Fairies of New England: The Little People of the Hills and Forests

Buster and the Little Fairies is a new children’s book written by Melody Rose Paul with illustrations by Tiana Vermette. It features fairies from Mi’kmaq tradition and tells a story about love and family healing.

Here is a Q&A with Melody Rose Paul about her inspiration for the book. Paul, who’s from the Eskasoni First Nation, is also the author of books on recovery.

One of the themes of your book is healing. The fairies are in some ways the source of this healing. What inspired you to include fairies in your book in this way?

Well, growing up, I used to hear stories from my elders about the fairies in the woods called wutlatmuj in Mi’kmaq.

Your illustrator Tiana Vermette made a beautiful picture of a fairy in the book. Is this how you imagined the fairies to be or was that her imagination?

This children’s book was a new experience for me, and working with an illustrator was a great experience. [It was] exactly what I imagined.

How does this book relate to your other writings about recovery?

This children’s book is my first. It does have a healing journey, so it’s slightly the same in that way.

What impact do you hope to have on readers with this book?

Just to help others open their imagination.

You can purchase Buster and the Little Fairies on Amazon here.