The Magic World of Bracken Lea
Glodwyn the gnome is a bit of a rebel. He lives and works in the ancient woodland. He is unusual amongst the Fairy Folk in enjoying the company of humans. His good-natured interest in their world seen through the eyes of his unknowing "friend", Walter the Stacker Truck Driver at the local factory, leads him to interfere in their affairs, with interesting results both for the Fairy Folk and humans. With his help, the Fairy Folk rescue a little boy from drowning, and save the life of an injured cat. A confused old lady collapses in the Wood while searching for the cat, and finds herself being entertained by fairy musicians while she awaits rescue.
Glodwyn raises the alarm when a baby’s mother is taken ill, and later helps prevent disaster at the baby’s Christening, when a bad fairy threatens the child’s happiness. They help a Leprechaun find his way home, and get a lost engagement ring back to its owner. Both unwitting humans and Fairy Folk work together to save nearby woodland from development. From arranging a litter-pick in the woods to finding a new wand for the Fairy Queen, it is a busy life for the Fairy Folk.
Glodwyn the gnome is a bit of a rebel. He lives and works in the ancient woodland. He is unusual amongst the Fairy Folk in enjoying the company of humans. His good-natured interest in their world seen through the eyes of his unknowing "friend", Walter the Stacker Truck Driver at the local factory, leads him to interfere in their affairs, with interesting results both for the Fairy Folk and humans. With his help, the Fairy Folk rescue a little boy from drowning, and save the life of an injured cat. A confused old lady collapses in the Wood while searching for the cat, and finds herself being entertained by fairy musicians while she awaits rescue.
Glodwyn raises the alarm when a baby’s mother is taken ill, and later helps prevent disaster at the baby’s Christening, when a bad fairy threatens the child’s happiness. They help a Leprechaun find his way home, and get a lost engagement ring back to its owner. Both unwitting humans and Fairy Folk work together to save nearby woodland from development. From arranging a litter-pick in the woods to finding a new wand for the Fairy Queen, it is a busy life for the Fairy Folk.
Today I'm happy to have Glodwyn stop by.
Character: Glodwyn
Book: The Magic World of Bracken Lea
by Esma Race, illustrated by Veronica Castle.
Tell me a little about yourself?
I am a Gnome, and that means that I belong to the element called Earth, which is one of the four elements, the others being...Fire, Water and Air. I can work Magic, as long as it involves anything to do with the Earth, I also enjoy interacting with humans, playing tricks, and having fun, I do work hard though caring for the woodlands, little creatures, other Fairy Folk, and on occasions humans.....I am happy, cheerful, and fun.
Where do you live?
Bracken Lea Wood.
Who is the most important person in your life?
Celandine the Flower Fairy.
What was your childhood like?
I didn't have one, I was always as I am now, although I will fade away one day.
Of all the people you've met, who would you LEAST like to be stuck in an elevator with?
Astrid the Fairy Queen.
What is the most important thing in your life? What do you value most?
The friendship of the other inhabitants of the ancient woodlands. Nature is what I value most.
What is your biggest fear?
Humans destroying the woods.
What is the most important thing that ever happened to you? Why?
Finding that I could communicate with humans, it gave me lots of ideas, and a chance to know how humans live, and how their minds work.
Do you have any special talents or abilities?
Magic.
How do you see your future?
More of the same.
If you could spend the day with someone you admire (living or dead or imaginary), who would you pick?
The Green Man.
If you had a free day with no responsibilities, how would you spend it?
Playing in the Fairy Band.
Where can we find out more about you?
https://www.facebook.com/esmarace or http://raceesma.wix.com/esma-race
Biography
Esma Race was born and raised in the small Cheshire village of Weaverham. She has a great love for the natural world, and has always been able to sense the nature spirits which feature in her stories. She is very interested in natural healing, and is a practising reflexologist in the North of England, where she lives with Geoff, her husband of 45 years. She is a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother and enjoys reading, walking, traveling, gardening, and English history
Excerpt from The Magic World of Bracken Lea
Chapter One
Glodwyn the Gnome
The factory car park overlooked Bracken Lea Wood, separated by a low wall. Once over the wall it was possible to slip and slide down the slope between the trees to the woods proper, or walk alongside the wall until the land became flatter, and it was easier to follow the pathways deep into the heart of the ancient woodland.
