THE DREAMTIME FAIRIES

In this evocative tale, a girl who loves to tell stories takes her brother on a nighttime journey to visit a fairyland. When Lucy's little brother, Jamie, can't sleep because he sees "things in the shadows on the ceiling," she seeks help from the "Dreamtime Fairies" who live across the ocean. Atop a giant bird, the duo flies to an island where they encounter a turtle, tiger, and fox, each of whom suggest ways to fall asleep, but none of which work for Jamie. The animals then lead the siblings deep into a shadowy forest where the children dance and play with the fairies, falling asleep fearlessly (Lucy explains, "There's no need to be afraid of the shadows,… because that's where the Dreamtime Fairies fly"). The last spread returns them to their bedroom, where a mobile of fairies and a stuffed turtle, tiger and fox suggest Lucy's inspiration (all of the elements also appear in an earlier spread). Though the cover does not indicate Simmons's (Come Along, Daisy!) signature palette, the interior spreads do. On backgrounds saturated with textured gradations of purple, blue and green, she conjures plenty of illustrative magic, painting the children with a tender, dreamily blurred focus and bathing the tiny fairies in an ethereal glow of yellow, white and lavender. Like Lucy, Simmons is acutely attuned to her audience's needs, and her attention to nuance—both visual and verbal—should work a soothing bedtime magic. Ages 2-6. (Sept.)