Fairy Rebel [Paperback]

Lynne Reid Banks (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

Everyone knows grown-ups never get to see fairies -- they don't even believe in them. But one day Jan, a grown-up, was sitting in her garden feeling sad when suddenly discovered that fairies can be very real -- and quite extraordinary...

Tiki knew she'd be taking a terrible chance if she defied the Fairy Queen and used her power to help a human, but Jan was crying because she wanted so much to have a baby. Tiki, who was the kind of fairy who didn't always obey her queen, just had to do something...

Soon, Jan's dream comes true, and she and her husband have a wonderful little baby girl. But Tiki has angered the queen and now she and her human friends are up against the dark and chilling fury of a leader who will not hestitate to unleash her most terrifying powers against them.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A "comfortable, old-fashioned read," said PW, about the "naughty but cou rageous" fairy Tiki, who defies her queen to give a childless couple a baby. A fierce conflict ensues when the fairy ruler tries to exact revenge. Ages 10- up.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5 Jan and Charlie long for a child but are unable to have one. In the garden, Jan meets Tiki, an unusual, spirited fairy who prefers jeans to pink frills and converses with Jan in spite of the anti-person rules of the tyrannical Fairy Queen. Tiki decides to use her powers to help Jan. However, she mixes up the requests for brown hair and blue eyes and must appeal to the Queen for more power. The Queen punishes Tiki by locking her in a hornets' nest. Thus begins a tale of magic, suspense, and adventure. The baby, Bindi, is born with 20 magic blue hairs at the nape of her neck, but the Fairy Queen and her evil hornet henchmen are an ever-present threat. Banks has woven yet another successful fantasy. Her management of detail and character create a tense atmosphere. The magical elements are consistent throughout, and the descriptions of the Queen and the hornets are realistically frightening. As a result, the suspense builds to a tingling climax that resolves in a satisfying conclusion. A compelling fantasy that will appeal to children, whether read aloud or alone. Marion B. Hanes, New York Public Library
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: HarperTrophy (October 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380706504
• ISBN-13: 978-0380706501
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #950,471 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lynne Reid Banks is a best-selling author for children and adults. Her classic children's novel 'The Indian in the Cupboard' has sold nearly six million copies worldwide. She was born in London in 1929 and worked as an actress, writer and TV news reporter. Lynne has written thirty books: her first, 'The L-Shaped Room', was published in 1960. She now lives in Dorset, where she continues to write. Lynne says that writing for children comes much more easily than writing for adults. Tony Ross was born in London in 1938. He has worked as an art director at an advertising agency, a graphic designer, a cartoonist, a teacher, a film maker and as a Senior Lecturer in Art at Manchester Polytechnic.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming, simple, a la Mary Poppins--it will make you smile!, June 17, 2003

By 

Gwen A Orel (Millburn, New Jersey United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fairy Rebel (Paperback)

Don't be fooled by the slim length and simple, straightforward telling of this story-- this is a treat for adults as well as for children. The simplicity of the storytelling reminds me of the Mary Poppins books-- there's more here than meets the eye.

I especially love that the story begins by telling us that if we go to school in London we might meet a little girl called Bindi, with an unusual history. That immediately makes this world of magic "real!"

Unusually for a children's book, the story begins by having us empathize with Jan, a sad bride and former child actress whose career was cut short by a leg injury, and who wants more than anything else to have a child. She is out in the garden weeping over her loneliness when she is startled by Tiki, a fairy who has been "earthed" (i.e., touched a human) when she couldn't follow her friend Wiljic through Jan's toes. Wiljic is mischievous and knew that Tiki was too fat to get through!

Tiki is wearing jeans under her frilly fairy skirt, although it's forbidden by the fairy queen-- "we love her"-- Tiki says loudly-- and fascinated by Jan's loneliness and tears. The lovely insouciance of all of the fairies-- when we eventually meet Wiljic it's too discover he longs for savory foods like boiled egg and is sick of nectar and nasturtium-- is just one of the many details that lend reality to this story. We also know right away that there is trouble in fairyland if the queen makes her subjects so nervous.

Tiki arranges for Jan to have a fairy baby (start a pregancy with a little help) and gets herself and Wiljic in trouble. Meanwhile, Bindi is a nearly perfect human child, with just a small tuft of blue hair... but the fairy queen has not forgotten the disobediance that led to her birth!

This story has all the elements of classic fairy tales but is set in a recognizable modern world. Characters are drawn quickly but have enormous personality-- in the chapter where Bindi wears a wasp necklace sent by the fairy queen which influences her to misbehave, we quickly get a feeling for her school companions, too. That kind of clear, sharp writing reminds me a bit of Lewis and the Narnian chronicles.

My only complaint about this book is that it isn't longer-- although it's just the length it needs to be!

A must-read for anyone needing a smile and a flash of delight.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars From someone who read it years ago..., July 7, 2000

By 

MB-F (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fairy Rebel (Paperback)

I first read tis book years ago- literally! I was in a school library in Australia and I picked it up, and loved it at the age of 8. I never re-read it although I thought about it a few times when I got a litle older, and I actually tried to look for the book but had forgotten the name... Now that i've re-found it, let me tell all the potential readers out there that this is one of the most imaginative childrens books out there. Even if you don't believe in fairies, the story of Jan and Charlie who want a child- a wish granted by a jeans wearing rebelious fairy- is one that will entertain and amuse even an older audience. If you're 8 or 16, it's a book that should be read by children of all ages who need the spark of magic in their lives to flare up.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally found this book after years of searching!, September 5, 2006

By 

B. Emmons (Connecticut, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Fairy Rebel (Paperback)

I read this book more than once when I was in elementary school. Over the years, I lost the title and have been searching everywhere for it. I'm so excited to see it's reprinted and still out there for kids to read. I'm also surprised to find out it's by one of my favorite childhood authors. I loved "The Indian in the Cupboard" as well. I would recommend this to any child, or adult, who loves fantasy. There are some parts that are a little scary if I remember correctly though. I still have to reread it : )