Avery and the Fairy Circle

This beautifully illustrated graphic novel opens with a moving van and parents carrying boxes into a new home. The protagonist, Avery, who is cued as white with disheveled dark curls, tells her parents she will be exploring the woods surrounding their new house and embarks with her nature journal in hand. From there, she tumbles into a fairy circle, becomes miniature-sized, and makes friends with a fairy named Birch. The delightful illustrations are a major draw into the ­story. The world Kingsbury creates is charming and cozy, in pastel hues sprinkled with both the adorable and magical. Those seeking ­danger or high-stakes adventure should look elsewhere. There is no major conflict in the story; Avery is invited to go along with Birch’s family to a fairy festival and has a wonderful time. But therein lies the book’s charm-it perfectly encapsules the cozy fantasy genre in one volume. Readers seeking books like K. O’Neill’s “Tea Dragon” series will be hooked. Birch is cued white, while the fairies at the festival have varying skin tones. ­VERDICT A winsome tale of friendship and magic. ­Highly recommended. – Allison McLean * SLJ *This debut children’s graphic novel delivers a cozy tale of magic and friendship. Avery has just moved into her new house, and while she is excited about the new adventure she wishes for a friend. A small journey into her backyard takes a big turn when Avery stumbles into a fairy circle and finds herself eye to eye with Birch, a rambunctious fairy whose mother is the village herbalist. Together they explore the forest as well as the fun and the frustrations of a new friendship. Kingsbury’s soft artwork is in magical bubble-gum shades of pinks, greens, and blues warmed by glowing sunlight, and the cherub-like characters perfectly match the fantastical atmosphere. Avery has brown skin and dark hair; other characters vary in appearance and body type. An easy win for fairy enthusiasts and aspiring herbalists, this whimsical tumble through nature will have young readers scouring their backyards for hidden fairy towns. – Emerald Martinez * Booklist *A sweetly magical adventure that will invite young readers to fall in love with the natural world around them. – Liz Flanagan * author of Wildsmith: Into the Dark Forest *Flying Eye’s key April release is this debut graphic novel about a girl who befriends a fairy when she is shrunk down by a fairy circle. The perfect read for newly independent or struggling readers, says the publisher. – Charlotte Eyre * The Bookseller Children’s Previews: April 2025 *

Rowan Kingsbury is a Portland, OR based illustrator and storyteller creating work full of wonder, warmth and whimsy. She has a BFA in Illustration from the Pacific Northwest College of Art and has always loved living and working in the rainy pacific northwest, letting her childhood running through it’s forests influence her art. Her past clients and exhibitions include Random House, Nucleus Portland Salut! 6, 7 and 8, and the Society of Illustrators Student Scholarship Competition 2020. When she isn’t creating, she’s probably cooking up something new in the kitchen or trying to find the nearest cat to bother.