The Faeries of Spring Cottage

by Froud, Wendy; Windling, Terri

• ISBN13: 9780743202350
• ISBN10: 074320235X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-05-01
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Summary

While searching for shelter from a rainstorm, a little faery named Sneezle is pursued by a band of strange creatures with wooden swords. They're not faeries, they're not goblins...in fact, he doesn't knowwhatthey are. With their long sticklike limbs, gnarled faces, and mouths full of knife-sharp teeth, they aren't like anything the denizens of Old Oak Wood have ever seen. Sneezle barely escapes, butanotherband of the ugly little creatures chases him out of the safety of the woods. Fleeing for his life, the little faery is forced to find refuge in a place that is almost as frightening as the stick men themselves -- in an old stone cottage at the edge of the forest. It is here that Sneezle must confront his greatest adventure and biggest fear.InThe Faeries of Spring Cottage,fans of young Sneezle will be delighted to see that their reluctant hero is journeying out of Old Oak Wood (even if it is against his will) and encountering humans for the first time, as well as other enchanting, mysterious -- and sometimes scary -- new beings. This dazzling collaboration between renowned doll maker Wendy Froud and award-winning writer Terri Windling introduces a host of magical new characters, including a strange faery court beneath a kitchen sink, rat-faery warriors, and faery dolls that magically come to life. Art-directed by Brian Froud, creator ofGood Faeries/Bad Faeries,this latest volume in the Sneezle series captures the diminutive hero on his latest adventure in vivid detail.Following the success of Wendy Froud and Terri Windling's first two Sneezle stories,A Midsummer Night's Faery TaleandThe Winter Child,this new volume opens the magical window of enchantment once more with an extraordinary combination of story and art.The Faeries of Spring Cottageis destined to charm and captivate lovers of fairy tales, fantasy literature, and all things Froudian.

Author Biography

Wendy Froud became a doll maker at the age of five and has gone on to make dolls, puppets, and sculpture for such films as The Empire Strikes Back -- she is credited as the fabricator of the beloved character Yoda -- and Jim Henson's The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth, The Muppet Show, and The Muppet Movie. Her dolls and figures are highly sought after by private collectors around the world. Froud grew up in Detroit and now resides in Devon, England, on Dartmoor, with her artist husband, Brian, and their son, Toby.

Excerpts

fromThe Faeries of Spring Cottage

When Sneezlewort Rootmuster Rowanberry Boggs the Seventh woke up one fine

spring morning, he stepped outside the door of his tiny stone house into the light of the day, never guessing that this might be the last time he ever saw home again.

He followed a wandering path through crooked oaks that were as old as time -- for Old Oak Wood was a magical forest hidden deep in moorland hills, home to the oldest faery court in all the British Isles. Sneezle himself was a tree root faery, but merely a child in faery years -- although he was now 201 as humans reckon time. He came from a fine old hawthorn clan, and like every other Boggs in the woods he had nut-brown fur, black eyes, long ears, and a tail he was exceedingly proud of.

On that particular April morning, the young root faery followed his nose until he reached the bank of a chattering stream, where the path turned south. Overhead, the oak trees yawned and stretched away their winter dreams. Likewise, the hibernating faeries -- the hobs, the nobs, piskies and pooks -- were waking now, crawling from their dens beneath the rocks and roots to blink up at the sun, their faces pale, still half asleep.

The boy followed the stream through the morning hours until the sun was high, whereupon he reached a tranquil pool shaded by an elder tree. A dryad sat beneath the tree, her skin the color of elder wood, the long braids of her hair trailing in the dark water below.

The young root faery cleared his throat and said, "Good day to you, Lady."

The dryad turned and gazed at him with eyes as pale as elder wine. "Good day to you, small one," she said, her voice the rustle of leaves in the wind. She was just as ancient as her tree, her features carved by weather and time, grown ever more beautiful with age. Sneezle bowed before her.

"I've come to ask if you will spare some elder sticks for my friend Twig. She's studying magic," Sneezle explained, "and she needs them for her spells."

The elder dryad's eyes narrowed. "And what shall you give to me in return?"

"I'll give you a story," said Sneezle promptly, for this was what dryads loved best.

The woman frowned. "My tree was old when yours was just a seed," she said. "What story can you possibly know that will interest one such as me?"

"I'll tell you about the Winter Child born from a golden egg," said the boy, "and how I rescued her from a goblin tower with my friend Twig."

The dryad favored him with a smile. "Then you must be young Sneezlewort Boggs."

"I am, Lady," he answered, surprised.

"The trees have spoken of you, small one. Come sit beside me, tell me your tale, and I'll give you something better than sticks. I'll give you twigs from the very top of the tree, where the magic is."

Sneezle sat down on gray rocks, his legs dangling above the pool, and told the elder dryad the entire story of his last adventure. The telling took a long, long time, and when he'd finished the tale at last, the clear blue sky had changed to one that promised rain by evening. Eager to be indoors by then, Sneezle said farewell to the tree woman, elder twigs tucked safely into the pocket of his waistcoat.

Text copyright © 2003 by Terri Windling

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Excerpted from The Faeries of Spring Cottage by Terri Windling, Wendy Froud
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.