ENCYCLOPEDIA MYTHOLOGICA:
FAIRIES AND MAGICAL CREATURES
by Matthew Reinhart and Robert Sabuda
Candlewick Press
ISBN: 9780763631727
Ages 5-up
12 pages

Despite the sad-looking fairy on the front cover, FAIRIES AND MAGICAL CREATURES by Matthew Reinhart and Robert Sabuda is lovely to look at and great fun to read. The first installment in the Encyclopedia Mythologica series, it is a colorful and imaginative pop-up book that goes beyond the simple unfolding of paper.

Reinhart and Sabuda's text is simple and straightforward, though far from dull. They explore the myths of fairies and magical creatures from all around the world. Most of us are familiar with the "Fay" of European folktales, and they are just the starting point for the authors, who bring us the Pegasus of ancient Greece, the Chinese baku, the Inuit Kul and the aquatic Mami Wata of South Africa.

Though this is a children's book, there is nothing silly about it. On the first page we learn how the tale of the fairy queen Titania inspired Shakespeare and how in 1695 a French courtier named Charles Perrault became the father of the fairy tale when he began to write stories for children.

From the familiar figures of goblins, hobgoblins, elves and gnomes to the less familiar but equally interesting Middle Eastern karkadan, Brazilian Yemanja and the Serbian cikavac, readers will be enchanted. From mythological (hamadryads and sylphs) to folkloric (brownies and sprites) to infamous hoaxes (P.T. Barnum and the Cottingley cousins), this book packs in tons of information in less than 20 pages.

FAIRIES AND MAGICAL CREATURES is treasure-filled with a big pop-up on each page surrounded by more little pop-ups, flaps and even flaps within flaps. Some of the pop-ups move as the pages are turned to give readers a sense of action and transformation, a perfect complement to the book's theme. It feels hefty and has quality paper and gorgeous illustrations, sure to invoke a sense of wonder and amazement in readers of all ages. The construction is complicated but doesn't distract from the stories Reinhart and Sabuda are trying to tell. Instead, the whole of this book seems as magical as the creatures it describes.

While a bit feminine in appearance and perhaps in theme, this is not strictly a little girl's book. In it are fierce and mischievous figures sure to capture the imagination of children (and adults) with all kinds of interests.

        --- Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman

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