Inspired by real events, this book presents the story of Frances and Elsie, two young girls enamored of nature who one day decide to photograph the fairies living around them. The illustration style is very soft, and intimate and works perfectly to create a universe of poetry and vivid creativity. The writing style is good and displays with elegance the emotions of the two girls. A charming book that I enjoyed reading.

The Cottingley Fairies is a charming picture book based on a true story. In 1918, two girls in Cottingley - a village in Yorkshire - photographed fairies in their garden. The story is told from the girls' perspective, who want to share their magical world with the adults around them. Unexpectedly, people paid attention, most notably Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The question was, are the photos real or doctored? Doyle strongly advocated that the photos were genuine. What ever the truth, the curiosity of adults has them swarming the girls' precious world.

I thought this was a delightful story. It reminded me of my own childhood, playing in the woods and imagining stories and magical occurrences. The artwork was absolutely beautiful - the soft, muted colors and wispy lines went along perfectly with the magic of the tale.

The book ends with a message that really stuck with me - just because you're an adult, doesn't mean you have to stop believing in the magic you believed in as a child. This makes the story accessible to both young and old readers.

Overall, this was a luscious and endearing book - I could see myself reading it again, or reading it to a child in the future.

The original urban legend and all the feels in 48 pages. As a mom raising VERY imaginative kids in another turbulent historical time, this book made me cry.
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Frances and her older cousin Elsie spend most of their time in their beloved forest, avoiding the “hard and sharp” adult world of England recovering from WWI. Determined to be taken seriously by their parents, they attempt to photograph their dear friends the forest fairies, and find them less than cooperative. (Hey, if they weren’t pranksters, they wouldn’t be fairies, duh!)
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In an ends-justify-the means scheme, the girls make do with photographs of paper cutouts… which get the attention of a “famous writer called Arthur” (That’s SIR Arthur Conan Doyle to you, kiddo). The ensuing spectacle fills the Cottingley forest with adults not quite willing to stop believing, and two girls badly missing their fairy friends.
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The Cottingley Fairies incident is a sad and complex case with many fascinating sociological dimensions; at 48 pages this book is a poignant intro. Author/illustrator Sender’s heartfelt text and gentle watercolor illustrations draw us into the wistful magic of Frances’ world throughout her life. 🧚‍♀️ Give this book to kids who are interested in weird history, psychology, or who maybe aren’t quite ready to stop believing in magic.

Ana Sender takes on a story about a true scandal from the early 1900s England. Elsie and Frances are two young, sweet girls growing up on the English countryside, where they use their imagination to play in the forest all day with their fairies. They notice how adults are filled with worries about war, and decide to take pictures of their fairies. The pictures are shared, and defended by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, bringing thoughts and serious questions to adults minds; do fairies really exist?

With beautiful, whimsical illustrations, _The Cottingley Fairies_ is part historical fiction, part a reminder of the importance of imagination and play in all humans.

As a note, a copy of this novel was sent to me via NetGalley by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.

Oh, my. The Cottingley Fairies is magical and charming, I am overwhelmed by its sweetness. It is everything I hoped it would be and I cannot wait to share it with my goddaughter upon official release. Ana Sender takes these familiar real life events and puts a delightful spin on the effects of lies, truths, and the magic of childhood storytelling.

Kids will be smitten with The Cottingley Fairies and their parents will be just the same. Not only is the story simple and fast, the minimalist illustrations will tug a smile at your lips. I thought that the way that Sender told the story, as an almost retrospect from one of the girls in her later years, only added to the magic and atmosphere of it.

I really, really enjoyed this and that aching feeling of how we once viewed the world as children, to how we view it now. The Cottingley Fairies is a winning combination of childhood joy, imagination and magic, with a hint of how out of control falsehoods can really get.

I first fell in love with the cover of The Cottingley Fairies, and after I read in the blurb it was based on true events I was fully intrigued. Proof that fairies really exist, and a reference to the famous author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle? It cannot get more intriguing than that. I was looking forward to find out more about Elsie and Frances' story, since this was the first time I had heard about it. In the end I was unfortunately quite underwhelmed by The Cottingley Fairies. The first thing that stood out for me had to do with the illustrations. While I loved the cover illustration, I wasn't so sure about the rest of the picture book in general. They felt a bit simple and almost unfinished to me, and lacked that 'magical' feel that would have worked better with this story. I don't think children are as attracted to the illustrations as it is. That said, I wasn't really convinced by the text either. The story paints the fairies as something that really exists and the 'proof' are photos the girls actually confess to have fabricated themselves. Fairies made out of paper are shown instead of 'real' fairies, and even though in the back the story is explained and it's said that Frances until the day she died stood by her words that fairies are real, it's really hard to believe. Also, I think the story kind of shone a negative light on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I'm sure little children will still find this story entertaining enough, but it's best to treat The Cottingley Fairies as a little fairy tale and not really look for a deeper meaning behind it.

This, is a fantasy novel I wish i'd have had the chance to read as a child. It contains an innate illustrious draw, the sisters world, combined with the dialogue, and the illustrations whimsical elements, tells the story effectively. The entire construction was wonderful, and I appreciate the authors narrative style, and well as the world and character building - specifically when accompanied by the illustrations.

Extraordinary story about a magical forest seen only by children. After the children are taking pictures of the fairies the adults are more interested about the forest, but the magical creatures do not appear for them. I find the illustrations magnificent.
''This is the story, narrated by Elsie herself, of the true events.''
Thank you Netgalley and the author for this lovely copy.

