The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood

Nutfolk Wood #1

by Barb Bentler Ullman

Hearing grand stories of little people and fairies who live in the forest from her neighbor, Hazel Wicket, after moving into the neighborhood with her mother, Willa finds the tales amusing and intriguing, but when she begins to see strange things for herself, the young girl is surprised to realize that Hazel isn't telling tall tales after all!

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Childrens, Fairies, Fiction, Magic, Fairy Tales

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

My 3 stars is not a criticism of the book - just a rating of how much I enjoyed it. I read this to my daughter (who is 6) and she liked some of it and didn't like some of it. It was written well (very well for a first book!). The characters and situations are believable. There is a fair amount of fun to bed. But on a whole, this book is not a lighthearted adventure. I'd say it is as much about divorce, death, aging, and dysfunction as it is about fairies. There's nothing wrong with that! In fact, the book might even be helpful for kids who've had to deal with any of the above. But it may not be the kind of escapism you (or your kiddo) are looking for based on the title alone.

[✨ Gramy ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

.
Interesting book about coming of age, separation, and friendship.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a lovely tale for younger readers (but not immature ones) that deals with the pain and loss that many children have felt from losing loved ones, from divorce or death, as well as the magic and mystery that can be found in the world if you look for it. It's a gentle story, the kind that calms, but it is also still funny and exciting, as we watch the characters cope with their hardships and then find an amazing world that lurks just behind this one.
The nutfolk are each people, not just glittering dots, and each character has more than one dimension, a unique and valuable trait in a children's story. I've read it over and over, enjoying the flights of fancy and the empowerment of the characters making their lives what they wish them to be.

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book does address some of the issues students may face: Divorce, moving, changes in economic status, the loss of a parent, a father who drinks to hide his loss... The intergenerational relationships that are formed helped give the book some depth. The life style contrasts are interesting. The characters learn that friends matter and families may not be perfect. The touch of magic adds another layer of depth. Whether you believe in fairies or not is up to you, but maybe you will learn to believe in second chances.

[Victoria (hotcocoaandbooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

What an adorable middle grade faery story.
Willa is having a hard time with her parents' divorce. She moves with her mother to a mobile home with a lot of land. While she explores it, she believes she has seen some fairies about.
Her mom gets a job and an older woman who has a homestead without electricity and does things in a traditional old-fashioned way watches her over the summer. She tells Willa some stories about fairies while they form a friendship.
This is definitely a quick read, as the font is big, and when Hazel, the elderly lady, tells her stories, they condense the space a lot.

A warning for parents about content. There are two times that the word "hell" is in this book, and they are spelled out, which I think could have been avoided completely (it is in the beginning of the book only). There is a character who is drunk. There is talk about death a few times. There is talk about divorce.

[Andi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope my five-star rating doesn’t cause me to get recommendations for children’s fairy books, but I’m sure it will.
I picked this up on a whim at my local Goodwill. Grabbed it a couple days ago off my shelf when I couldn’t decide what to read next. This is an excellent book. But not for every child. I would recommend this to middle-schoolers. Younger if they are familiar with divorce, death, and alcoholism. It’s going to be comforting for those children; I wish I’d had someone hand me this book back when I was in 4th grade.
Well-written and magical, even this 55year old woman was drawn into its pages like living inside the book.

[Stacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

As much as I wanted to like this book, it felt a little too distorted. I think if the characters had either been older, or if the story had focused on only two or three characters it would have flowed better. The concept is good, and it's a quick read, but it almost feels like there are three stories being told at the same time, and none of them really developed. Note that the story does deal with divorce and depression. Also note that at one point a character says, "Jee-zus!"; I think this is the only time a character cusses or takes the Lord's name in vain, but if not it doesn't happen very often.

[Twyla · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite part was when the summer was over, and Willa started to be happy with all the changes and the way things were now. My least favorite part was when Vincent's father came with the bulldozer, and when Willa got hit by Vincent's brother's dirt bike. I dont' know why she ran in front of it, but still, it stopped Vincent's brother from doing anything like it again.

[Patsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a poignant story about a 10 year old girl whose parents have just divorced, her dad has moved all the way to California, and her mom bought a trailer in the woods really cheap. Wila spends the first part of her summer helping her mom make their new place into a home. And when their neighbor, Hazel, shows up, everything changes for Wila.

[Arianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an amazing middle grade about a girl, her love for the woods and finding herself in a world full of changes. It gave me such cozy nature vibes and it just put me in such a good mood. It had me spellbound and I couldn’t put it down.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very sweet book that dealt decently well with themes I wouldn't have thought would appear in a book that's seemingly about fairies. 4/5 because the ending was a little too neatly wrapped for me. Willa (cute name!) needed more than one summer to process her parents' divorce, etc.

[Andrea Renfrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kiddo, age 8, says this book is worth SIX stars! We enjoyed it quite a bit.

[Rebecca Hanes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great sensory descriptions.

[Jessyloo · Rating 5 out of 5]

YA divorce & believing in fairies

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet little book. I wanted to see if it was good for my granddaughter....I think the divorce stuff might be a bit much, so I'll hold off for now.

[Hannah]

One of my favorite books as a kid. So fun to reread and feel all of the nostalgia💕

[miireiter · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just the sweetest story!

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little slow at times but still good

[Taylor Day Munson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a charming and heart-warming little read!

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the country town of Plunkit, where Willa and her mom start anew after her parents' divorce, Willa catches sight of a strange sparkle by the creek and in the old woods. Her older-than-old neighbor, Hazel Wicket, has a... story about these surroundings and an imagined family of tiny people that inhabit a tree stump. Willa knows there's no such thing as fairies, but when she spots more and more oddities around her, she can't stop an itchy feeling that there's some certainty to Hazel's curious tales of the Nutfolk."

The fairy aspect of this book is charming, but there are certainly strong undercurrents of children longing for a missing parent and trying to make sense of their lives in the face of devastating changes. Willa is feeling abandoned by her father, but her memories of their fun together and his love for her, contining to be manifest in his letters to her, eventually bring peace to her heart. She makes friends with a boy two years older than she who does odd jobs for Hazel, and he's dealing with the loss of his mother to cancer and his father's reaction to her loss - neglect of his children and burying his grief in drunkenness. A mix of fantasy and realistic fiction, the fairies of Nutfolk Wood and the people who are lucky enough to see them make for a good story.

[katyjanereads · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. I rated it a 5 because it was just so wholesome, simple, and sweet. I haven't read anything like it since I was a kid and it made me nostalgic.
2. In the back of my mind I wonder if her dad really wrote the letters and whether or not he'll actually show up to her party.
3. My parents got divorced when I was Willa's age and I remember my dad living four hours away and the situation felt the same way this story felt. I was strong and imaginative so I understood Willa. Plus my middle name is Jane, too. We lived with my grandma so I had that relationship with an older lady who did old fashioned things, too. There was a neighbor who lived across the field who was a boy so we would hop the fence to see each other just like Willa and Vincent. I had to go to a new school and was nervous like Willa. So, there were many similarities
4. This was a very easy read and the fairies were very charming. This book is perfect for a middle school girl.

[James Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood

Willa's parents have just been divorced, and she and her mother are moving out into the country near their grandmother. It's a beautiful area, and there's a wooden stump that Willa is attracted to.

Willa learns the history of the stump and the fairy-folk that live there and have been seen by other people. She wants to somehow prove their existence. The area is in danger from their drunken neighbor, though, and one of his sons hits Willa with his motorcycle, breaking her arm.

Willa is aided by the fairy-folk who have been watching her. In addition to all this, there's a story of a number of paintings that have been done of the area, and that one of the paintings itself hides a mystery.

This is a really, really good book. The fairies are slow to appear, but everything moves at the pace it should. One of the best books on fairies that I have read.

[Phair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Willa hates change but when divorce forces Willa and her mother to move to an isolated trailer home in a forest, change is everywhere. Willa begins seeing odd visions in the forest then an elderly neighbor begins telling her stories of the Nutfolk, fairy-like creatures. Are her visions real?

