Fairy Houses All Year

I love the premise of the book and can't wait to see the finished product. It will make a great gift for my friends with young children.

We have recently redone our the landscaping area directly in front of our house. It used to be all bushes, which I have never liked. Something about how meticulous they have to look in order to be attractive has never appealed to me. I've always been partial to more of an English cottage garden, less structure, more natural growth. I've been planning this new area for a couple of years and fell in love with the idea of miniature gardens and houses.

This sweet little book gives ideas for anyone, young or old, who want to build miniature gardens or houses throughout every seasons. One of the neat ideas is to keep a journal throughout the year where you can write down ideas for materials that you find. They also suggest noting if you think fairies have visited. While our family does not have a problem playing make believe this is not something I would encourage my daughters to do because we try to make a clear distinction between reality and make-believe.

The photographs of children creating houses and pictures in nature are delightful. They are beautiful and fun. The children are clearly just having fun and creating, definitely not posed, which makes it more fun to read.

I really love the step-by-step guide right in the beginning for building simple enough for children to follow. I also like the suggestions for what to collect for each season. There are also some fun activities to make like dandelion chains and candied violets.

The only downside to the book in my opinion is the encouragement to fully believe in fairies. I know not everyone will agree with me on this, but we have always tried to distinguish truth from fiction. Is there any harm in children hearing fairy tales? I don't think so. We love telling fictional stories to our kids, especially ones that reflect truth from Scripture like The Chronicles of Narnia. At the same time we make a clear distinction between make-believe and reality because we never, ever want our children to think we have told them a make-believe story about Jesus and the miracles He performed, most importantly His death and resurrection which provides our salvation.

So, I did enjoy this book, but read with caution if you are concerned about how your children will perceive it.

Fairy Houses All Year (A Four-Season Handbook) by Liza Gardner Walsh was not at all what I was expecting. This is not a bad thing; in fact, it came as a wonderful surprise. Filled with fairy lore along with poetry, it gives freedom to a child’s imagination. After reading the digital version provided by the publisher, I purchased a print copy. It is a wonderful addition to the family library!

This book with it delightful illustrations of examples encourages children to look around them for the supplies to build the fairy homes. While I would run to the craft store now, many years ago as a child I would have scavenged the nearby woods and backyard for the materials. It made me put down the car keys and take a walk in the woods instead, seeing the possibilities all around, then on to making up a few fairy cakes.

Children of all ages would find delightful ideas in this book. I have a preschool grandson, who after seeing his mother’s fairy garden insisted that the fairies could use a farm. Right now his dream career is to be a farmer so he wanted to build a farm for the fairies. Perhaps older boys would not be as interested in this as older girls would be but anyone could explore this concept.

The publisher through Net Galley provided a copy.