“What if there were a world where fairies lived… where they played music and danced and sang under the light of the fireflies? The wonder of it is that there is such a place. It is the world of Disney Fairies …”
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And so begins a tale that the folks who run Disney Consumer Products hope will eventually end with the phrase:
” … and Mickey made a mountain of money off of the successful launch of his brand-new product line.”
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Make no mistake, folks. Mickey has some very ambitious goals for the “Disney Fairies” property. If everything goes according to plan, the “DF” product line will eventually grow to rival the “Disney Princess” franchise. Which currently makes over $3 billion a year for the Walt Disney Company.
But — for now — given that the reported purpose of the “Disney Fairies” franchise is that it’s supposed to teach the young girls of the world about ” … the secret, tiny world of Tinker Bell and her fairy friends,” it’s only appropriate that this property start off small. With a single story that establishes the main premise of this property.
Which is why Disney Publishing hired Newbery Award-winning author Gail Carson Levine to write a book. One that would establish who the key players in Fairy Haven were. What the rules of this new world were.
And Levine delivered in spades. Her book — “Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg” — does a masterful job of expanding on the world that we first visited in Walt Disney Studios’ 1953 release, “Peter Pan.” Ah, but who knew that there was so much more to learn about Never Land? That Tinker Bell — for example — …
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… had a gift for repairing pots, pans and tea kettles? Or that Ms. Bell had friends like Beck …
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… who was great at working with animals. Or Rani …
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… who does wonders with water. Or Prilla …
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… who — to be honest — isn’t quite sure what’s she’s good at yet.
In fact, that’s the whole point of “Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg.” It details Prilla’s arrival in Fairy Haven and her efforts to determine what her true talents might be.
Mind you, if you’d like get a sense of what Ms. Levine’s novel might read like, you can follow this link over to the official “Disney Fairies” web page. Where Disney’s posted the entire first chapter of the book.
Which you may think is rather generous of the Mouse. Until you realize that “Fairy Dust and the Quest of the Egg” isn’t supposed to officially go on sale at bookstores around the country ’til September 20th. Which means that you’ll now have to wait more than a month to find out what happens after Prilla arrves in Fairy Haven.
There is — however — a way around that month-long waiting period. On Sunday, August 28th, the Disney Gallery will be holding a special “Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg” signing & product release. This event will begin at 1 p.m. in the Brisa Courtyard area of the Grand Californian Hotel at the Disneyland Resort with Gail reading an excerpt from the book.
Then — starting at 2:30 p.m. — Ms. Levine will be joined by David Christiana, “Fairy Dust” ‘s illustrator as well as Margaret Kerry, the veteran Hollywood performer who originally posed for Disney artists as they were trying to get a handle on what Tinker Bell should look like.
These three will be autographing copies of “”Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg.” In addition to the book, Disney Gallery personnel will be selling several other “Disney Fairies” -related items. Including a petite print version of one of Christiana’s illustrations, a Tinker Bell sculpture as well as “Disney Fairies” dangle pin.
Of course, the big advantage of attending this Disney Gallery-sponsored event is that you’ll be able to get your hands on “Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg” a month ahead of everyone else. So you’ll be among the first people to learn what the deal is Fira …
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… as well as Bess & Lily.
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So if you want to be one of the very first Disneyana fans to experience Never Land’s newest neighborhood, make a beeline for the second star to the right … er … the Grand California Hotel on Sunday, August 28th and pick up a copy of “Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg” at the this Disney Gallery-sponsored signing and product release.