Philippa Fisher and the dream-maker's daughter

Gr 5-7-Ever since becoming friendly with a fairy named Daisy in Philippa's Fairy Godsister (Candlewick, 2008), 11-year-old Philippa continues to look for magic. When she wins a vacation to the place of her choice, she and her loving but eccentric parents can't decide where to go until an unusual butterfly lands on a place called Ravenleigh Woods, shown on the map as a forest with a river running through it. The butterfly is indeed a magical creature-a fairy with a message to deliver. The vacation is really a rescue mission, saving dreams and the family of the fairy Dream Maker. Philippa gains a friend, helps her learn to grieve for her mother, and discovers that saying goodbye is just "a step along a journey, not the end of it." Two narrative voices are used: one is of Daisy, a member of the fairy organization known as ATC (Above the Clouds), and the other, Philippa's. The voices are differentiated by typeface; they create mystery and tension and lend different points of view to the same action. Dreams, magic, loyalty, and friendship abound in this well-paced, engaging book. Though complementary to the first title, it can be read independent of it.-Maria B. Salvadore, formerly at Washington DC Public Library (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In this somewhat darker follow-up to the fanciful Philippa Fisher's Fairy Godsister (2008), lonely Philippa, just shy of 12, is ensconced on a rainy cottage vacation with her lovable hippie parents and faced with some mature issues of grief and death. Missing her new best fairy friend Daisy, the prickly "godsister" of her former adventure, Philippa chooses her family's vacation to Ravenleigh Woods after a butterfly suggestively lands there on the map. The butterfly, of course, is her own dear fairy, trying to send discreet messages to Philippa to involve her in the life of a bookstore owner's daughter, Robyn, whose family, in happier times, used to live in the cottage the Fishers have rented for vacation. Robyn's mother has recently died, leaving her father rigid with sadness and so determined to protect his daughter from the natural grieving process that he "stunts" her by actually filtering her bad dreams with a "dream catcher." Kessler addresses hefty themes in this compelling storynightmares, the scary dadand allows the girls' friendship to assuage painful feelings of growing up. (Fantasy. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.