The Cottingley Fairies

PreS-Gr 2—In 1918, adults everywhere are focused on serious world events and the devastation of war. Cousins Elsie and Frances, who live in Cottingley, a village in Yorkshire England, wish they could lighten things up a bit. They love spending their days playing with fairies in the nearby forest, and think adults would benefit from some fairy contact, too. "Luckily, we had imagination, pencils, paper, and scissors." They also had a camera and took photographs of each other playing with the fairies. Interest in this might have fizzled out quickly, but the photos were made public and caught the interest of famous author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. "He liked mysteries and believed in fairies." With his support, the story of the fairies spread and soon people were coming from all over to try to catch a glimpse. Finding no fairies in evidence, people began to leave. To those who remained, Elsie and Frances confessed about the paper fairies but maintained that there were other fairies. They stuck to the story that the photographs included at least one of real fairies for the rest of their lives. Full-bleed illustrations use a muted palette, and their ethereal quality fits the subject. The short text passages are scattered throughout. An author's explanatory note is appended. For a more in-depth look into this event, read Marc Tyler Nobleman's Fairy Spell.