Fairy Haven and the Quest for the Wand
by Gail Carson Levine
Illustrated by David Christiana

About the book:

For weeks, the mermaid Soop has waited for the magic wand that was promised to her by the fairy RAni in exchange for her help saving Never Land. But wands are dangerous objects, and wise Mother Dove has forbidden Rani from fulfilling her promise. Her patience at an end, Soop takes revenge: she sends a flood to drown the fairies and destroy Fairy Haven. The only thing that can stop the flood is the arrival of the wand.

Rani, Tinker Bell, and the fairy queen, Clarion, set out on a perilous quest that takes them all the way across an ocean, to the palace of the Great Wanded Fairies. Acquiring a magic wand from these giants is no easy feat for the tiny Never fairies, but at last they take hold of one—only to find that their troubles are just beginning. For a wand can easily tempt a fairy into making a foolish wish, with terrible consequences.

In this thrilling sequel to Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg, the Never fairies find themselves fighting against the greatest danger of all—their own hearts’ desires—to save their beloved Fairy Haven.

About the author & illustrator:

Gail Carson Levine is the author of Newbery Honor-winning Ella Enchanted and numerous other books for children. She lives in New York’s Hudson Valley.

David Christiana has illustrated over twenty picture books for children. He lives in Tucson, Arizona.

Author Interview:

1. What’s your favorite part of the writing process?
2. Which authors or books have influenced you most as a writer?
3. What was the most difficult part of bringing Tink and the other fairies stories to life?

Questions to consider:

1. Why is Soop angry with Rani? What will she do if Rani doesn’t fill her end of the bargain? Do you think Soop is being cruel or not? Why?
2. Why do so many fairies want to go on this quest? What are they hoping for a chance to do? Would you want to go as well? Why?
3. The fairies have been told by wise Mother Dove not to try to use the wand to end the flood. Why is this not a good idea? What might Soop do?
4. Why must Mother Dove stay with the egg? What powers does it give her? What would happen to fairy dust?
5. Describe what the palace of the Great Wanded Fairies is like. How is life very different here than in Never Land? How do the Great Wanded Fairies treat and feel about the Never fairies? What do they do for them?
6. Some wands have big hearts while others are mean-spirited. How do the Never fairies hope to control the one they’ve gotten? What spell will help?
7. How does Ree break her promise to Mother Dove? Is it wrong to make wishes when they could help someone else? What would you wish for if you had the wand?
8. All the fairies get a kind of wand madness. What do Tink, Prilla, Ree, Vidia and Beck wish for? Why can’t they control themselves? What mean-spirited wish does Tink press upon Peter Pan? Why??
9. Are the fairies able to get back to Never Land and stop the flood in time? How?  What is the worst thing that happened during the flood?
10. What did Soop’s mermaid song do to Rani? Is she stuck forever inside this other form? How do her friends try to help her? In the end, what becomes of Rani?
11. Describe what happens between Pah and Soop once they have the wand. Is there anything that creates this kind of bad behavior in people? What is the worst spell someone could place on you? Do you think you’d be able to resist the powerful greed that comes with wand wishing? Why or why not?
12. Which illustration in the book is your favorite? Why? What do the illustrations add to the story?

Projects:

Language Arts:

Create a character chart which includes the following information: name, description, wand wishes, in the end. As you read the novel, fill out the chart.

Art:

Create a three-dimensional scene from the book inside a box turned on its side. You can use whatever material you like to bring it to life but be sure to use enough detail that we know which scene is represented in the story. Paste a piece of paper on the back of the box describing why you chose to work on this scene and why it is important to the story.

Science:

Study bat echolocation and learn how Rani-bat was able to locate and find her meals. Create a poster, pamphlet, or presentation about one type of bat.

http://www.museumca.org/caves/onli_echo.html

This is a great site to hear bat echolocation and see a demonstration of how it works.

Math:

Pretend that you have a magic wand and you can get anything you want (five wishes!). Draw pictures or cut those items out of magazines and paste on a piece of paper. Then, figure out how much each would cost and then add up the total amount it would cost to earn those same items.

This guide was created by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer, a reading specialist and children’s book author. Visit her website to find hundreds of guides to children’s literature.