The Windvale Sprites

by Mackenzie Crook

When a storm sweeps through the country, Asa wakes up the next day to find that his town is almost unrecognisable - trees have fallen down, roofs have collapsed and debris lies everywhere. But amongst the debris in his back garden Asa makes an astounding discovery - the body of a small winged creature. A creature that looks very like a fairy. Do fairies really exist? Asa embarks on a mission to find out. A mission that leads him to the lost journals of local eccentric Benjamin Tooth who, two hundred years earlier, claimed to have discovered the existence of fairies. What Asa reads in those journals takes him on a secret trip to Windvale Moor, where he discovers much more than he'd hoped to...

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Fiction, Fairies, Young Adult

208 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2011

Reviews

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely and enchanting story, told simply with delightfully atmospheric and accomplished illustrations by the author.

'Windvale Sprites' is, I believe Mackenzie Crook's first novel - an adventure about a boy and his search for both the Windvale Sprites and not to mention the amazing Benjamin Tooth!

'Windvale Sprites' is an old fashioned, yet timeless tale, in a contemporary setting - well told and well worth a read.

Hopefully there are may more stories on their way from the pen of accomplished actor/write/director Crook.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

That is when the thought struck him. 'I've found a fairy.' Just like that with no exclamation mark. [...] Not wand-waving Tinkerbells but sinewy insect-men: wild creatures that must be secretive and hardly ever spotted.

A boy. A storm. An unexpected encounter. A library. Wild places. Classic ingredients for a children's mystery, written and illustrated by Mackenzie Crook who knows how to spin a yarn that'll draw in any imaginative young reader (and the odd adult too). Though this is a tale about fairies it's not a fairytale in the conventional sense; while there are traditional elements this is essentially an adventure story involving young Asa Brown attempting to solve a centuries-old conundrum, and what he did after he found the answer.

What do we think of when we encounter traditional fairytales? Magical beings no doubt. Do they appear, only to disappear when humans burst in on them? Are they our size, only dressed in outlandish or anachronistic garb, or are they diminutive with butterfly wings? Do they grant wishes, or do they bring down misfortune upon our heads? Does time warp and change when you stray into their realms, or are there taboos which you must not contravene?

Asa will find some answers to these questions when investigating these sprites. But first he has to research the eccentric Benjamin Tooth, an eighteenth-century antiquary locally notorious for his flights of fancy, who has reputedly left some documents to the town which may or may not reside in the local library. It's only just a matter of Asa somehow finding the key...

As a straightforward narrative there is plenty in The Windvale Sprites to keep the young reader reading: foolish adults, a resourceful and sensitive youngster tracking and attempting to trap a sprite, an abandoned cottage, a cellar with a secret. There is also a conservationist message, one in keeping with the essential morality of the fairytale tradition but here not ham-fistedly hammered home.

There is also plenty to grab the mature reader's attention. Little jokes like the passing mention of a place called Cottingley (the famous early 20th-century faked fairy photos from the real Cottingley village even fooled Arthur Conan Doyle) and an oblique hint about Terry Jones' Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book; the author's own remimiscences of The Great Storm of 1987 which devastated a huge swathe of southern Britain, and a grownup's natural curiosity as to how Asa will explain lying about going on a projected school trip. (Crook will sidestep the consequences of Asa's escapade by subsequently penning The Lost Journals of Benjamin Tooth, set two centuries before.)

The author is best known as an actor for the British TV version of The Office and for his appearance in the franchise of The Pirates of the Caribbean, and more recently for writing and starring in the The Detectorists, a gentle comedy series about responsible men who go metal detecting for ancient treasure. He has also illustrated The Midvale Sprites, his sprite drawings especially impressing this reader. Overall this is a diverting read, one which manages to preserve the quintessential otherness of the fairy being.

[G. Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely, captivating, original. For all adults in the UK who remember the famous storm this begins with, this is like heading back to childhood from the off. And the message is great. Well-written, charming and touching. Much like a lot of Crook's work. Highly recommended.

[Kyal Sin Shin Thant · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was great but some spellings are wrong.

[Ben Lovegrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this after watching MC’s Detectorists and Worzel Gummidge. It has a lovely structure, with a brilliant ending. It seems like a timeless story, which is something I like about it.

