Oakwing: A Fairy's Courage

Gr 3–5—Although Rowan has only just returned to human form after accidentally being transformed into a fairy, she is unwilling to leave the fairy realms (and her missing mother) to the villainy of Vulpes, a wicked fox fairy desperate to become human again. Rowan and her nine-year-old sister Willow set off on a quest to save their mother and free the fairy realms from Vulpes. With a subtle emphasis on the power of teamwork, as well as deeper threads acknowledging the range of mental health challenges facing young people and their families, this is a quietly adventurous story featuring a heroine whose emotional maturity increases over the course of the book. The adventure is sometimes episodic and tangential, but in the end, Rowan and her host of allies, including escaped animals from the London Zoo, other fairies, and her family, triumph in a satisfying resolution.