contemplation) love of nature and the wonder of childhood. Her paintings of the fairies with the flowers are beautiful and encouraged me to take up painting and hope to become an artist one day (I did but her fairies stand alone). An important factor to it's charm is that CMB drew the picture and then wrote the poems, truly capturing the personality of it all. Each poem is individually presented on the facing page to its relevant painting, just as in the first editions of Barker’s little volumes, while our font has been carefully selected for its close resemblance to the original. 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.

Since the publication of Cicely Mary Barker’s first book in 1923, the Flower Fairies have been ethereal companions to generations of readers around the world. The book has the complete collection of poems of Cicely Mary Barker divided in sections with the drawings in great quality and detail. Featuring extraordinary illustrations by Clive Hicks-Jenkins and an exclusive introduction by Janina Ramirez, each of the 750 numbered copies has been signed by both contributors. The entire read is a magical experience filled with load of educational information and beyond cute in so many delightful ways! All of the plants and flowers depicted in Barker’s paintings are easily identifiable in gardens, parks and woodlands, so these beautiful characters can educate as well as entertain.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. Today, almost thirty years after her death, her work continues to offer delights that have stood the test of time.