Faery Tale: One Woman's Search for Enchantment in a Modern World

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Faery Tale: One Woman's Search for Enchantment in a Modern World

by Signe Pike (Goodreads Author)

3.93 of 5 stars 3.93 · rating details · 349 ratings · 112 reviews

In search of something to believe in once more, Signe Pike left behind a career in Manhattan to undertake a magical journey-literally. In a sweeping tour through Mexico, England, Ireland, Scotland, and beyond, she takes readers to dark glens and abandoned forests, ancient sacred sites, and local pubs, seeking people who might still believe in the elusive beings we call fae...more

Hardcover, 301 pages

Published November 2nd 2010 by Perigee Trade (first published January 1st 2010)

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Dec 19, 2010 Courtney Leigh rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I didn't know what to expect when I went into this. All I knew is that I loved Fairy Tales, and I loved the UK. This memoir involves both.

What Signe Pike manages to do is deftly intertwine her own personal story and loss into her journey through these inspiring lands. And it didn't seem too preachy. I flew through the pages, and even felt myself getting a little choked up every once and again. More than anything, though, this made me want to travel back to Skye and Oxford and London and Edinburg...more

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Jun 07, 2012 Ilana Waters rated it 5 of 5 stars

True story: I kept putting off finishing the book. Not because it was bad, but because I didn��t want it to end!! There are so many things to like about Pike��s work that it��s hard to know where to start. I think what I enjoyed best (besides the author��s easily-readable prose) is her self-awareness.

She knows how strange it sounds that, in the 21st century, she is looking for evidence of tiny magical creatures. She approaches the situation with an adult-like practicality and an open mind a...more

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Nov 30, 2010 Alexis rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well now. This book came to me at exactly the time that I needed to read it ! What a fabulous, magical ride ! What is so amazing about it, is that it is all true. I truly could not put it down from start to end and it has changed my perspective. Do I believe in faeries now ? Perhaps. But more importantly, I agree with the author "But now I knew there were many kinds of magic in life." Take some time and get back to that magical place inside, with this read.

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Jul 24, 2012 Diana Jones rated it 5 of 5 stars

After hearing the interview with Signe Pike's "Faery Tale" on the "Inciting a Riot" podcast I knew this was a book that I had to read, and in my own reader way, to experience her journey from my own armchair.

At the start of the book Signe is a woman who is very aware of her disconnection from the spiritual world around her; aware of magic lost in her life. Her solution is to bravely set forth on a quest to the UK to seek out the faery. Many wonderful and enlightening adventures follow, including...more

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May 16, 2012 Lynne Wallace-lee rated it 5 of 5 stars

I was both pleased and impressed that Signe Pike wrote as honestly and personally as she did about her quest to both deal with the loss of her beloved father and to find a bit of enchantment in the modern world, in the form of seeking out fairies and the people who still believe in them. I myself was touched and empathized with her struggles to grieve the loss of her father (I lost my own father to cancer when I was 28 years old)and her journey to find something lost from her childhood, the beli...more

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May 16, 2012 Kimberly rated it 5 of 5 stars

Faery Tale is a journey of discovery...not just in the story told by the author, but for the reader as well. I had always viewed fairies from the periphery, loving the idea of them. This book helped me see the reality of them. I was introduced to Faery Tale when I attended a book festival where Signe was speaking on the topic of memoir writing. I was captivated by the subject matter of her book and bought it on the spot. As I opened the pages to read it...Signe’s experience opened up a new world...more Faery Tale is a journey of discovery...not just in the story told by the author, but for the reader as well. I had always viewed fairies from the periphery, loving the idea of them. This book helped me see the reality of them. I was introduced to Faery Tale when I attended a book festival where Signe was speaking on the topic of memoir writing. I was captivated by the subject matter of her book and bought it on the spot. As I opened the pages to read it...Signe’s experience opened up a new world for me. Having just left the corporate world in search of my own new adventure, I had no idea that fairies were going to lead me on an exploration of possibilities.

At the beginning of the book, I was a little apprehensive when she describes her experience in Mexico as I was not seeing the friendly sparkly fairies that I had always imagined them to be. I trusted Signe and continued with her on the path of the story. As she takes you further on her journey, the fairies’ light begins to shine until they are fully illuminated in Glastonbury, England. As a result of meeting Signe and reading her wonderful book, I followed my intuition and decided to join Signe and Raven, along with six other women, on a retreat held in Glastonbury the following month called “Return to Faerie.” Now this has be one special book for it to have inspired me to finally obtain a passport and take my first trip overseas. Everything you read about her time in Glastonbury is beyond true...it is truly amazing!

