Customer Reviews

The Fairies: Photographic Evidence of the Existence of Another World

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a 14-year-old girl who has always had an interest in fairies - at one time I believed that they were real, and I even had "fairy friends" of my own. Looking at Suza Scalora's magical book brought those feelings all back. The pictures are absolutely wonderful and truly realistic. The old-fashioned text adds the final touch! I love the "field guides" to all the fairies - where they can be found and at what time of year, what they like as bait, etc. Each fairy brought out a different emotion in me: longing, happiness, fear. The face of Vivian, the malicious Brazilian fairy, haunted me for days! Although I knew the pictures weren't totally real, by the time I closed the book, I wanted to go on a fairy hunt of my own.

I really like Scalora's photography, but the text and premise were a bit twee for my taste. An archaeologist travels around the world, snapping photographs of "real" faeries: bright, slick, colorful photos of beautiful girls and young women in wings and paint, and not much more. Like I said, the photos are a real treat, but I wouldn't bother with any of the superfluous and unimpressive text: it attempts the whimsy of Brian Froud's faerie manuals, without any of the wry humor and irony that make his books fun to read. As a consequence, it seems to appeal to those readers who like to gush about "believing" in "real faeries". I do hope that they realize that this book is fantasy, not a field guide.

For those interested in seeing more of her work...

Got this book for my daughter who can't keep her eyes off of it. Suza has done a fantastic job of visually conveying another reality. It appeals to me as an adult from a purely aesthetic point of view and it appeals to my daughter as a beautiful work on a subject close to her heart. Very unique, very visionary.

I love mythological creatures, and this book had such imagination in that area. It had beautiful glossy color pictures of fairies. They looked so enchating and colorful. It worked the imagination with the information given. My favorite fairy was Twyla. This book gives all believers hope and is fit for all ages because it's always good to believe in a little magic.

While reading The Fairies I was entranced. It made me actually believe in them! That is until I got to the last page. The credits. They had things like: set design and wings, etc. It was a great disappointment to me and I don't think they should've put it in there. It completely ruined the feeling I had from reading the book.

As a child I lived and believed in the fairy world, but somewhere along the line I lost contact with these magical beings.

While the writing style and visual presentation of "The Fairies" appeals strongly to the adult mind and the content totally captivates the imagination, Scalora's skillful writing and the beautiful technique used to display the pictures allowed me to visualize myself again in the land of the fairies. This book is beautifully done and immediately becomes a viable link to dormant imaginations.

An archeologist goes out in search of photographic evidence of fairies after coming across a 19th century fairy field journal. Suitable for all ages.

The book is set up like a bird watcher's picture journal. Fairies are cataloged in order of sighting, listing common/latin names, origin, history, place of sighting, notes, etc facing a photograph of the fairy in question. The photos vary depending on how close the archeologist was able to get to the fairy and how fast that fairy was moving. Every inch of the book not taken up with text or photos is full of Scalora's paintings.

I recommend this book for anyone who has enjoyed the Pressed Fairies' series or the Flower Fairies books.

I can't quite decide what this book is. Is it a pretty book meant to be displayed? Is it a modern day faerie tale... literally? What I do know is that Scalora has presented us with a series of photographs designed to delight and amaze not only faerie afficionados but also anyone who delights in color and composition. I have to admit it; I find myself occasionally paging through the book to look at a picture or three without reading the text. Scalora has a terrific photographic sense, particularly in terms of color. (It's no accident that one of her websites is dedicated to the use and meaning of color...)

I've noticed, however, that there is some controversy over the text. Should it be there? Is it misleading? What's the deal? Well, for those of you who haven't read the book, the text tells us about how Scalora went around the world hunting down the faeries we see in the book. Each photograph is accompanied by a short description of where the faerie can be found and how to attract her. But ultimately, at the end of the book, we find a list of credits that show us that the story is just that: a story. The trip is just a cute, fanciful way to put the book together. And I for one think that it works.

Because even if the faeries aren't real, even if the trip never happened, the pictures are so gorgeous that they seem unreal. The idea of such a trip ever taking place is enough to fire my imagination, to make me think for a minute that such a thing might indeed be possible, that even though these aren't real faeries, I might be wandering through the woods one day and spy Eugenie the Emerald Forest Fairy snickering at me from behind a tree. So maybe it's not important that we know it's not real. Maybe what's important is that we read the book, enjoy the photos, and wonder... what if?

If you didn't believe in fairies before, you will... Suza Scalora has not only showed her beautiful and carefully detailed art on fairies, but her wit and playfulness as a writer. I commend her on the agility in capturing fairies on camera, their beauty and magic, as well as displaying her own thru them... to be treasured as an Art Book , for adults and children alike.

I'm a big collector of fairy art and this book is one of the most stunning pieces I've ever seen. The beauty and amazing colors of the pictures jump right out of the book and embrace the reader, opening the door into an incredible world where both the sweet and the deadly live. I really don't see how anyone could not love this book, even though the pictures aren't real. That's right: The fairies in this book are NOT real, so don't buy the book with this misconception and then be disappointed. I'm not sure whether the story behind the pictures is real or not; either Scalora made it up for an entertaining read, or she really DID go on a quest to capture fairies and, being unable to capture them in genuine photographs, returned to America and provided realistic photographs instead. Either way, thank you for this incredible book, Ms. Scalora! For those of you who bought the book believing the photographs to be real, I understand your disappointment, but don't let this damage your faith. I'm still very much a believer, and I don't have any solid evidence. If you would like a book with beautiful pictures by someone who does believe in fairies, I recommend "Fairy Spells" by Claire Nahmad, "Healing with the fairies" oracle deck by Doreen Virtue, "The Fairie Journals" calendar (which has gorgeous photographs that are supposed to be real), and any work by the brilliant Brian and Wendy Froud. Light and peace to all believers! (And no, I am not gushing)