Lily's Pesky Plant

(Disney Fairies)

by
Kirsten Larsen

illustrated by

Judith Holmes Clarke

& The Disney Storybook Artists

Random House, January 2006, 111 pp.
ISBN: 0-7364-2374-5

Genre: Early Chapter
Subgenres: Disney / Fairies
Reviewed: 10/20/2006

Reviewed by: Conan Tigard

Book Cover

The flowers were not pretty.

But in their own way they were interesting, Lily thought.

Curious, she rose into the air until she was face to face with one of the flowers. She leaned forward, closed her eyes, and . . .

Ugh! Lily's eyes flew open. Her wings froze in midflutter. She dropped out of the air and landed on the ground with a painful thud.

The horrible rotten-tomato smell was coming from the flowers.

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Bumble zipped over to Lily to see if she was okay. A moment later he darted away again. He couldn't stand the flower's smell.

"Lily, are you all right?" asked a muffled voice.

Lily looked up and saw Iris hurrying over to her. She was holding a leafkerchief over her nose and mouth. "I saw you fall," she told Lily.

"I'm all right," Lily replied. She rubbed a bruised spot on her knee. "Just surprised. I really wasn't expecting it to . . . stink so much!"

Synopsis

In Pixie Hollow, the secret heart of Never Land, is a beautiful garden that is maintain by Lily, a Harvest-talent fairy. It is a favorite spot for many fairies to drop by and harvest berries or just relax in.

One day, while in the forest, Lily finds a strange seed. She shows it to her friend, Iris, another Harvest-talent fairy, who is writing a book about all kinds of plants, but does not have a garden of her own, and tells her that she is going to plant it in her garden even though she does not know what kind of plant it will become.

When the strange seed begins to sprout, it turns out to be very ugly. Fairies that visit Lily's garden want Lily to pull it out because it is ruining the beauty of the garden. Then the plant blooms with repulsive flowers that have a very revolting smell. The other Harvest-talent fairies want this new plant out of the garden. They feel it is ruining the beauty of the garden. But Lily refuses to listen, and soon the other fairies stop coming around to visit.

Is this the end of Lily's garden? Will her friends ever return? Or will Lily be forced to remove the plant because of peer pressure?

Lily's Pesky Plant is another book in the Disney Fairies series and is written by Kirsten Larsen and illustrated by Judith Holmes Clarke. This stand alone book is also illustrated by the Disney Storybook Artists. This series is intended for young readers aged 7 to 9.

Review

I really love these Disney Fairies books. Each one has a good lesson for children to learn. Lily is under a lot of pressure from her friends to remove a plant just because it isn't something the other fairies are used to. They cannot see the true, inner beauty of the plant because the outside of the plant is ugly. Boy, oh boy, are they ever surprised at the end of the book.

Once again, the Disney Storyboard Artists have done a spectacular job with the artwork. The story is well-written and easy to read. Kirsten Larsen weaves a wonderful tale of prejudice, peer pressure, and acceptance.

Overall, Lily's Pesky Plant is another fantastic addition to the Disney Fairies series that promises to let young readers use their imagination in a world of magic and fun. Man, I wish I could spent a little time in Lily's garden under a shaded plant with a book in my hand. Now, that would truly be relaxing.

I rated this book a 9 out of 10.