Much of my own life has been a quest for spiritual enlightenment, as it is for most people. As a Christian, (Yes, a Christian who believes in fairies!) I had longed for a spirituality based on the essence of acceptance and love beyond the pulpit and confines of a church building. Meditation and yoga brought me to the threshold of enlightenment but through Signe’s sharing of her experience in this book, a bridge was found to take my personal beliefs to a new level. That bridge is nature - its beauty and wonder - that which we so often take for granted. No matter what your own personal religious belief; Agnostic, Pagan, Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Jew or Christian...make room for the fairies to weave their magic in your soul...and hopefully unite us all with the common thread of love. Read Signe’s book and see how it speaks to your own heart. You may be surprised what you discover.

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Apr 14, 2012 Shannon rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction

Faery Tale's title is misleadingly appealing. The title itself is far more interesting than the actual content within its covers. The title might lead you to believe this is the memoir of a woman seeking mystery, looking within herself and her world for more than meets the eye and finding beauty in the everyday moments of life. Instead, you'll get the story of a girl who heads to the British Isles ostensibly to prove that faeries are real, but in reality wants to avoid dealing with the recent de...more

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Jan 04, 2012 Carolyn Hill rated it 4 of 5 stars

I zipped through this memoir/travelogue of a young woman's search for faeries, which was fun and engaging. I wish I could have had a book contract to travel to Glastonbury, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland in search of magic and enchantment - why didn't I think of that? The author tried to tread somewhere in the middle between a rationalist's look at world folklore (though giving only the briefest examination of a very extensive subject) and the psychic/intuitive exploration of a metaphysic...more I zipped through this memoir/travelogue of a young woman's search for faeries, which was fun and engaging. I wish I could have had a book contract to travel to Glastonbury, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland in search of magic and enchantment - why didn't I think of that? The author tried to tread somewhere in the middle between a rationalist's look at world folklore (though giving only the briefest examination of a very extensive subject) and the psychic/intuitive exploration of a metaphysical phenomenon, as well as mixing in her own lingering grief over the loss of her father. In her quest to re-kindle the magic and belief of childhood, she became more child-like, choosing to not always look through the filter of a concrete rational adult who lived and worked in Manhattan. But secrets do not always reveal themselves just because someone decides to believe. While not possessed of strong psychic gifts like her friend and part-time travel companion Raven, she was willing to open herself up to new experiences that were definitely in the woo-woo category. That takes some bravery and trust, or naivete and gullibility a cynic might say. And she had, well, interesting experiences. Yes, much of it could be said to be her imagination from a receptive state, but why was a black feather always being put in her path? In her new openness she learned to see things differently and listen to her intuition, and found that to heal ourselves and the planet, maybe it's the faeries who can show the way.

I read this while also reading Martha Beck's new book, Finding Your Way in a Wild New World, (well not at the exact same time - I haven't mastered that yet) and found they were eerily compatible, a sympathetic synchronicity. Martha doesn't talk about faeries, though she does have some interesting experiences with trees and what she calls the green nation, and goes into much clearer, and more scientific, explanations of how to cultivate states of wordlessness and oneness. My review of it will come later, once I've read and re-read it - it's that full of good stuff. But I encourage anyone with both an open mind and a sense of scientific inquiry to read it. It makes an excellent companion to Pike's rather breezy memoir.(less)

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Oct 31, 2011 Stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Original Review on www.fangswandsandfairydust.com

Faery Tale
One Woman's Search for Enchantment in a Modern World
by Signe Pike http://www.signepike.com/ includes a slide show from the trip and evidence
Penguin Group, Imprint Perigee
Nov 02, 2010
Hardcover 320 pages
18 - AND UP
Hardcover copy provided by Publisher with no expectation.
No remuneration was exchanged.
Non-fiction
In looking at this review, some months later, I think an apt title would have been

SPECULATIVE NON-FICTION

This book was part resear...more Original Review on www.fangswandsandfairydust.com

Faery Tale
One Woman's Search for Enchantment in a Modern World
by Signe Pike http://www.signepike.com/ includes a slide show from the trip and evidence
Penguin Group, Imprint Perigee
Nov 02, 2010
Hardcover 320 pages
18 - AND UP
Hardcover copy provided by Publisher with no expectation.
No remuneration was exchanged.
Non-fiction
In looking at this review, some months later, I think an apt title would have been

SPECULATIVE NON-FICTION

This book was part research into Faeries—almost a dissertation, part memoir and part spiritual journey. When you have a sad childhood for whatever reason, part of adulthood is almost necessarily making peace with it. It can be even harder to overcome when the parent reforms or a situation improves. Part of Signe's journey in these pages is rediscovering that childhood ability we had to believe, in faeries, in magic, in our parents unconditional love.

