Project Fairy: Discover a brand new magical adventure from Jacqueline Wilson

Product Information

Something that's not important to mention but I feel I want to because it's personal and relatable: Mab's mum works in a supermarket (grocery store to my US readers), and at first she is scared of her new boss because he appears cold and distant to her, and acts like he wants to fire her. But later on, he is kind and sweet to her; it's only the adjustment period that had stressed him out, and made him distant and seemingly scary. Yeah, I totally relate to that, in my own work in retail. When Mab's teacher gives her a book all about Victorian fairies, she's surprised to see the drawings inside are nothing like the sweet fairies she imagined.

Jacqueline Wilson wrote her first novel when she was nine years old, and she has been writing ever since. She is now one of Britain’s bestselling and most beloved children’s authors. She has written over 100 books and is the creator of characters such as Tracy Beaker and Hetty Feather. More than forty million copies of her books have been sold. JW has shown she's not afraid to include LBGTQ characters in her kids' books before (though in my opinion, 'Rent a Bridesmaid' contains her one true positive rep), and in 'Project Fairy', there is only the slight implication of queer content. When we first see Robin's group of five-year-old friends, a girl and a boy want him for a boyfriend. He agrees to be a boyfriend to both. Of course, this could be viewed as merely toddlers being cute (Mum is like, "Awe bless 'em!") and not understanding how relationships work. Plus the girl and boy aren't named and they don't appear again afterwards. Mab mentions her neighbours Michael and Lee twice or three times, and they might be a gay couple, but we never meet them, so am I reaching? Best-selling author Jacqueline Wilson adds an entertaining new take on fairies in a typically warm hearted story woven round her more familiar themes of friendships, families and finding your place in the world. She calls a boy out on making a sexist remark, too. Is she an avatar, a proxy, of JW trying to be feminist and sensitive nowadays after all? I can only tell when a character is not white by the illustrations. Did JW have a hand in that? Edie is fascinated by Victorian times, and she's just desperate to be cast in the lead role of her drama club production of Oliver. When she's given a real Victorian notebook she's determined to write the best story ever, all about a girl in a workhouse. But when she starts writing, something strange happens.

Retailers:

Mabs was just so jarring at points, with her strange grasp of... I don't even know how to word it. Maybe that was the point of her character, I don't know, but as an adult, it's easier to see through her supposed maturity at a poor attempt at being politically correct. Mabs criticises someone for "fat-shaming" when they refer to her as a "lump" (referring to her size, as the person in question was about seven centimetres tall) and goes on to call another boy sexist, which comes across as quite out of character for a nine or ten-year-old. In conclusion, as predictable as 'Project Fairy' is - to me, who is well versed in JW's formulas - and as silly and nonsensical as the kids' book is, I'm pleased I gave it a chance, and gave Jacqueline Wilson a second chance. I am well aware I am around two decades past her predominant target audience now (OW, that is depressing), and I shouldn't judge too harshly. Likely I'll never read any other new novels by her, unless Rachael Dean's pretty and colourful covers can strike my childlike whimsy heart again, but it was worth a shot. Nothing lost, nothing wasted. Fairies are real! Or is it the little girl protag Mab's imagination, born out of sadness and desperation? You can come to your own conclusion after finishing it. I think the fairies, who are not so sweet and saccharine like you see in other children's media, are intended to be real in 'Project Fairy'.

As well as winning many awards for her books, including the Children's Book of the Year, Jacqueline is a former Children's Laureate, and in 2008 she was appointed a Dame. I really love how realistically the storyline with Mabs' dad comes across, too. Without spoiling the plot, he doesn't serve as some fairytale prince coming to whisk Mabs' mum off her feet, but for what he is... a coward, and a failure. But it doesn't really matter, because Mabs' mum is trying her best to stay happy and healthy, and the kids are well-rounded and have everything they need. The illustrations and depictions of their lives are just so cosy. When Mab comes into school with a new fairy dress on her birthday, her teacher gives her a book all about Victorian fairies. She reads it with her mum and her little brother Robin, and she's surprised to see the drawings inside are nothing like the sweet fairies she imagined.Mabs like rats and snakes and jungles and other cool "boy" things. Why is this not also expanded upon? In the end, as a reward for caring for her, Bindweed grants a wish for Mab and she meets her father once again. Mab realises he is an absolute, cowardly loser without any self esteem or strength…. How had she not seen it all along? Her and her mum and brother do a runner and go home. Then and there, they realise that their father didn’t deserve them and their peaceful, cosy warm lives. They continue living on, with their mums new boyfriend and Bindweed meeting her cult, I mean family, once again. The reveal later down the line that Mab's parents were never married is an offhanded, whatever remark. Cool. As well as winning many awards for her books, including the Children’s Book of the Year, Jacqueline is a former Children’s Laureate, and in 2008 she was appointed a Dame.