THE FAIRIES

One-upping the painted illustrations in Graeme Base’s Discovery of Dragons (1996), these elaborately casual snapshots capture glimpses of 16 fairies observed in various leafy, far-flung locales. Adopting the persona of a scientist bent on completing a predecessor’s 19th-century field guide, Scalora provides (in a ridiculously tiny typeface) travel notes and background; the glossy full-color photographs—created using live models, wings constructed from a variety of materials, and computer manipulation—range from full-body views to fleeting hints of a face or form. Lushly hued (each of the fairies here is associated with a color), they evoke a shadowy, elusive realm hidden, usually, within our own; readers susceptible to the likes of Nancy Willard’s Alphabet of Angels (1994) or caught up in the recent revival of the Victorian-era fairy fad will be beguiled by the mystery and magic here. For everyone else, the book’s closing credits, with lists of stylists, models, equipment, and acknowledgments, provide a refreshing peek into the mechanics behind the photographs. (Picture book. 8-12)