Interspersed with great travel stories from Signe's three-month long trip to the British Isles are disturbing and moving stories of a childhood and a father who was encouraging in some ways and emotionally abusive much of the time. The journey starts about six-months after her father's death. I don't know if she realized, setting out, that the trip would be about her father as much as it was. Of her travels on the Isle of Mann, she writes:

I'd heard people say that as a traveler , you have to be careful not to get attached. Now that I'd felt it, I say that's garbage . If you are lucky enough to find people worth getting attached to , attach yourself with nothing less than your whole heart. Because if you find a companion to walk a stretch of he road with you, a person whose warmth and kindness makes your journey feel that much brighter, you have no other choice—you are among the very, very fortunate. page 167

It is this intensely personal, openly emotional quality that brings us into Signe's travels. She has the kinds of experiences with people that are the stuff of every traveler's perfect trip: meeting strangers who become friends.

She is also very skilled at describing places—the cold, soaking mist on Mount Brandon, the still air in a fortress, the darkness of a forest.

The information she provides about the fae is also instrumental in, if not pushing your belief about the wee folk up a notch, at least demonstrating they are an intercultural, and nearly universal experience. We have all had some of the experiences she describes. But what is amazing is that people around the globe have also had those experiences. Whether we chalk them up to the fae, or to a evolutionary mental construct or to our brain filling in a gap, we all have those experiences. Sadly, as we get older we start to apply "commonsense," and evidence-based explanations to finding a lost item or asking for something and having that something, or another something, show-up. She writes in several places that sometimes there are too many coincidences to be a coincidence. Signe's search, it seems to me is to not only understand faeries as a spiritual and cultural phenomenon, but also to regain that part of her childhood that was lost through growing up and through having to block her emotions as a means to survive her father's emotional abuse.

The Faeries went from the world dear
Because men's hearts grew cold:
And only the eyes of children see
What's hidden from the old.
Kathleen Foyle quoted on page 174

Not only personal, Signe examines our treatment of the earth as a reason for faeries disappearing. Not believing in the sacred nature of a space, small as a molecule or large as the earth, gives us leave to treat it with less than reverential behavior.

It took me a while to get into the book, but once I understood that it was a personal journey as well as an investigation into our collective and individual loss of innocence or belief.There is a good amount of examination of the paranormal, but Signe's overcoming her relationship with her Dad with love and forgiveness is a true miracle.

I recommend Fairy Tale as a book for anyone who has loved and lost—in other words, everyone. (less)

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Aug 26, 2011 Sienna rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011

I liked the idea of this book more than the book itself, though it was a quick, enjoyable read. The fact that faeries don't automagically (ha) turn up when sought pleased both my inner skeptic and the little girl who had to keep other books on top of Froud and Lee's Faeries lest Jenny Greenteeth and Peg Powler emerge from their swampy pages hoping to drag me back in with them.

There are a number of lovely anecdotes, particularly in the Isle of Man section, but Pike's writing is a mixed bag, with...more

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Jul 28, 2011 Steve Cran added it

Starting from her job in New York as an editor for a major publishing company, Signe Pike decide that there is no magic and life is suddenly dissatisfying. She decides to begin her search for fairies. Her search starts off right in New York. Her apartment neighbor Raven, A reiki specialist and pagan high priestess senses faeries in Signe’s room that she is unable to detect. Signe buys books on faeries to do her research and even does a few rituals to attract faeries into her apartment. The cat s...more Starting from her job in New York as an editor for a major publishing company, Signe Pike decide that there is no magic and life is suddenly dissatisfying. She decides to begin her search for fairies. Her search starts off right in New York. Her apartment neighbor Raven, A reiki specialist and pagan high priestess senses faeries in Signe’s room that she is unable to detect. Signe buys books on faeries to do her research and even does a few rituals to attract faeries into her apartment. The cat seems to be the only one who can detect them, although Eric, her fiancée, and Raven detect strange things in the apartment.

Her journey then takes her to upper New York where she meets with people who build faery homes. The faery house builders claim that the faeries gave them their ability to do the proper art work needed to make the faery homes. Raven is a driving force in this quest which leads to the next place.

