RIPPLE GROVE

Take a fairy-filled walk through the woods.

One pleasant day, Dad introduces his daughter, Stella, to Ripple Grove and tells her a story about the fairies who live there and protect the forest. He believes the fairies are real. Will she? Larson employs three different styles of illustrations: the first, lush mossy green forest and underground scenes; the second, a labeled cartoonish drawing identifying the characters; and the last, annotated maps of Ripple Grove and its multilayered magical world of the Underground Meadow, where an underground River with No Name helps magic crystals grow, and Hobb Hill, home of the Trelfs, “a dirty, rotten bunch who didn’t take care of their trees, or soil, or water” and whose land is dying. The Trelfs want to steal the crystals and keep all the magic while letting Ripple Grove and the fairies waste away. Dad’s storytelling, illustrations that turn somber, and well-timed page turns capture this tense conflict between good and evil as the tiny fairies defend their home from the giant Trelfs. At the end of the father’s tale, the pair head home. The story could end at Stella’s bedtime, but it doesn’t. Subtle hints in earlier scenes—a portfolio tucked under Dad’s arm—make sense when Dad gets to work drawing after Stella is asleep. Though younger children will enjoy hearing this read aloud, older ones will pore over the in-depth artwork. Both father and daughter present White; the magical beings vary in skin tone. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A well-told tale sure to enchant older and younger readers alike.