Beck and the Great Berry Battle

Tales of Pixie Hollow #3

by Laura Driscoll, Judith Holmes Clarke (Illustrator), Walt Disney Company (Illustrator)

As an animal-talent fairy, there’s nothing Beck likes better than speaking Bird, or Chipmunk. So when a conflict breaks out between the hummingbirds and the chipmunks, she steps forward to act as a mediator, but nothing she says seems to help. Will Beck be able to bring peace to the animals?

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Middle Grade, Fairies, Fiction, Chapter Books, Juvenile

113 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Laura Driscoll is the author of numerous first chapter and beginning reader books, including We Are Twins and The Bravest Cat! She lives in central Connecticut with her husband and two children.

Reviews

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grandfather Mole, what a character. This one had a nice bit of humour in it.

[Miriam · Rating 3 out of 5]

nobody is safe from war, not even animals over dumb shit

[♦Sarah♦Rockpelt♦ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked Beck because she was very adventurous.

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened to this as an audiobook and loved it.. I know they’re only kids chapter books but I am obsessed with The Disney Fairies and am okay with that.

[Azbaqiyah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Plot - 3
Character - 4
Writing Style - 3
World Building - 4
Art - 4
Cover - 4

Rating - 3.7 🌟/ 5 🌟

[Lexy Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh this was so cute and the artwork was so adorable. I love how this played out because I was curious how it was gonna go. I’m having a blast just enjoying these books.

[Chloe G · Rating 4 out of 5]

not the ops in pixie hollow

[amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

read April 7, 2025 - April 7, 2025: 3 stars

[ana clara]

This book was just too much fun. What do you mean hummingbird and chipmunks started a whole great berry battle because of an old Mole, and it led to the Pixie Hollow being almost paralyzed??? I loved it!
And I loved meeting Becky and her love for animals–I almost feel like Disney had kept her from me for so long.

[Coralie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Admittedly, Beck has never been my favorite of the fairies. I think it's just cause the animal-talents aren't my favorite period. But I like Fawn better than Beck for some unexplainable reason. Not that I absolutely hate Beck. I just feel kind of indifferent toward her and don't get as excited about her stories.

That said, this one is silly and fun. It has some mild Romeo and Juliet vibes (but without the tragic ending) with the great war between to sides and their kids who learn to be friends. It's going to sound ridiculous, but I love the flower umbrellas XD They always make me smile!

The story follows Beck as she tries to stop a quickly escalating war between two camps of animals. It gets so bad that none of the fairies and hardly any of the animals can even get around for all the berries whizzing through the air!

I love Beck's heart for peace and bringing her animals back together. And the story explores themes of misunderstandings, assumptions, grudges, and of course friendships. Hey, it just occurred to me that maybe this isn't one of my favorites because Beck isn't the one who does the growing! The animals do! She's more of a mentor figure leading them through the disagreement. But still, it's cute and a short easy read. Besides, can't just skip part of the series!

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book to read, especially for little kids. Also it has big letters and wonderful colored pictures, as do the entire fairy seres.

[Christopher Guinto · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was about fairies trying to end a berry battle. I liked this book because I like fairies. I would recommend this book to people who like fairies.

[W.Poszukiwaniu.Pseudonimu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tym czasem co tym razem wydarzyło się w przystani elfów? Jakie to ciekawe przygody przeżyją elfy w kolejnym tomie? Dzisiaj swoją opowieść rozpocznie Skłonka! Mała, urocza elfka Skłonka ma niezwykły dar, jest zwierzęcoutalentowaną wróżką, czyli ma talent do rozmawiania ze zwierzętami w ich własnych językach! Co więcej elfka choć sama skromna w opinii innych zwierzęcych elfów i wróbli jest najbardziej utalentowana z nich wszystkich. To właśnie ona potrafi porozumieć się nawet z najmniejszymi mieszkańcami lasu, oraz ma ogromną cierpliwość do wszystkich stworzeń np. Taki maleńki szop, który przypadkiem znalazł się sam w obcym miejscu, nie pamięta gdzie jest jego domek i ciągle płaczę, kilka słów Skłonki, a maluch już się rozpromienia! Innym przykładem jest koliber Aferek, ciekawski, lecz strachliwy towarzysz za którym nadążyć nie jest łatwo, a jednak Skłonka cierpliwie tłumaczy mu każde zagadnienie i rozwiewa obawy (czasami bardzo, ale to bardzo głupiutkie). Co jednak, gdy nie będzie to głupotka, obawy będą jak najbardziej realne? Otóż co jeśli rozpocznie się wojna między mieszkańcami lasu? Wielka wojna jeżynowa! Kto by przypuszczał, że tym razem bojażliwy koliber mówi prawdę, a elfy oraz inni mieszkańcy stanął się postronnymi ofiarami? Niestety przez nieporozumienie pomiędzy kolibrami, a wiewiórkami nastał konflikt, którego żadna ze stron nie chce zakończyć pokojowo. Rozmowy, prośby i sugestie nie wiele dają, a niepokoje tylko narastają, wraz z przyłączającymj się do stron kolejnymi stworzeniami. Co chwilę ktoś obrywa lecąca z nieba jeżyną, elfy ratują się parasolami, lecz i one nie wytrzymują zbyt długo. Skłonka jednak nie ma zamiaru się podać, będzie próbować pogodzić zwierzęta, aż do skutku. Dzień, za dniem, przybywa od skłóconych przyjaciół, aby załagodzić sytuację. ,,Pomoc" przyjdzie jednak z najmniej oczekiwanej strony.