I really enjoyed (3.5 stars) this juvenile title which actually made me shed a few tears, not of sorrow but of longing, good feeling, joy at the thought of such creatures and the loving Hazel with her adherence to "the old ways". There was just enough "realism" to the fairy part of the story...a rich history and folklore and culture to make them seem believable. I so wanted to meet these Nutfolk. By the book's end Willa comes to accept that change is inevitable in life (p.228) "I realized that sometimes all you get is bits- bits of time, or beauty, or friendship. My bit of friendship with Hazel was limited but it was worth whatever it would cost."

[babyhippoface · Rating 3 out of 5]

To help cope after her parents divorce, 10-year-old Willa moves with her mother to the little country village of Plunkit for a simpler life. While her mother works, Willa spends her days helping Hazel, an old woman full of wise advice and fascinating tales of the “Nutfolk,” a community of fairies inhabiting a nearby tree stump. Though she is grounded in reality, sparkling lights and fleeting glimpses of tiny creatures around the stump force Willa to consider the possibility that Hazel’s stories are more than just stories. Strong, well-rounded characters, an emphasis on building relationships, and the folksy setting (which is a refreshing change for this genre) make this feel more like realistic fiction than fantasy. Young readers will enjoy this quiet novel about the healing powers of love and nature.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this book, I don't feel I can recommend it to Christian families. The pros: the main character's (Willa Jane's) parents have gotten a divorce and I think both the parents and child have handled it well, Willa Jane meets a nice elderly woman and helps her around her home, and WJ befriends a boy who is still grieving the loss of his mother. The cons: it's a fairy story, which I liked until the fairies started talking about auras, the grieving boy's father drinks too much (although that resolves well), there is some VERY mild language, and you finish the book hoping you are "enlightened" and will be able to see the fairies living around you. As I've researched fairies more, I've come to believe they aren't as innocent as I had thought. While books like this seem fine, I think these books lead to other spiritual realms that are dangerous.

[Pamela · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I liked the thought of a little girl discovering fairies living in the woods in their cute little fairy tree houses, some of the subtopics were of a more mature nature, especially for a book geared towards kids at this reading level. There is divorce, death and drunkenness, as well as language and attitudes. For a child who faces these harsh realities in their own lives, this book could possibly help them cope as they discover that they're not alone. But for a child who has not been exposed to these topics, it's best read with a parent so you can talk about it together. Plus, after dealing with all the serious stuff, the question of whether or not fairies exist isn't really answered to the satisfaction of a 9 year old.

[Marissa Hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was younger, I wasn’t big on rereading books, but this was one of the few that I did.

It’s crazy now reading it again when I only remember a few major plot points of the story, but all the feelings and nostalgia I had as a middle schooler came back. There so many moments where I know I identified with the anxiety, the challenges surrounding her, and also just growing up in a trailer in the woods... always wishing for my own little piece of magic.

The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood is simply and beautifully written with a lil’ dash of escapism while following a young girl trying to make sense and find stability in her life during a divorce and subsequent move. I still love it!

[Andrea Lubbers · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was an intreging book. I was couldn't put the book down when Willa meat Hazel. This part was so discriptive and made you feel like you were there. The one part that stands out to me the most is when Willa told her uncle to turn on to a road and later found out that it was the fairies that helpd her notice the road. Th one thing I didn't care for was all the little details Hazel didn't seam to remmber to tell Willa. That made the book flow less and made you keep having to turn back in the book. In the middle of the book I had to keep filping back at least three times every two chapters. I would recamend this book to any fancy love or someone that wants a good book.

[Redd Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Fairies of Nutfolk Wood is an enchanting tale of the 'little people' of Nutfolk Wood. Are fairies real, or are they real because we need them to be--for whatever reason? The story is geared toward 8-12 year olds. I enjoyed Ullman's style and the easy way scenes and Willa's first person narrative wove the tale.

Will is grappling with her parents divorce when her mom moves them to the country where Willa gets acquainted with the 'little people' of Nutfolk Wood. Willa questions her sanity, but local stories and an old neighbor woman, Hazel, who Willa stays with during the summer, seem to collaborate her ideas. Does it matter, if the 'little people' are there when you most need them.