The Flower Fairies (Fairy Realm Series #2) Book

The Fairy Realm needs Jessie's help: The griffins that guard the treasure house are out of control! Then, just when Jessie thinks things are back to normal, the youngest flower fairies follow Jessie out of the Realm. Can Jessie protect them from the dangers of her own world?

Amie Rose Rotruck - Children's Literature

Jessie is called back to the Fairy Realm to help the fairies deal with a new menace: griffins! Before confronting the griffins, Jessie meets both old and new friends. She dances with the fairies and wishes that she could dance like that in her world, where she has the lead in the school play. Jessie solves the griffin problem and returns to her world, unaware that some of the flower fairies and the griffins have followed her. She manages to rescue the fairies from sugar bowls, puddles, and a butterfly-collecting girl before going to dance in the play. Jessie thinks that the wings she is wearing in the school play are the magical ones given to her by the flower fairies, but later finds out that they are the ordinary wings that her grandmother made. The story is light and entertaining, but the plot falls a bit short at times. For example, Jessie knows that the griffins have entered her world, but there is never a scene with them (which could be very enjoyable), and Jessie later finds out that her grandmother got rid of them. The revelation that the wings of Jessie's costume aren't magical after all is a bit cliché, but a younger child might enjoy it. Vitale's black and white illustrations add a true sense of magic to the story. He draws fantastic beasts in a very realistic way, thus blurring the lines between Jessie's world and the Fairy Realm. 2003, HarperCollins,