In Mexico there are faeries called the Aluxes. They are little small midget sized spirit beings who dwell in the Mayan ruins of Mexico. Her research leader to several interviews and finding out about little rock and stick figure that represent the Aluxes. Got to be good to them or they will cause trouble. If you’re a good person and you are good to the Alux then your Alux will be good to you.

Of course if one wants to find out about faeries which are in existence all over the world then one should head out to the British Isles. Her first stop leads to Brian and Wendy Froud, two well known faerie artists who have done several book and movies on faeries. It is during their workshops that they take their participants to the world of the faery. As a child Brian used to play in the woods and bushes. While playing in the woods he would soon discover that all the plant life has a spirit. Their visit is informative but as she is leaving Signe thinks she can hear them talking saying that it will be a miracle if she in fact find them. Her visit then proceeds to Glastonbury with Raven. Glastonbury is haven for faery seekers. It is there that the faeries play their first trick on Signe. Raven and Signe record a ritual on an ipod which gets erased and then later returned but registered on an earlier date. It is also here that a Robin befriends her and she keeps on finding a black feather where she goes.

Her excursions will last three months. She will travel to the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland. She will visit many faery places and all through her journey you will be kept wondering if she is in fact really meeting faeries or if it is just a play on her imagination. The faeries work in mysterious ways. She will be joined by her sister KP for trekking in Ireland. In the Isle of Man she will be befriended by a group of bikers who show her around. In Scotland her fiancée will join her.

All through out her journey she will flash back to memories of her father and not all of them are good. He was an outdoors type who could have a tendency to push to hard. Signe also has to confront and overcome her fears.

The faery world must be approached with caution as to disrespect them will bring their ire upon you and believe me that is not pleasant. Believe you this that with faeries nothing is given a way for free. If you know nothing of faeries then this book is for you. Faery mythology is covered along with different landscapes and thought forms associated with faeries.

I will give this book a five out of five.
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Jun 09, 2012 Catherine Carlson rated it 5 of 5 stars

I already believed in Faeries before reading this book but I am always game to go along with someone who is searching. . .

Pike takes us on a wonderful adventure into the natural world. It begins with an inner pull to move out of the big city to a more natural setting and then with great conviction she sets out to literally "find the fairies" through a series of travels to different locations in the world. After reading you will want to go to all of them!

She has lots of help along the way from...more

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Jul 28, 2011 Caroline rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mythology

I'm sure any criticism by ardent devotees of this book will be met with accusations of having lost the innocence of childhood or the sense of magic in nature or some other New Age shortcoming. And that may well be true. I don't believe in fairies, and I'm not going to start clapping my hands now either. And I have to admit that, yes, I would look askance at any grown-up adult claiming to believe in fairies, and particularly one who gave up her job, left her fiancee in New York and spent two and...more

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Dec 12, 2011 Mark Rice rated it 5 of 5 stars

Following the death of her father, with whom her relationship had been tempestuous, Signe Pike set off on a journey to magical sites in Mexico, England, Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man. Her voyage of discovery proved to be as much an exorcism of inner demons as an open-minded immersion in the magic of the faery folk. Each country Pike visited has its own folklore involving 'little people'. This begs the question: how is it that - many thousands of years ago - tribes without common roots al...more Following the death of her father, with whom her relationship had been tempestuous, Signe Pike set off on a journey to magical sites in Mexico, England, Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man. Her voyage of discovery proved to be as much an exorcism of inner demons as an open-minded immersion in the magic of the faery folk. Each country Pike visited has its own folklore involving 'little people'. This begs the question: how is it that - many thousands of years ago - tribes without common roots all told stories of 'hidden people' who were conduits between Earth's natural forces and the physical beings on the planet? Throughout her journey, Signe Pike opened herself to these mystical creatures...with fascinating results. Belief influences perception: people who believe in God will see the Divine in everything; atheists will attempt to scientifically explain even the most inexplicable phenomena; Signe Pike, however, was so passionate about reviving her childhood belief in all things mystical (while incorporating newly learned folklore from around the globe) that she saw magic everywhere. Her open-mindedness makes the storytelling refreshing, although I found myself frowning when she attempted to attribute mundane real-world events to faery intervention. For example, when faced with an oncoming vehicle heading straight for her car, she veered out of its path and smashed into a wall. Pike attributed this crash to faery mischief, but there wasn't a glimmer of evidence that this was the case. Such was her faery-finding fervour that she didn't think it possible the human who drove recklessly up the middle of the road was to blame. This is a minor niggle, though. More often than not, Pike's sojourns into wild places resulted in experiences rich in symbolism, serendipity and faery magic. I was interested to read that on the Isle of Man, where faery lore is inextricably weaved into the culture, locals don't cross the Faery Bridge without acknowledging the faeries' existence, a practice motivated by fear of faery retribution; even foreign bikers who participate in the Isle of Man's annual TT races carry out this ritual, unwilling to offend the faery folk lest they meet a grisly end when their motorcycle careers off the road at high speed.

