ONCE UPON A FAIRY TALE HOUSE: THE TRUE STORY OF FOUR SISTERS AND THE MAGIC THEY BUILT, by Mary Lyn Ray and Giselle Potter, Beach Lane Books, May 23, 2023, Hardcover, $18.99 (ages 4-8)
Once Upon a Fairy Tale House is the story of four sisters who used their skills to design and build storybook houses in 1930s California.
Mildred, Harriet, Brenda, and Wilma Moody grew up reading classic fairy tales and inventing their own, wishing they could live in the stories. They imagined storybook houses for themselves and slept there in their dreams every night. As adults, the sisters followed separate career paths until Mildred, an artist, needed a place to paint. Harriet, an architect, sketched plans for a studio that looked like the whimsical abodes from their childhood dreams.
When people saw the enchanting studio, they began to want fairy tale houses of their own. So, Harriet drew more plans, and Mildred decorated the insides, and Brenda and Wilma joined them to take care of the banking and business. Soon, storybook cottages bloomed throughout their tiny town. And when families moved into their new homes, they could all feel just a little bit of the Moody sisters’ fairy tale magic. —Synopsis provided by Beach Lane Books
The Moody sisters did indeed create magical houses, and Once Upon a Fairy Tale House captures the magic those homes were built from. Author Mary Lyn Ray provides inviting text that captures interest while keeping things simple. Her author’s note at the end goes into further detail for readers who want to know more. Illustrator Giselle Potter’s charming images have a stylized folk-art feel to them that adds warmth and expression to the story.
Once Upon a Fairy Tale House is a fun nonfiction picture book that will especially appeal to girls and those who love to create.
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