[Helen Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this and loved the depictions and creations
Felt the ending was a bit too sudden!

[Alex Sarll]

I know children's books by celebrities have now been sucked into the Discourse, but if nothing else you can tell that this one is absolutely Mackenzie Crook, everything from the general embeddedness in the English landscape to little details (the ruined cottage, the hoard of shiny treasures) prefiguring his work on Detectorists and Worzel Gummidge. Hell, the spikiness and strangeness of his fairies, who despite an early mention of Cottingley are more feral and insect-like than dainty, even recalls Crook's other, more unsettling avatar of the land role in Britannia. The less fortunate bit is that the book isn't quite as good as any of them. There are a few hilarious moments, and a welcome awareness that you don't need to bump off the young lead's parents for adventures to ensue when you can just have them gently distracted, but protagonist Asa never fully comes alive, and worse, nor does the countryside. Part of me wonders whether Crook was steered wrong in avoiding too much rural musing, or if he's just better at capturing it on the screen than the page; certainly I think part of the problem is that Asa is dealing with this mysterious discovery by himself, so while we get his viewpoint on the story, until the end we don't really see him shaped and revealed through dialogue that isn't largely deceitful. And if learning that here set Crook up for the wonderful depictions of friendships that would follow, that's achievement enough. Also, even if he didn't altogether convince me qua novelist, his illustrations show he could totally have made it on that side of proceedings if he weren't already busy as writer/director/actor.

[Jacqueline · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a truly wonderful book! Beautifully and engagingly written and with quirky illustrations. A joy! There are passages in the book which describe cruelty towards the sprites which I would be wary of reading to younger children, which is to say that this book has some depth to it. It makes complete sense in terms of the characters but this is not just a sweet book about fairies. Funny, thought-provoking, and moving. Recommended!

And definitely go on to read 'The Lost Journals of Benjamin Tooth' straight afterwards. It really adds to the story in the most wonderful of ways.

[Bookgirl888 · Rating 5 out of 5]

My friend has been telling me to read this for ages and I just never got round to it. She gave it to me for Christmas and I'm so glad she did. What a story!
Asa is a boy who ends up on an adventure to find the Windvale Sprites. With help from an old trunk and some notes, he manages to piece together information and discover what only one other person has before.
It's beautifully written and the illustrations are amazing. I can think of so many of my Y6 children who will want to read this as it's not 'too long' but it's a book for their age range.

[Lizzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read to my son at bedtime.
We enjoyed this book much more in comparison with The Lost Journals of Benjamin Tooth. I'm also glad we read them in this order, as this story is set 200 years after The Lost Journals. Asa's discovery of the Sprites is helped by Tooth's old journals and the whole story is much kinder towards the sprites in general.
Lovely illustrations and an excellent ending leaving everyone happy.

[Dan Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely twist on the classic fairy story, with a surprising but abrupt ending.

I enjoyed the little nods to the real world, with Michael Fish' meteorological blunder and nod to the Cottingley Fairies as it made the story feel all the more real.

Also loved the illustrations, as they reminded me of the Squashed Fairy book and Brian Frouds goblin companion (which I may have to reaquire 🤣)

4/5, just because of the abruptness of the ending

[Emilee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read with definite environmental overtones, but not too preachy.

[Harshith J. V. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy reading novel that you maybe able to read in one afternoon(max 3.5 hours). Encompasses kid adventure, unsolicited hiking, scientific exploration, greed, etc., all into one tiny novel.

I can relate to thrill of finding new species as I'm a nature enthusiast and go on sorties for birding and herping frequently. Here a small boy goes on an adventure to find extremely elusive creatures. The ending of the nemesis was well executed and heart-warming. Wish there was aftermath to boys adventure after final chapter, like end-credit scenes in marvel movies.

Can I enjoy this easy reading novel for those who're young or young-at-heart. Wished the actor-author spun out more such good novels. However, looks like his fully engaged in his acting passion. Hope, he publishes new books in future.

