“In the Realm of the Never Fairies” offers a detailed look at Disney’s newest fantasy world

Jim Hill

18 years ago

Do you believe in fairies?

Seems like a simple enough question, don’t you think? But — before you answer — you may want to consider picking up a copy of “In the Realm of the Never Fairies: The Secret World of Pixie Hollow” (Disney Press, September 2006).

Why For? Well, just as the title suggests, this handsome hardcover gives its readers a detailed look at the formerly secret world of the “Disney Fairies.”

Clearly modeled after two earlier best sellers …

Copyright Harry N. Abrams

… Wil Huygen & Rien Poortvliet’s “Gnomes” (Harry N. Abrams, May 1977) and Brian Froud & Alan Lee’s “Faeries” (Harry N. Abrams, November 1978), “In the Realm of the Never Fairies” is a hyper-detailed text. Loaded with beautiful paintings of such Pixie Hollow locales as the Home Tree …

… More importantly, the homes of the actual fairies who live in the Home Tree.

“In the Realm of the Never Fairies” attempts to give you an overview of Disney’s latest fantasy world. It walks you through the hierarchy of Pixie Hollow, where wise & kind Queen Clarion rules over all …

… as well as explaining the day-to-day aspects of the Fairy World (I.E. Where the food that the fairies eat comes from …

… and where the fairies go to eat that food once it’s been prepared).

This 144-page book attempts to covers all aspects of the world of the “Disney Fairies.” Everything from the specialized types of “talents” that each of these sprites possess (Below, you’ll see an illustration of a quartet of water fairies honing their craft) …

… to how pixies play. What activities (like frog racing) do the “Disney fairies” indulge in during their free time.

And — as you might expect — “In the Realm of the Never Fairies” does touch on the sprite that started it all: Tinker Bell.

Only now we get to see where Tink hangs out when she’s not pal-ing around with Peter Pan. As her name suggests, Miss Bell is a tinker. As in: One who repairs pots and kettles. In fact, if you look closely at the illustration below, you’ll see that Tinker Bell’s workshop is actually a discarded tea kettle.

Of course, some Disney purists may be upset to learn that — in the realm of the Never Fairies, anyway — that Tink has a secret admirer, Terence. He’s the sparrow man (I.E. Male fairies are called sparrow men) who manufactures all of the pixie dust for Pixie Hollow. And Terence has a particularly soft spot when it comes to Miss Bell.

And me? Well, I have to admit that I have kind of a soft spot when it comes to “In the Realm of the Never Fairies.”

Oh, sure. I know. This hardcover is just another part of the on-going roll-out of the “Disney Fairies” franchise. Another carefully crafted piece of the well-thought-out campaign that’s ultimately leading up to the November 2007 release of Buena Vista Home Entertainment’s “Tinker Bell and the Ring of Belief.”

But — that said — “The Secret World of Pixie Hollow” is not something that was just quickly slapped together in order to further the “Disney Fairies” franchise. Clearly a lot of care & craft went into this book’s creation. Me personally, I think that this handsome handcover is worth picking up just for its amazing illustrations (Which were all created by the sadly-unnamed “Disney Storybook Artists”).

Then — when you add in Monique Peterson’s text (Which has just enough of a tongue-in-cheek touch that you can genuinely enjoy reading this pseudo-scholarly work) … Well, if you’re already a fantasy fan, “In the Realm of the Never Fairies” should be a really fun read for you.

And even if you’re not a fantasy fan, “The Secret World of Pixie Hollow” is still worth picking up. If only so you can then get a better understanding of the Walt Disney Company’s next big franchise, the “Disney Fairies.”

But what about you folks? Does the fact that the Mouse thought enough of its latest franchise to create an encyclopedia / atlas for this new fantasy world for its fans make you any more interested in exploring the world of the “Disney Fairies”? Or do you still think that it stinks that Disney Consumer Products dared to give Tink a new set of pals?

Your thoughts?