On Dartmoor stands a stone circle where indigenous wild ponies perform a mysterious ritual: one by one they enter the circle, pause at the central monolith, gaze at it with reverence, then leave. In contrast, trained horses refuse to enter the circle, terrified by its proximity. It seems that domesticated horses - which have had their animal natures 'broken' by humans - feel that they're not welcome in the ancient stone circle, while animals that have retained their wild spirit are kin to the faeries, and able to commune with associated energies.

Pike meets several artists who have attuned themselves to the faery frequency. Brian Froud, creator of The Dark Crystal, is one such man. Froud doesn't consider himself particularly creative; as a vessel for faery consciousness, he turns visions into puppets.

Signe Pike's descriptions of sacred places are immaculate in their sensual detail, as are the expressions of her expanding emotions and mindset. The book will probably prove to be a love-it-or-hate-it proposition. Readers with open minds and a love of folklore will consider it manna from Heaven (or, more appropriately, Tìr na nÒg). Those whose minds are closed to the possibility of a wider reality will likely fail to appreciate the book's beauty and profundity.

Just as Signe Pike was forever altered by her experiences, Faery Tale will have a comparable effect on many of its readers. It put a smile on my face throughout.

Hail to the little people!

Highly recommended. (less)

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Apr 27, 2011 Kate S rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed reading this book a lot. The best part was easily the Isle of Man, but it's overall a fun read. I've been to a few of the place she mentions, and now I want to go to all of them.

There are some parts that don't deserve the four stars, but the bulk of the book IS about faeries and Signe Pike's strange experiences with their sites in the British Isles. She had some neat experiences and talked to interesting people, and her research is good. What I didn't like was when she started...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Ancestral Gael rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fairytale, folklore, auto-biography, a-vine, travel, reviewed, mooched-out

What's it about? According to the author, "It's an examination of the loss of myth in modern culture" (page 9). I would say it's a personal exploration into the current belief (or lack thereof) in fairies in the modern world, as experienced by one young woman by travelling through Mexico, England, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland, all the while still grieving the loss of her father about whom she has mixed emotions.

By reacquainting herself with the belief in faery, Signe Pike feels she may...more

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Jul 28, 2011 Jo Bennie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really enjoyed this book but did have to constantly struggle against my inner sceptic saying 'yes but' and being rational all the time. Signe Pike, disillusioned by city life in America, goes in search of fairies, first in Mexico and then to the great Celtic heartlands of fairy lore in England, the Isle of Man, Ireland and Scotland. But it's less simple than a deluded new age hippie searching for magical beings. Pike is desperately trying to come to terms with the death of her beloved, brillia...more

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Sep 25, 2011 Marta Fabianek rated it 5 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book very much and in a way find it a brave thing for someone to not only pursue and risk such a journey, but also to write a book that most probably will be loved by many readers, but also really disliked by others. Faeries are always a theme that can get you ridiculed by people.
So... go Signe Pike for taking this journey!
A journey like this most likely calls for you to set your intuition free and to let go of the natural scepticism we're used to (nothing wrong with that, a heal...more

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Jun 06, 2011 Erin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I've only ever read one other memoir and I didn't enjoy it; horrible writing, and the story was just too sad for me. I was really glad that I found Faery Tale to be so different. It read like a novel, which was great, and I really felt like I was able to connect to the author, Signe, as a character of her story. Of course, a faery believer myself (though I have no proof), I loved Signe's skeptic search for proof of faery existence and though, in the end of the book, she still had no hard proof,...more

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Oct 02, 2011 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars

After spending 91 pages invested in a novel I couldn't finish (so sorry Lloyd Jones), I picked this one up with some trepidation. I had read the review on S.Krishna's Books, my favorite book bloggers site and thought I would give it a go.

