British-born Cicely Mary Barker began creating her delightful fairy
images in the first half of the twentieth century. She was born in 1895
and became a published artist in her sixteenth year. She went on to
publish seven books featuring her fairy images prior to her death.
I recently purchased a pristine copy of "The Complete Book of the
Flower Fairies". It is a compilation of all of those seven books,
and I couldn't be more tickled to add it to my library. It's so lovely.
Her plant and flower images are botanically accurate, and those little
fairies are so captivating. I could look at them for hours upon hours.
The seven original Barker books become individual chapters in this one.
There are myriad endearing fairies for every season, fairies of the garden,
fairies of the trees, fairies of the wayside...and
Fairies from "A"...
to "Z".
In addition to all these splendid images, there are accompanying poems
written by the author. Her graceful children's images, combined with her
words in poetry, make for a sweet glimpse into a more innocent time.
As I take in 189 pages of her words and images, it's easy to believe that
these charming, little fairy children actually live among us. One can hope.
I love those Fairies. You lucky thing to have such a beautiful book.
ReplyDeleteI love these and had the books as a child. So sweet!
ReplyDeleteI have always loved her images of fairies and plants. This must be a treasure of a book to include all seven of her works. Library wealth is wonderful. Creative Bliss Dear...
ReplyDeleteI grew up with her books and was delighted that they were reprinted and I could share them with my daughter and later my granddaughters
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your lovely book as I do it is also on my bookshelf.
The Flower Fairies are wonderful! Yes, they truly do live among the flowers!!! Her drawings are inspiring and so beautiful.
ReplyDelete~Tanya
I read an article on her one time and she actually used her students in a kindergarten class for her fairy muses. I have some of the fabric with her fairies on them.
ReplyDelete