The Fairy Tree

On the side of a hill in Ireland, not far from a small, run-down cottage, was a fairy tree. The fairy tree was full of fairies. Elisa Reidy, who lived in the cottage with her family, loved the fairies, especially Sunshine, and Sunshine especially loved Elisa. The two played together every day and were very happy.

One day, Elisa did not appear at the fairy tree. Her family had left for Canada because of the famine in Ireland. Sunshine was heartbroken. How could she go on without her beloved Elisa?

Dewdrop, the oldest fairy in the fairy tree, knew Sunshine needed help that only Queen Muirne, the queen of the fairies, could give. With the help of Robin Redbreast, Dewdrop embarked on a journey across Ireland to meet with the queen and save Sunshine.

Early on in their travels, Dewdrop and Robin Redbreast meet two unlikely characters-a rat and a buzzard-who also need the help of the fairy queen, and they decide to travel together. The little group encounters danger and setbacks on their journey. A storm and an attack by the evil Unseelie fairies threaten to keep the travellers from reaching the fairy queen. Will they get there in time to save Sunshine? Will Rodan the rat and Byron the buzzard get the help they need? Will Sunshine and Elisa ever see each other again?

Eileen R. Bouchard retired from a career in health care and currently farms with her husband. She enjoys paleontology, archeology, gardening, and fossil hunting. She and her husband Jim live on an acreage near Radville, Saskatchewan.