Signe Pike works in Manhattan in the book industry when she begins to question the magic in her life and wonders if faeries actually exist. Wanting to explore more she travels to Mexico, England, Ireland, the Isle of Man and Scotland to try and find out. I reall...more

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Dec 15, 2010 Judy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: faery lovers and faery seekers

Shelves: memoir

This enchanting memoir is sort of Eat Pray Love for faery lovers. Signe Pike is a young woman who quit her job as a book editor for a New York publisher and went on a quest to find out if faeries are real. I was maddened, delighted and inspired many times over during my reading of this truly modern faery tale.

Because that is what it is, a faery tale in the voice of a modern young woman who wanted to believe in magic, in things that cannot be seen and in happy endings. Signe Pike is young enoug...more

This enchanting memoir is sort of Eat Pray Love for faery lovers. Signe Pike is a young woman who quit her job as a book editor for a New York publisher and went on a quest to find out if faeries are real. I was maddened, delighted and inspired many times over during my reading of this truly modern faery tale.

Because that is what it is, a faery tale in the voice of a modern young woman who wanted to believe in magic, in things that cannot be seen and in happy endings. Signe Pike is young enough to be my daughter (or maybe it's that I am old enough to be her mother.) She is almost young enough to be my granddaughter (actually I have no idea how old she is, I'm just guessing.) Anyway, it was inevitable that she would make me mad sometimes.

I started the book and by about page 30, I threw it down and thought I would not waste my time for another page. The voice of Signe Pike struck me as silly; an amalgam of the tone of Facebook comments, texting between teens and People magazine. I now realize that I was suffering from generation gap.

That evening I spent hours with my youngest friend, a 25-year-old aspiring writer. We drank wine, told each other stories, talked about life and read our latest efforts to each other. I love this woman because she reminds me of my younger self and hanging out with her is effortless. Somehow that evening led me to pick up Faery Tale again the next morning and I read it all day until I got to the end.

I still got mad a few times but mostly I was delighted. I've done my own faery research over the years. I too believed in faeries as a child. I have encountered disembodied beings on an island in Lake Michigan, on Mt Tamalpias, in Ireland, in the Redwoods and in my own backyard. About ten years ago I spent a few months reading up on how to contact faeries and I have always read magical stories, from C S Lewis and E Nesbit as a child to Suzanne Clarke and John Crowley in recent years. As I kept reading Signe Pike, I saw that she was trying as hard as she could to remain objective and not get sucked in to a bunch of airy-fairy, New Age ridiculousness. She was on a quest to find some meaning for her life and to make sense of her relationship with her father who had passed away. She was also looking for hope in a world that seemed to be heading for disaster. I am so down with all of that.

As she traveled to Glastonbury (where I have always wanted to go), to Ireland (where I have been), to the Isles of Man and Skye, to Scotland and Findhorn, I began to feel I was in pretty good hands. Her process of slowing down, learning to let things happen, listening more closely to her intuition and bonding with the various faery "experts" she interviewed, made me happy for her.

And that is all I am going to say because I don't want to spoil anymore of the adventure of reading this book. It's cool and it's real and it's magical. Plus there is an awesome bibliography in the back and Signe has one the best author websites I've seen.(less)

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Jun 17, 2012 Delia O' Riordan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Faery Tale reviewed by Delia O' Riordan

Do you know anyone about whom you would say he or she "…is away with the faeries"? If you're like most people, you probably thought of at least one or two of your acquaintances who seem to have been bitten by the "New Age" bug, taken leave of their critical faculties and now fill their lives with crystals, mobiles of faeries, sprites, or angels and perhaps even adopted at least one garden "gnome". "Cute" probably features largely in their conversations int...more Faery Tale reviewed by Delia O' Riordan

Do you know anyone about whom you would say he or she "…is away with the faeries"? If you're like most people, you probably thought of at least one or two of your acquaintances who seem to have been bitten by the "New Age" bug, taken leave of their critical faculties and now fill their lives with crystals, mobiles of faeries, sprites, or angels and perhaps even adopted at least one garden "gnome". "Cute" probably features largely in their conversations interspersed with phrases like 'the guidance I am receiving is…" or "my spirit guide is telling me…" How could adults take leave of their senses so completely as to accept without proof the existence of things like 'spirit guides', devas, nature spirits, etc. whilst at the same time quite rationally rejecting organized religion and other inherited forms of balderdash? Personally, I find the terminally gullible enervating. So many of their statements are unchallengeable - not because the statements are self-evident but for the opposite reason, they are incapable of proof and therefore difficult to debate. Such is the case with adult beliefs about 'alternative realities' that harken back to childhood. We all learned somewhere along the line that the tooth faery was a charming tradition not a literal truth, likewise Father Christmas, the Easter Bunny, and faeries in the garden. But what if, just what if, there was something more substantial behind folk beliefs in these invisible characters, something we have overlooked or misinterpreted in our headlong race to embrace a rational, materialist world view'? Could we have 'thrown the baby out with the bath water' when we dismissed the entire unseen spectrum? Random House editor Signe Pike had wondered about that since adolescence.