Too small to be called a forest, Bracken Lea is, nonetheless, a fair sized wood, with a character all of its own. "A place of Magic," thought Glodwyn, the elemental, as he sat beneath the Silver Birch; "but I'm losing my touch…" His job was to care for the earth, but he had got too involved with the world of humans, spending too much time playing tricks in the factory.
Only this morning, the Green Lady and the Fairy Queen had spoken to him about it. The Green Lady had threatened him with the Green Man. They were both earth elementals like himself.
However, the Fairy Queen Astrid was of the element Air, and really Glodwyn didn't much like her. "Floating around up there," he thought, "instead of getting on with things…"
She had got involved with his misbehaviour, because the Elements all had to work together for the good of all, and Glodwyn neglecting his duties had been brought to her attention by the Foxglove Fairy, who thought herself very important anyway.
Celandine, Glodwyn's best friend, was a Flower Fairy, and landed beside him, interrupting his daydream.
"You" she said, turning her little pert face up to him "will end up working below ground, if you don't buck up, and what on earth do you do all day in that human place?"
"I've got a human friend," said Glodwyn, much to Celandine's amazement. "He's called Walter, and he drives a stacker truck. I sit on his shoulder and put ideas into his head."
"What sort of ideas? Daft ones, I suppose!" retorted Celandine.
"WHAT ON EARTH!" exclaimed Glodwyn, jumping to his feet, whilst Celandine hovered just below the branches of the Silver Birch.
Mayhem had come to Bracken Lea Wood, with all the birds creating an enormous racket.
Blackbird was the loudest. "Human children! Human children! Trouble! Trouble! Trouble!"
***
Tommy Slade should have been at school, not stomping around the woods, flattening the buttercups, giving the Buttercup Fairies a headache and frightening poor Mrs. Hedgehog to death.
The pond in the middle of the woods was one of two. Tommy Slade was drawn to the still deep water, just as small boys have been drawn to water since time began.
After time spent throwing stones into the water, Tommy decided to make a raft.
Glodwyn and Celandine arrived just as disaster struck. The improvised raft floundered and the small boy was flung into the water.
….....................
You can hear the first chapter read aloud by the illustrator, by going here:
http://raceesma.wix.com/esma-race#!audio-sample-and-video-/cqa7
The Magic World of Bracken Lea has received high praise from both educators and environmentalists for its general ethos of educating by example and empathy, as opposed to talking down to kids.
Book: The Magic World of Bracken Lea
by Esma Race, illustrated by Veronica Castle.
Tell me a little about yourself?
I am a Gnome, and that means that I belong to the element called Earth, which is one of the four elements, the others being...Fire, Water and Air. I can work Magic, as long as it involves anything to do with the Earth, I also enjoy interacting with humans, playing tricks, and having fun, I do work hard though caring for the woodlands, little creatures, other Fairy Folk, and on occasions humans.....I am happy, cheerful, and fun.
Where do you live?
Bracken Lea Wood.
Who is the most important person in your life?
Celandine the Flower Fairy.
What was your childhood like?
I didn't have one, I was always as I am now, although I will fade away one day.
Of all the people you've met, who would you LEAST like to be stuck in an elevator with?
Astrid the Fairy Queen.
What is the most important thing in your life? What do you value most?
The friendship of the other inhabitants of the ancient woodlands. Nature is what I value most.
What is your biggest fear?
Humans destroying the woods.
What is the most important thing that ever happened to you? Why?
Finding that I could communicate with humans, it gave me lots of ideas, and a chance to know how humans live, and how their minds work.
Do you have any special talents or abilities?
Magic.
How do you see your future?
More of the same.
If you could spend the day with someone you admire (living or dead or imaginary), who would you pick?
The Green Man.
If you had a free day with no responsibilities, how would you spend it?
Playing in the Fairy Band.
Where can we find out more about you?
https://www.facebook.com/esmarace or http://raceesma.wix.com/esma-race
Biography
Esma Race was born and raised in the small Cheshire village of Weaverham. She has a great love for the natural world, and has always been able to sense the nature spirits which feature in her stories. She is very interested in natural healing, and is a practising reflexologist in the North of England, where she lives with Geoff, her husband of 45 years. She is a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother and enjoys reading, walking, traveling, gardening, and English history
Excerpt from The Magic World of Bracken Lea
Chapter One
Glodwyn the Gnome
The factory car park overlooked Bracken Lea Wood, separated by a low wall. Once over the wall it was possible to slip and slide down the slope between the trees to the woods proper, or walk alongside the wall until the land became flatter, and it was easier to follow the pathways deep into the heart of the ancient woodland.
