31 DAYS DAY THREE : FAERIES WITH GIVEAWAY

 FAERIES  

 In the Irish language the word for faery is (shee) derived from the word Hindustani meaning "something which controls the elements". They are also known as  The Good Folk,  The Wee OnesThem Who Prowl. With their reputation for tricks and tormenting humans  is it any wonder that they are closely linked with Halloween ? Faeries have become very popular in the last decade. There is a tradition of Faerie belief  that is closely tied to Ireland and Scotland. According to Irish Lore the Tuatha de Danann, a type of Faery royalty is active on October 31st after sundown. Leaving  a small offering of your crops to the Tuatha de Danann was thought to give your home a great blessing. However unharvested crops  were thought to be attacked by Phookas, dark faeries who will render the crops inedible. There are two main groups of faeries:  The Seelie Court whose names translates to Blessed The Unseelie Court  whose name translates to Damned Today I'm hosting a Review and Giveaway of this wonderful book:  

  This is also the 4th book for this challenge:  

  

   Modern Fairies, Dwarves, Goblins, and Other Nasties: A Practical Guide by Miss Edythe McFate by Lesley M.M. Blume


My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Perhaps you think fairies are figments of the imagination, or even relics of an ancient past. You may even think all fairies are lovely winged creatures, who dance in bluebell fields, granting wishes to anyone who should encounter them.
You would be wrong on all counts.
Fairies are very much alive today, and they are everywhere—in our cities, our backyards, and even our kitchen cupboards. Some of them are indeed the sweet-tempered, winged creatures of folklore, but the fairy family also includes goblins, trolls, brownies, and other strange creatures, some of which are revealed to humans in this book for the very first time. While many fairy breeds are harmless, others can be quite nasty or even dangerous. Good Reads
I would best describe this book as Faeries Gone Dark! This book is a manual of sorts. It gives you lots of useful information like:


How to tell a Good Fair from a Bad One

Music and Faeries

Why Fairies Covet Human Babies
Why You Shouldn't Trust Fairy Godmothers
There are also 8 cautionary Tales describing several Human/Faerie encounters. As a bonus all these stories take place in New York City


Illustrator David Foote pictures give this book a wonderful spooky feeling. He varies his art a little each story, showcasing his talents and giving each character a different feel. Here are a few of my favorite stories from the book:   

Beyond the Brass Doors in the Lincoln Tunnel



Young George and his family take weekend getaways that often take them through the crowded Lincoln Tunnel. Once while sitting in traffic George sees a mysterious little man open one of the many utility doors that line the inside of the Tunnel. His parents cant see the small creature like George who is gifted with the "Fairy Sight". Stuck once again in traffic on the following weekend George sees another little person at the door and jumps from his parents car and follows him in the tunnel. These little men are actually Dwarves and they are tending a very large garden deep into the earth. These aren't ordinary trees though, their fruits are actually Rubies. Greed of course consumes George as he tries to runaway with the largest ruby. A very cautionary tale about the price one pays for stealing from the Dwarves. I liked David's illustrations of George in this book he is spoiled and impatient and his pudgy frame and scowling eyes really match the writers description of the character.


Unlikely Performances at Carnegie Hall



In this story we are introduced to the Libretto a music faery. Of course they inhabit Carnegie Hall, a mecca of fine musicians. The Libretto however demand excellence in music and respect. When musical prodigies and spoiled brats, The Destinatus Twins come to the hall an immense showdown commences. The twins have "The Sight " as well so they don't fall prey to the normal Faery tricks others have succumbed to.The battle rages before a stunned audience as the twins fight the Libretto while still putting on a world class performance.

I had never heard of the Libretto faeries before this story was Lot's of fun as the spoiled girls are taught a lesson.




The Number One Train

"We must not look at goblin men, we must not buy their fruits: Who knows upon what soil they fed Their hungry, thirst roots"


This story is about Goblins. While waiting for the train, young musician Felix notices a very curious rat collecting strange items littering the subway floor. Later he is confronted and held captive by a group of Goblins. He finds six other children there as well, all captives from different time periods all forced to serve the goblins. Felix is bought to entertain them with his guitar music.The other children are resigned to their fate but Felix tries to find a way to escape. When he notices a specific song (Stair Way To Heaven ;) actually freezes the Goblins in place he attempts a daring escape. I enjoyed this story it had some dark creepy bits and you really root for Felix and the other kids to escape.



The Ballad of Big Edd



This one is about a mermaid, actually a Lorelei. Lorelei are known for leading sailors to their death with their haunting song. Big Edd a boat captain with whom young Imogene gets rides to New York with, comes across one of them. She is not a great singer and is entranced by Edd. Imogene not realising what she is tries to help her get Ed's attention not realising the danger she is putting them all in. This story was a little humorous as Imogene tries to discover what makes women attractive to men, Edd still isn't able to see the Lorelei and it creates a little riff in their friendship.Finally Imogene brings a record player with a beautiful song for the Lorelei to memorise.It succeeds more than Imogen ever thought. This story was a little sad and creepy, beautiful illustrations.


Overall a beautiful volume with fun, creepy, Faerie lore.


I have One ARC of this book to give away!!!RULESUSA ONLYYOU MUST BE 13YRS OLD TO ENTERLEAVE A COMMENT WITH YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESSCONTEST ENDS 10/8/10

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