Pike's upbringing had been dominated by her father, a Cornell professor, intellectual, and enthusiastic jock. Signe and her sister Kirsten had been encouraged - some would say bullied - into accompanying their seemingly tireless father on long, rugged hikes, mountain climbing, cross-country ski jaunts, and every manner of outdoor activity one could think of. He encouraged his daughters' curiosity about everything in nature and either ignored or belittled (my interpretation) the unseen including their felt experience of nature in the form of faeries and other spiritual beings. Elder sister Kirsten abandoned those interests early on but Signe persisted until her father's rejection became unbearable and ultimately she embraced the outdoor life and became an enthusiastic hiker and climber. But in true faery-tale style, what she rejected came back to haunt her as an adult, particularly in the aftermath of her father's death. In her grief, memories of her truncated childhood began to surface. Signe had loved her father and craved his approval to the point where it became the pivot around which her world turned. With his passing, much that had been suppressed, denied and ignored demanded to be acknowledged and in this case led to a highly creative resolution: Signe decided to leave her job for a year to write a book. Nothing revolutionary there - except that the subject of the book was to be an investigation of the realm of faery from an adult perspective. What Signe needed to know was whether such things as faeries - given the ubiquity of beliefs in such beings across cultures and aeons - might actually be a life-form that children and animals are capable of perceiving. And if so, then could an adult re-learn that skill and be rewarded with a glimpse of the 'other world' that we had rejected as a childhood fantasy?

The Quest Takes Shape

Signe had recently become engaged to her 'soul-mate', Eric Liebetrau, and they decided to move out of New York and find a place more conducive to the pursuit of faery lore for Signe's project. They finished up in Charlotte on the American east coast and had only just moved in when Signe had to leave on the first leg of a research trip that would take her to Mexico, England, Isle of Man, Ireland, and Scotland in search of the truth about faeries: do they or do they not exist? I admit I came to this book somewhat reluctantly. Although I could accept the possibility of what we call 'angels' being a form of Jungian archetype, faeries seemed to me to have less 'substance' somehow. Silly of me, really, but you can blame it on Disney-fication - the obnoxious cult of 'cute' that Bowdlerised the life out of tales from the Brothers Grimm and substituted an insultingly watered-down animated version of the stark realities that the old faery and folk tales had provided to previous generations. The cult of cute is what gave childhood a bad name in my generation and made so many of us curtail it in favour of being 'grown up' and 'putting childish things away' prematurely.

Good Faeries, Bad Faeries

Outside the 'cult of cute', Faeries if they did exist, would necessarily have to be rather robust creatures to have survived the invasion of their planet by us heavy-footed humans as Signe discovers when she encounters a not so nice faery in Mexico and a few more in the land of Celtia. And indeed the stories that have been recorded by writers like Yeats and anthropologists like Evans-Wentz, are only the remnant of the ancient tales long lost to memory. Nevertheless, some of this lore survives even today, primarily in Celtic lands despite the rejection of their vast heritage by 'modern' Celts. Despite their protest that "of course, I don't believe in all that", inhabitants of areas associated with the realm of faery will nod their heads, or doff their caps, or otherwise express recognition of the fact that they are about to trespass on faery territory and silently ask permission of 'themselves' to cross the bridge or leave a token by a faery tree or cave as an expression of good will. Not that modern Celts believe in faeries; "Just indulging the bairns, you understand"… Mmm-hmm.

Coming Full Circle

Signe's journey is poignant, sincerely sceptical, humbly receptive to the unknown, perpetually questioning, reluctantly accepting, and wonderingly awed and leavened with lots of wit and genuine charm. The odd grammatical errors notwithstanding (tsk, tsk, Signe), the book is an adult tour of lost childhood which leads us deep into the realm of ambiguity where our questions might not be answered but we have a grand time searching for the answers. Highly recommended.

© Delia O' Riordan 2012(less)

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May 16, 2012 Heather rated it 4 of 5 stars

You're bound to find great adventure looking for faeries in Great Britain. That's exactly what happens as Signe Pike winds her way through Glastonbury, Ireland and Scotland. Along the way she meets Brian and Wendy Froud, a band of friendly, nurturing bikers and a faerie or two...or maybe three! She visits amazing, magical place.

