Review: The Faerie Handbook

Summary: In this exquisite anthology, Editor in Chief Carolyn Turgeon and the editors of Faerie Magazine welcome you into an enchanted realm rich with myth, mystery, romance, and abundant natural beauty. Organized into four sections—Flora and Fauna, Fashion and Beauty, Arts and Culture, and Home, Food, and Entertaining—this gorgeous volume offers an array of exquisite vintage and contemporary fine art and photography, literature, essays, do-it-yourself projects, and recipes that provide hours of reading, viewing, and dreaming pleasure, along with a multitude of ideas for modern-day living and entertaining with a distinctive fairy touch. With an inset image on the front cover, ornate silver foil patterning on the front, spine, back, and edges, and a satin bookmark, The Faerie Handbook is an eye-catching volume for fairy fans of all ages. -- Harper Design

I'm skipping out on my regular Mystery Mondays post to share with you a terrific gift idea. The book is called THE FAERIE HANDBOOK: AN ENCHANTING COMPENDIUM OF LITERATURE, LORE, ART, RECIPES, AND PROJECTS by Carolyn Turgeon (and fellow Penn State alum) and the Editors of Faerie Magazine, and it's quite the treat for fans of fairies. Fairies are huge right now as evidenced by the amount of fairies that appear in television, movies, advertisements, etc. And there's even a fairy festivals and conventions will millions of attendees! Who knew?

I am admittedly not a fairy fan. That's not to say that I don't like the occasional fairy, but I'm far from an expert! However, I have to say that THE FAERIE HANDBOOK is one gorgeous book. Every detail of this book is just perfect -- from the purple and silver cover (with silver foil book edges!), to the gorgeous front end cover, to the illustrations, to the color photographs, to the purple satin bookmark. This truly is one special book!

THE FAERIE HANDBOOK is divided into four sections -- Flora & Fauna; Fashion & Beauty; Art & Culture; and Home, Food & Entertaining. It's truly amazing just how much is covered in this 240 page book. The first section tells about where to find fairies as well as other creatures who inhabit their fairy world. There are also some very interesting chapters on fairy architecture. What I found so cool is that there are some do-it-yourself projects like how to press flowers and how to make a fairy terrarium.

The Fashion & Beauty section is probably my favorite part of the book. The photographs and illustrations in this section are so pretty! There are gorgeous little fairy outfits made of flowers and description of fairy wings. There are even chapters on teeny tiny fairy shoes and fairy fragrances. The next section, Art & Culture, is sure to be a hit with fairy fans. This chapter delves into the role fairies play in literature and art. I have to say that the photographs in this section are stunning!

Finally, there is a section on Home, Food & Entertaining. I honestly had no idea what would be in this chapter, but it's exactly as described -- ideas for hosting fairy parties! There are instructions for how to construct an arbor along with recipes for lavender shortbread cookies, flower lollipops, honey ricotta tart, and more!

THE FAERIE HANDBOOK is a must-have for fairy fans, but I think it would make a great gift for anyone who appreciates beautiful books. It's a great gift idea for the holiday season!

Thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy of this book.