Too small to be called a forest, Bracken Lea is, nonetheless, a fair sized wood, with a character all of its own. "A place of Magic," thought Glodwyn, the elemental, as he sat beneath the Silver Birch; "but I'm losing my touch…" His job was to care for the earth, but he had got too involved with the world of humans, spending too much time playing tricks in the factory.
Only this morning, the Green Lady and the Fairy Queen had spoken to him about it. The Green Lady had threatened him with the Green Man. They were both earth elementals like himself.
However, the Fairy Queen Astrid was of the element Air, and really Glodwyn didn't much like her. "Floating around up there," he thought, "instead of getting on with things…"
She had got involved with his misbehaviour, because the Elements all had to work together for the good of all, and Glodwyn neglecting his duties had been brought to her attention by the Foxglove Fairy, who thought herself very important anyway.
Celandine, Glodwyn's best friend, was a Flower Fairy, and landed beside him, interrupting his daydream.
"You" she said, turning her little pert face up to him "will end up working below ground, if you don't buck up, and what on earth do you do all day in that human place?"
"I've got a human friend," said Glodwyn, much to Celandine's amazement. "He's called Walter, and he drives a stacker truck. I sit on his shoulder and put ideas into his head."
"What sort of ideas? Daft ones, I suppose!" retorted Celandine.
"WHAT ON EARTH!" exclaimed Glodwyn, jumping to his feet, whilst Celandine hovered just below the branches of the Silver Birch.
Mayhem had come to Bracken Lea Wood, with all the birds creating an enormous racket.
Blackbird was the loudest. "Human children! Human children! Trouble! Trouble! Trouble!"
***
Tommy Slade should have been at school, not stomping around the woods, flattening the buttercups, giving the Buttercup Fairies a headache and frightening poor Mrs. Hedgehog to death.
The pond in the middle of the woods was one of two. Tommy Slade was drawn to the still deep water, just as small boys have been drawn to water since time began.
After time spent throwing stones into the water, Tommy decided to make a raft.
Glodwyn and Celandine arrived just as disaster struck. The improvised raft floundered and the small boy was flung into the water.
….....................
You can hear the first chapter read aloud by the illustrator, by going here:
http://raceesma.wix.com/esma-race#!audio-sample-and-video-/cqa7
The Magic World of Bracken Lea has received high praise from both educators and environmentalists for its general ethos of educating by example and empathy, as opposed to talking down to kids.
The Magic World of Bracken Lea
Glodwyn the gnome is a bit of a rebel. He lives and works in the ancient woodland. He is unusual amongst the Fairy Folk in enjoying the company of humans. His good-natured interest in their world seen through the eyes of his unknowing "friend", Walter the Stacker Truck Driver at the local factory, leads him to interfere in their affairs, with interesting results both for the Fairy Folk and humans. With his help, the Fairy Folk rescue a little boy from drowning, and save the life of an injured cat. A confused old lady collapses in the Wood while searching for the cat, and finds herself being entertained by fairy musicians while she awaits rescue.
Glodwyn raises the alarm when a baby’s mother is taken ill, and later helps prevent disaster at the baby’s Christening, when a bad fairy threatens the child’s happiness. They help a Leprechaun find his way home, and get a lost engagement ring back to its owner. Both unwitting humans and Fairy Folk work together to save nearby woodland from development. From arranging a litter-pick in the woods to finding a new wand for the Fairy Queen, it is a busy life for the Fairy Folk.
Glodwyn the gnome is a bit of a rebel. He lives and works in the ancient woodland. He is unusual amongst the Fairy Folk in enjoying the company of humans. His good-natured interest in their world seen through the eyes of his unknowing "friend", Walter the Stacker Truck Driver at the local factory, leads him to interfere in their affairs, with interesting results both for the Fairy Folk and humans. With his help, the Fairy Folk rescue a little boy from drowning, and save the life of an injured cat. A confused old lady collapses in the Wood while searching for the cat, and finds herself being entertained by fairy musicians while she awaits rescue.
Glodwyn raises the alarm when a baby’s mother is taken ill, and later helps prevent disaster at the baby’s Christening, when a bad fairy threatens the child’s happiness. They help a Leprechaun find his way home, and get a lost engagement ring back to its owner. Both unwitting humans and Fairy Folk work together to save nearby woodland from development. From arranging a litter-pick in the woods to finding a new wand for the Fairy Queen, it is a busy life for the Fairy Folk.
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