The book is at turns sweet, lively and adventurous. I couldn't wait to get to the next part of the story to see what or who she found next. I tore through the book in a...more

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Nov 17, 2011 Terry rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir, non-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 07, 2013 Carly O'Connell rated it 5 of 5 stars

Magical. This memoir was magical. It made me want to drop everything and chase after fairies just like the author did. It made me want to Believe with all the innocence of childhood. It brought the magic back to the woods outside and the dignity back to believing in fairies. The author's skepticism, lucidity, down-to-earth-ness is a nice contrast to the airy-fairy nature of many of those who pursue and write about fairy encounters. Whether or not she truly finds fairies is debatable (even in the...more

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Jan 04, 2011 Dani rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I LOVED this book. It was such a great way to end 2010 and begin 2011. I found enchantment, magic and my childhood again. I only wish that I had attended the author signing when I had the opportunity. This memoir is wonderfully written with vivid imagery, beautiful details and just enough sarcasm and skepticism to keep the reader enthralled. Everyone asks me if this is a fictional memoir, I mean who goes in search of faeries? But if you ever think back to the time in your life when the magical s...more

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Feb 22, 2011 F. rated it 4 of 5 stars

After the loss of her father, Signe Pike travels to different parts of the world to search for enchantment in a modern world. Signe travels to parts of Mexico, England, Ireland, Scotland and Man of Isle. As she discovers the world of faeries and other enchanted creatures, Signe is able to bring closure of her father's death.

This could be classified as a travel or personal memoir. The reader is able to read about beautiful descriptions on Signe's travels. Readers are also able to see Signe grow a...more

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May 16, 2012 Nikki Nicole rated it 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved this book. I couldn't put it down. I think it was very well written. It kept me interested all throughout it. I would love to be able to do what she did. I can't but I am so glad I experienced it through this book. So many people lose belief in the incredible, awe inspiring things this world has to offer. She found magic and I think that is wonderful. I just wish more people could open their minds and hearts to be able to experience what she did. I could only imagine what this...more

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May 17, 2012 Helen rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book was, in a way, life changing for me. Now a lot of that was down to my situation and possible over-identification with the author's situation, but the quality of writing was such that it inspired me to make my own (admittedly small) changes in my life. Initially I borrowed it from the library, then bought it, read it again, loved it again,and my husband read it and loved it too. I can't really describe it too well, but it was incredibly inspiring and also a joy to read. Please give it a...more

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May 20, 2013 Sanalith rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, autobiography, fairytale

This was an absolutely beautiful story about a woman determined to reclaim the lost magic in her life. She tours England, Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man for three months in search of evidence that faeries truly exist.

I bonded with Signe from the very first chapter. Her feelings and desires mirror my own so closely that it was often uncanny. This world can be a depressing and lonely place. We're so concerned about rushing from place to place that we never really SEE the things around us. W...more

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About Signe Pike

Signe Pike worked as a book editor for Random House and Penguin before leaving New York City to write full time. Her first book, a memoir entitled FAERY TALE, earned a "Best of 2010" nod from Kirkus Reviews in addition to receiving glowing reviews from Harper's Bazaar, Women's Adventure Magazine, and renowned spiritual leader Marianne Williamson. Pike has been featured on National Public Radio's “...more

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“In prehistoric times, early man was bowled over by natural events: rain, thunder, lightning, the violent shaking and moving of the ground, mountains spewing deathly hot lava, the glow of the moon, the burning heat of the sun, the twinkling of the stars. Our human brain searched for an answer, and the conclusion was that it all must be caused by something greater than ourselves - this, of course, sprouted the earliest seeds of religion. This theory is certainly reflected in faery lore. In the beautiful sloping hills of Connemara in Ireland, for example, faeries were believed to have been just as beautiful, peaceful, and pleasant as the world around them. But in the Scottish Highlands, with their dark, brooding mountains and eerie highland lakes, villagers warned of deadly water-kelpies and spirit characters that packed a bit more punch.” — 36 people liked it

“I'd heard people say that as a traveler, you have to be careful not to get attached. Now that I'd felt it, I'd say that's garbage. If you are lucky enough to find people worth getting attached to, attach yourself with nothing less than all of your heart. Because if you find a companion to walk a stretch of the road with you, a person whose warmth and kindness makes your journey feel much brighter, you have no other choice - you are among the very, very fortunate.” — 11 people liked it

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