From Publishers Weekly
"Course there's spirits in the hills. How could there not be?" muses Aunt Lillian, the backwoods wise woman whose interaction with bee fairies and 'sangmen (tiny ginseng root fairies) sets up the connection the wild red-haired sisters have to the magical Otherworld in this appealing contemporary fairy tale from Canadian de Lint (Moonlight and Vine). It is a wild connection, indeed, because "it's dangerous for humans to be with fairies. It wakes things in you that can't be satisfied, leaving you with a hunger that lasts until the end of your days." These cautionary words come from old Aunt Lillian's true love, the Apple Tree Man, after young Sarah Jane Dillard rescues an injured 'sangman and unwittingly becomes involved in a romantic 'sangman vs. bee fairy conflict, which originated when a bee fairy princess fell in love and ran off with the wounded 'sangman. The middle child of a collection of engaging and sometimes downright incorrigible sisters, Sarah Jane, along with Adie, Laurel and Bess (musical twins), Elsie, Ruth and Grace (the youngest twins), are all drawn into this Otherworldly feud that can be resolved only after much delightful malingering by storyteller de Lint. This long-awaited collaboration between de Lint and noted illustrator Charles Vess, World Fantasy Award-winning artist and past collaborator with Neil Gaiman and Jeff Smith, weaves a gentle and at times humorous enchantment, suitable for fantasy fans of all ages. (Mar. 19)Girl (Forecasts, Oct. 22)
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From Booklist
In his latest novel, de Lint leaves his familiar setting of Newford, Ontario, behind and heads for the hills in a mystical fairy tale written with a naturalist's passion. Everything changes for teenager Sarah Jane Dillard, the fourth in a family of seven daughters, when she befriends her neighbor, the reclusive Aunt Lillian, who lives on a remote, forested homestead. Here, Sarah Jane learns about plants and herbs, but most enticing are Lillian's wild stories of the forest's spirit world--a world that Sarah Jane plunges into after an encounter with a forest fairy. Sarah Jane and her sisters are all drawn into the bizarre politics and battles of the Other Side before everyone emerges with a fairy tale's typical happy ending. Magic and herbalist lore mix with contemporary details (cell phones, the Discovery Channel, and even a passing reference to a Go-Go's song), romance, and an appealing backcountry, yarn-spinning voice. Suspenseful, unique, and unexpected fantasy for de Lint fans and newcomers alike.
Gillian EngbergCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