Książka niesie ze sobą ważne przesłania o przyjaźni, współpracy, zjednoczeniu, a także zrozumieniu i pokojowym rozwiązywaniu konfliktów. Rozmowa jest kluczem do rozwiązania wielu problemów, ale trzeba umieć słuchać i zaufać drugiej stronie. Nie można zakładać, że druga strona chce cię skrzywdzić tylko z powodu stereotypów. Na koniec jest jeszcze jeden plus tej opowieść postać Skłonki to jej odwaga, wiara w siebie i niechęć do poddawania się zaowocowała narodzinami współpracy pomiędzy zwierzętami.

[Santosh Thapa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shrawan 23, 2077, Friday

Beck and the Great Berry Battle - Laura Driscoll, Judith Holmes Clarke (Illustrator), Walt Disney Company (Illustrator) (2006)
(Tales of Pixie Hollow #3)

Genre: Fantasy/ Childrens > Middle Grade/ Paranormal > Fairies/ Fiction
Rating: 9/10

Theme: Friendship/ Values and virtues/ Conflict mediation

Opener:
“A squirrel perched on a log paused while chewing on some seeds. He watched as two tiny Never fairies zipped past him, side by side.”

Summary:
As an animal-talent fairy, there’s nothing Beck likes better than speaking Bird, or Chipmunk. So when a conflict breaks out between the hummingbirds and the chipmunks, she steps forward to act as a mediator, but nothing she says seems to help. Will Beck be able to bring peace to the animals?

Review:
This was another entertaining read. These books evoked in me the same feeling I did when reading The Faraway Tree Series by Enid Blyton as a kid. Tales of Pixie Hollow is a magical series with imaginative stories and an undemanding breezy read.

[Auj · Rating 3 out of 5]

I first read this many years ago. I think it was my parents who bought me the boxed Pixie Hollow collection. My sister and I loved playing the computer game. I don't know why the book The Trouble with Tink is missing now.

I think I would have given 4 or 5 stars as a kid, but now this was a 3. The fast-paced plot held my attention, but I didn't especially enjoy reading it. I guess I need some romance, lol. The animals were a little silly too, but there's a lesson for kids there about the importance of communication and to not fight until you have all the facts. I loved how clueless Grandfather Mole was.

The world-building is good, and the illustrations are gorgeous & delightful. I'm sure this is a great book for kids; it just wasn't as good as I remember! I've obviously outgrown this genre. 😂😂😂

I read this in under an hour, which was nice too. Part of me wishes most romance novels were this short, so I could conquer my to-read list, but a lot of character & relationship development would be sacrified if every romance books was a novella.

[SaraReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Trilli e le sue amiche” è il mio primo libro che mi ha accesso al mondo della lettura e avevo voglia di un pizzico di magia. Allora la storia è carina e ormai non è come una volta perché sono cresciuta e quel libro l’avevo letto quando ero ancora una bambina che voleva scoprire la magia e le avventure delle fate come i film di Trilli.
“Beck e la guerra delle bacche”
Questo libro parla di fate che cercano di porre fine a una battaglia di bacche tra vari animali come i colibrì e scoiattoli ma alla fine, le cose finiscono quando gli animali lavorano insieme perché ci è stato un malinteso.
È importante dare una lezione ai bambini/e sull’ascolto degli altri e sul lavorare insieme come una squadra. Alla fine, ho adorato le immagini e i disegni presenti nel libro perché mi vengono in mente i miei disegni sulle fate.