If I can be honest, something that is missing from this book is.... that I need it to be longer. I feel like it's happening quite fast. I just feel like I need it to be more detail.
But, I seriously love how this book based on a true events. I always appreciate story that is inspired by true events. The illustrations are adorable, and would make a lovely collection in your home :)

The Cottingley Fairies is a book I wish I had been able to read as a small child. Imaginative, short, and yet full circle. The whimsical illustrations draw the reader into the sisters' world, and the accompanying text is minimal but tells the story well. I had heard of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's involvement with the Cottingley Fairy pictures, but would never have thought to look for a book telling the story for children! It was just adorable and I think will be a wonderful addition to any library for children.

I also appreciated the note at the end of the book, clarifying the actual known facts of the story. Very intriguing!

The Cottingley Fairies is a classic story that I remember hearing about this true story behind the tale several years ago. Although it turned out the girls made everything up, it's still a lovely story nonetheless. The book itself is a retelling of the tale as if it were true, which is completely okay with me.

The illustrations are very lovely, and drawn in what is quickly becoming one of my favorite styles.

This book is short and sweet, probably a good bedtime story for a young child. (I even read it with a Celtic cradle song in the background and it matched perfectly!)

The story is exactly everything you’ve heard about the Cottingley Fairies and nothing more; it doesn’t verge away from that or elaborate further. It even mentions Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s fascination with the subject.

The illustrations are gentle and sweet, with a rough-around-the-edges childlike quality to them. I felt they help to portray the story as the children saw it, since it describes them drawing, coloring, and cutting the fairies out of paper. It almost feels like Elsie herself drew the pictures.

I would recommend this to very small children who would like to find fairies in the trees.

In the early days of photography, in the mid 1800s, two little girls took photos of what they said, were fairies in their garden. An perhaps because photography was so new, or perhaps because people just wanted to believe, everyone thought they were real, and come to the gardens to see for themselves.

The girls never admitted that they had made up the fairies. And in the book, they insist that the reason they made paper fairies and photographed them was because the real fairies wouldn't stay still long enough

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And OK story, but told as though what the children said was true, about the cut-out faries.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

An excellently illustrated and intriguing look at one of the world's most interesting stories of fairies in the woods. A welcome addition to any classroom.

What a beautiful retelling of the infamous story. The illustrations are stunning and the tale doesn’t assume you already know. It’s approach is fair, playful and charming.

In the 1910s, two cousins in West Yorkshire, England became famous after releasing photographs of what they claimed to be real fairies. Many people were tricked into believing the girls, including – infamously – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle of Sherlock Holmes fame.

It was decades before one of the women involved admitted that the pictures were faked; the other maintained until her death that while four were fake, the fifth and final one was real.

I remember learning about these “fairies” as a child, but the fact they were fake was never in question.

Any author of a children’s book on this topic is going to have to make the decision: do you present facts, or do you go along with the assertion that the fifth image really was of fairies?

Ana Sender has chosen to finish her book with the possibility fairies do, in fact, exist, and that the girls really photographed them.

A smart choice? A silly one? Coming from someone who never believed in Santa, I’m probably not the best one to judge…

Sender’s take on the “Cottingley Fairies” uses childlike illustrations, which will appeal to some readers, while others will prefer something more magical for the subject matter. I’ve noticed a trend in this sort of illustration in recent children’s books.

Unfortunately, my review copy was disastrous. In ebook form, it began halfway through the book, the text didn’t appear until the midway point, and I was glad there wasn’t a lot of it to decipher the order of!

As always, buy books for younger readers in paper form.

Wrapped up fantasy and perfect for a wide range of readers, I would gladly add this book to my classroom shelf. Imaginative!

It's a big well done to this book – seriously, the words 'well' and 'done' might as well be in upper case. This combines mysticism, fantasy and history, and never excludes one from the other. The real world facts are that two girls got to be famous for being photographed quite winsomely alongside fairies – and only admitted in their dotage that the fabulous beasts were made of card and pinned in place. But one of the ladies alleged permanently that the pictures were inspired by real events and real encounters with the little folk. This book takes that as the truth – that the real fairies were too busy blowing raspberries at camera (and even, in fact, mooning) for decent images to be made. So the girls had to resort to fabrication. Whatever the case, this picture book – you seldom get more than a couple of sentences per spread – opens the young audience up to that world. Discuss it with them and you may well find your young companion privy to the world of the fairies – but will that be for real, or only through the pages of fiction? I could have wished for a slightly better design, as some images and faces aren't the most attractive, but this really does work. It's fantasy and fact combined (OK, perhaps it's only fact – these pages demand you think the jury is still out) and it's really very pleasant indeed. A strong four stars.

I first read about the Cottingley Fairy hoax some time during elementary school, and I did so with utter fascination, because even though I knew the girls involved had debunked their own story long ago, I still found it delightfully creepy. There was just something about those pictures... And of course I couldn't believe how well-drawn those paper clippings were! I loved the illustrations accompanying this recount of the case, and how it interwove the actual events with an alternative supernatural truth. I just don't think that a child without prior knowledge of the fake fairy encounters would appreciate this cute book as much? Or maybe, on the contrary, it's going to give rise to another generation of fae-obsessed kids, who knows.

*thank you to Netgalley and North South Books Inc. for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

2 stars.

This was just OK. The story was told well enough for little kids to understand. The fact that the illustrations were drawn in a childlike way would be either a hit or miss for you. For me, i didn't really like them so much but I do believe other people would actually prefer this style. I don't really have much to say about this as I just didnt connect with it. But as I said, I can see why some children would like it. Just wasnt for me so much and my little niece probably wouldn't like it as much either. I'm not saying it is a bad book though, just not one I'd read again.