Kathleen Hague

Ridiculously saccharine and nonsensical. Why wouldn't the mermaids comb their own hair? Why doesn't the unicorn's mother teach it to fly? Oh, wait, since when do unicorns fly? Sorry, I'm just too cynical to enjoy this. The pix are pretty, but don't feel real to me... the fairies could be mindless constructs, like golems. I guess it's supposed to be a sort of a dream, w/ no plot, no life or heart. But that's not enough for me.

I did consider giving it two stars, as it's not horrible, but I show more just can't quite bear to do so. show less

Just what you'd expect from the Hague's other works - a perfectly satisfactory original fairy tale with charming artwork. But somehow, to me, not all that special. It reads, to me, like just another tale in a traditional collection, not as one of the memorable ones. And I just can't appreciate what MH does with faces - leaves, clothing, etc. are lovely but I don't care what I see when I look into his characters faces. I will say this longish tale seemed predictable until the end, and then it show more had a little gentle twist that I really did like. So, actually let's say 3.5 stars. show less

Introduces a bear for each letter of the alphabet and describes its special qualities in rhyme.

Husband and wife team, Kathleen and Michael Hague have done it again! I have long been a fan of Michael Hague's lovely evocative illustrations and Kathleen's gentle prose for children but this book really is the perfect combination of their extensive talents. In a flowing script-like font the story takes us on a journey to Fairyland when a child asks his mother to tell him some things about fairy ways just as he is getting tucked into bed for the night. The mother knows lots of secret things show more about fairies. In Kathleen's light-hearted, kindly prose the mother explains that among many other things, they teach the birds how to sing, gather and care for all the toys that children have lost, comb the mermaids' hair, and dance in the twilight dressed in spiders' lace. Richly colored and filled with exquisite detail the double page illustrations are on every page so there are no dull pages with only text. Beautiful fairies and whimsical little gnomes and pixies crowd each page and engage in the many magics of the fairy realm. Mermaids of different races and ages relax and luxuriate in an ocean cove. There is one tiny fairy with a red cap that is hidden on each page so that a child may have the fun of pouring over the colorful details and searching to find him. The Hagues tell us that there are a total of 321 fairies in this book and challenge us to find all of them. This is a wonderful book to share with a child. show less