[Darryl Bullock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hi my name is Darryl Deshun Bullock, a children’s author.

This story “Beck and the Great Berry Battle,” is a fun read and a well written story. My favorite character was Beck, the animal talent fairy. All Pixie Hollow looked to her to solve problems with animals, and she was the best Animal-talent fairy! Her relationship with Twitter was lovable. The young Hummingbird Twitter was described as:

“Sweet, good, and earnest little bird, and he was better at playing tag than any other animal in Pixie Hollow (page 21).”

I would recommend this book to kids 10 and under. There is a lot of action to pique the interest of young girls and draw them into the story. A mother can read this story to her kids as a family bonding time, and enjoy the book herself. If you like this story, you will probably like my book as well.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been considering writing for children, I picked this up for research.

I enjoyed this book a lot, and far more than I thought I would. Three writing is well executed, the story compelling, and while the ending is predictable to any adult, it's great for the target audience (4th Grade / 8yo).

The fairies and pick cover aim the book a young girls, but if they can get past the pink cover I believe the typical young boy could also enjoy this book.

Even though I know how it was all going to turn out, and the book is short, I felt concern for the charters. I learned a lot (about writing for children) from this book. It's very well done and I recommend it.

[Liberty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay you seriously do not understand how very obsessed with the Disney fairies I was as a child. And I never got to read the whole series. I was mostly given a book here or there as a gift. So I've made it my mission to read the series and have steadily been collecting them. It was wonderful to see the illustrations and the details left out of the films or that were changed. I really wish they hadn't discontinued this line

[Sarah]

I definitely read this as a kid. I vaguely remember being in awe of the animal fairies' tunnel network, but this time I almost brushed past it. What percentage of that is me trying to speedrun books these days and needing to slow down vs losing my childlike sense of wonder? I think I have more of a sense of wonder than the average adult. But you really can't beat childhood. Man, did I ever want to live in Neverland. Still kinda do.

[Char · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Reading the Pixie Hollow books for the first time as a 21-year-old)
This book was alright - not bad, but not amazing either. The hummingbirds and the chipmunks are pretty much at war over a misunderstanding having to do with a hummingbird nest, and it's up to Beck and the other animal-talent fairies (but mostly Beck) to restore peace. I found the plot pretty predictable, probably because I saw the same plotline being done a few times as filler episodes in shows I watched as a kid. Beck doesn't really have a character arc in this book either as it mainly centers around the animals' conflict. It was still a fun story that I'm sure kids would enjoy (I'm well aware of the fact that I'm not the target audience XD), but I don't think I'll be rereading this one any time soon.

[frstea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read it when I was still in elementary school and I remember now how I used to really savour each words, sometimes how I used to sound it in my head.. I'm kinda sad actually how I can't read that way anymore. I was in a reading slump for several years but now I'm slowly trying to read more until hopefully I can have the same experience as I used to have back then!

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how this story involves a battle between animals and how eventually things come to an end by the animals working together. All over a misunderstanding... it could easily be used to teach younger kids a lesson on listening to others and also working together.

[Vienna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is perfect for children. I read this for my brother as a bedtime story and he loves it. He understands the plot and can retell it well. Now Twitter is one of his favorite characters. And I think Twitter also has a unique character.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter read it and didn't think it was quite as interesting as the Dulcie's Taste of Magic. I, on the other hand, thought that this was just as cute. The animals were funny and I liked Beck's character. I would recommend it.

[Mozzarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beck giggled as she watched them go. Twitter and Nan were so excited about making friends, they had forgotten all about her. She turned and looked out toward the berry battlefield. She sighed. If only the grown-up animals could put aside their differences as easily as the young ones, she thought.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened to this on audio. A great story about a fairy who talks to animals who has to fix things when a war erupts between hummingbirds and chipmunks. I’d have loved this as a child, and a fun quick listen as an adult.

[kenziesue · Rating 3 out of 5]

i like beck a lot, this one was just a little boring to me. the illustrations are some of my favorites though. they’re all so dynamic and really paint a gorgeous picture of the environment and world of pixie hollow

[lillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was nice. It had a bit of humor, and the conflict between the chipmunks and the hummingbirds resolved nicely with the hawk. But I wish there had been more character development for Beck, as there was with Tink and Vidia.

[madziar · Rating 2 out of 5]

Opowieści o wróżkach. W tej części Skłonka m.in. pomaga małemu szopowi odnaleźć dom oraz zażegnuje wojnę pomiędzy ptakami a wiewiórkami.