The Three Good Fairies and the Bookstore

A STORY IN SUPPORT OF AUTHORS FOR INDIES DAY, MAY 2, 2015

Once upon a time there lived three good fairies whose names were Karen, Kim and Kelly. The fairies loved children so much that they decided to do something magical for all the boys and girls in the neighbourhood – they decided to open a bookstore.

This bookstore would not be for adults – oh, no! It would contain no dull volumes with titles like: An Encyclopedia of the Vitamin Content of Raw and Cooked Vegetables. Instead, this bookstore would be filled with tomes to tease and delight kids’ imaginations: brightly-coloured picture books, side-splitting comedies, and adventure novels full of witches, wizards, Gods and dragons.

And so, with a wave of their magic wands and a large loan from a kindhearted banker, the three good fairies opened their bookstore.

Children from all over the town flocked to the enchanted bookstore. Soon, it was too small to hold all the children and books, and so the fairies decided to look for a larger place for their bookstore.

As they were searching, a fellow in a long black cape approached them.

“What are you looking for, kind fairies?” asked the fellow.

“Oh, good sir!” cried the fairies. “Our enchanted bookstore is too small for all of the children and books. We are looking for a new place to open a new, and even better bookstore!”

At this, the gentleman in the long, black cape smiled.

“Why, my good women,” he said with a grin. “I have just the place for you in my brand-new building! Prime location! All the modern conveniences! Satisfaction absolutely, one-hundred percent guaranteed! We’ll be open in time for the Christmas sales! Just sign right here on the dotted line!”

And so the good fairies signed on the dotted line. They returned to their old bookstore and hung a “closed” sign on the door and packed all their books in boxes in preparation for the moving day. The children stood at the door crying, but the fairies said, “Don’t worry my dears! We’ll be open in a jiffy in our brand-new book store!”

They piled all their boxes of books in the back of a wagon and they set off through the snow to the building where their new bookstore would be located. But Alas! when they reached the building, they found that it was only half built! Snow blew in through the open windows. The walls were nothing but bare steel beams. The man in the long black cape was nowhere to be found!

“What will we do?” cried Kelly. “It’s almost Christmas! Where will all the little children buy their books?”

The three good fairies could not allow the children to go bookless for Christmas. And so, huddling and shivering in their sparkly-but-not-very-warm fairy dresses, they stood on the street-corner and sold their books out of the back of their wagon.

The good children received their books for Christmas, but by the month of January, the new bookstore still was not ready for the fairies to move in.

“This can’t go on!” exclaimed Kim. “My toes are freezing in these slippers and the books are getting covered in snow! I miss our warm and cozy bookstore filled with books and happy children! We have to do something!”

And so the fairies took out their most ancient, most weighty, most powerful books of spells (and for good measure, they hired an ancient, weighty, and powerful lawyer) and with a wave of their magic wand and some good legal advice, the bookstore was finally finished.

As soon as it was built, they moved in with all their books and invited the children to come back. And if ever you travel to the town of Ottawa, you can go to the foot of the Bank Street Bridge right next to the Rideau Canal, and there you will find a store with a sign that says Kaleidoscope Kids Books. And if you go inside, chances are you’ll find one of the three good fairies standing behind the counter, just waiting to wave her magic wand and pick out the perfect book for you. And if you happen to visit on Authors for Indies Day on May 2, you’ll also have a chance to meet some of the authors of those very un-boring books.

For, thanks to their love of books, the children, the authors and the fairies (and their banker and lawyer) all lived happily ever after.

THE END