[Molly Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm giving "The Windvale Sprites" three stars because I read it aloud to my son, who liked it. I probably would have given it less, and that's only because I was a bit confused by the story development. The climax made me go, "I don't even remember that." Still, the writing is fairly nice, if not a little too elevated for a children's story, and the ending was quite beautiful. I would have eaten it up as a child as I did any story involving faeries. Mackenzie Crook, as an author, has done a decent job of creating a whimsical if not a little too obtuse fantasy story. Still, I prefer his acting, which is utterly brilliant.

[Tyler Worden · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love McKenzie Crook, especially as the lead actor and writer of Detectorists, so I thought I'd give this a go. It's a fun book with a good premise. The jokes are amusing and the illustrations add some visuals to the wild creatures he describes. However, it seems rather short (and it is), and the main character doesn't have much of a personality, so he seems like the protagonist from a hundred different books.

[Dark-Draco · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a lovely book - a great modern fairytale, where a young boy finds a strange creature in his pond after a storm, and then goes on a quest to find out more. It has everything a child would love - a really nasty baddy, who likes to dissect and torture the fairies; a young inquisitive hero that quite happily lies to his parents in order to go on his quest - and gets away with it; a nice mystery to work out; and some fantastic illustrations.

A very enjoyable read, even as an adult!

[Elsa Wolf · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw this charming children's book in a local LittleFreeLibrary and ran off with it when I discovered it was written by an actor from the Pirates of the Carribean film series. Truly a delightful read with a lesson about respecting things we don't understand. Young, Asa Brown, goes on an adventure to explore the origins of an unusual creature he finds in his garden after a storm. It was a quick read, but I wish the ending was a bit smoother.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very sweet fantasy novel about a boy who discovers sprites near his home. I loved the descriptions of the moors and how important nature was, but unfortunately the story was a bit oddly paced. It took a long while for it to really get going, and once it did, it felt really rushed, which was a bit odd. But I loved the illustrations as they really added to the sense of wonder and excitement that the story had.

[Rachel Armington · Rating 3 out of 5]

When my kids (and I) were younger, I ran a give-away book program in their school and was always on the search for stories that would engage reluctant readers. I would've definitely wanted this book on our shelves. Just enough interesting illustrations, environmentally persuasive while not being preachy. Loved the ending!

[Louise Bath · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely, lyrical tale, as you'd expect from the creator of The Detectorists and the man behind the revitalisation of Worzel Gummidge. Sweet without being cloying, light and easy to read. Crook also supplies the charming but slightly edgy illustrations. I'd like to read any other children's books he's written: they can definitely be enjoyed by kids and adults alike.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the Great Storm of 1987 Asa finds a mysterious creature in his garden. After some careful exploration he discovers that it's a sprite and 200 years ago a local man did lots of research on them. This was a charming little book and, coming in at just over 200 pages long, a quick read. There are some lovely illustrations from the author too.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no idea that the wonderful Mackenzie Crook was a children's author until today. I found this lovely book in a second-hand shop and, loving a good children's book, snapped it up.

It's a super read. Full of Mackenzie's trademark humour, warmth, pagan imagery and love of the natural world, I adored every page.

[Maryann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is written for preteens so I flew through it but I have to say I really enjoyed it. I was really well constructed and fun, totally believable even when it wasn't! It wasn't dumbed down for a younger audience and kept me, as an adult, well entertained. Beautiful and eerie, sweet and funny, with lovely descriptions and drawings. Loved it.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this one - full of wry observation and quiet humour. Asa's determination to find out more about the sprites pulls you through the book, and the spooky sense of things being wrong is well done - a great introduction to the ethics of scientific investigation. I loved it.

Bonus points for the prologue, which had us laughing at poor old Michael Fish once again.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book more than I wanted to because of the celebrity author. I struggled to finish it. I wonder whether the idea is better than the execution of the book. But it is charming and I will recommend it to my son (who I stole it off in the first place).

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this.but I felt the plot had some flaws in it that made it slightly unconvincing. .....but enjoyable and I lobed the illustrations.

[Niamh McK · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing book! Seriously, one of the best books I have ever read! Such amazing description! Everything about it I loved!

[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is actually one of my favourite books ever and definitely recommended 👍🏼👍🏼

[Rebecca Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this little story, and the drawings are incredible. Thoroughly enjoyed this book!

[Raya Schaduwjaagster · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful but lonely story.