Nothing like a FAIRY WALK during spring

5 questions for author-illustrator Gaia Cornwall

Apr 17, 2025

I’m a huge fan of Gaia Cornwall’s work—I’m sure many of you are familiar with the soul-warming Jabari Jumps—so when I met her randomly here on Substack, it was a true fan girl moment. And you know how they say “never meet your heroes”? Well luckily, Gaia isn’t like that at all. Not only did she agree to send me Fairy Walk, but she also graciously agreed to be interviewed.

So, without further ado, let’s dig into Fairy Walk!

Fairy Walk

Written and Illustrated by Gaia Cornwall

Recommended Ages: 3+ years old

Disclaimer: I received this book as part of a promotion but my opinions are entirely my own

Gaia Cornwall has been on my radar since I read Jabari Jumps*. And it’s because she tapped into the child—dare I say, human?—psyche so well. This book is no different.

When I first took in the cover, I innately knew this book was meant for me. You see I gave birth several years ago in November. Do you know what happens in November? Winter starts to happen. Being stuck at home in the cold and completely clueless about how to handle a newborn meant it was a painfully long, maddening season. So when spring rolled around in her wet, verdant finery, come hell or high water (and there was LOTS of water), I’d slip on my rain boots, toss the baby into the carrier, and head out with my umbrella for a walk. And these walks were blessed. It felt magical to see mushrooms—that hadn’t been there the day before—shooting out of the earth in thick little clusters. The quietness of the world broken only by the thrum of rain and joyful birdsong.

This magic is captured in a beautifully whimsical way by Cornwall. We see a trio of friends venture out into the woods in search of those mystical creatures—fairies. Every time they come across something special—the fragrance of new blooms, plump gray mushrooms—they know it’s the mark of a fairy. So though they don’t come face-to-face with the sprites, there’s evidence all around them of their existence. The illustrations are reminiscent of spring: the pencil and watercolor perfectly mimic damp spring days and the collage elements add a delightfully playful oomph to the artwork.

It’s a book that inspires you to turn a spring day into a romp through the woods with your own little pals and see if you can catch any fairies in action. The little “clues” you discover will no doubt leave you in awe of the natural world around you.

Buy now* | Find it at your local library

Where did the idea of Fairy Walk come from?

I came up with the idea during the Covid lockdown, when we were lucky enough to be staying in Vermont with extended family. We would take the kids, who were all under six at the time, on daily walks in the woods and find ourselves “looking for fairies” and musing about where they lived. Kids would be in boots and not much else, covered in dirt, or snow, or whatever, and handing us slugs and special leaves to carry. The book is very much in that spirit of unstructured play, exploring in the woods, and feeling how small, but connected you are.

What came first to you? The illustrations or the story?

I always have a hard time pointing to what came first. It all kind of swirls together and marinates for a bit, I think. However, I do have a tiny sketch, of the three characters, from Fall 2020. (I officially started working on it with Candlewick in 2022.)

Jabari Jumps is a modern classic. What about it do you think struck such a chord with adults and kids alike? (Sri: I know my answer :D)

I mean, I don’t really know. But maybe it’s that most people can relate to having something you really want to do while being simultaneously terrified at the thought. The whole idea of exploring what being brave means and how to deal with fear. I feel like so often the message is “Don’t be scared, be brave!” And really that’s not how bravery works. You have to be scared to be brave. (Sri: ding ding ding! This is why I love this book so much… it’s not a kid story; it’s a human story.)

What were some of your favorite books as a kid? What’s a book you’re enjoying right now?

I was really drawn to super detailed, perfectly rendered illustrations, like Trina Schart Hyman, Gyo Fujikawa, David Pinkney, Jill Barklem, and early Maurice Sendak—like Outside Over There or the Little Bear series.

My nine-year-old has been really into graphic novels lately. We just finished

Nidhi Chanani

(Sri: who has a FANTASTIC newsletter btw) Super Boba Cafe and it was so great.

How cute is this workspace?! And I can’t tell you how badly I want to look through all those books in the background.

You have kids who I’m sure you read with quite frequently. Are you able to turn off your author-illustrator hat and enjoy the picture book as a reader or do you find yourself switching between hats?

It’s actually really nice to read with my kids with my author-illustrator hat on. I think it makes me appreciate all the little details even more. Honestly, I think that hat is just a part of my brain that doesn’t really get turned off. I do get very grumpy when watching movies or shows with characters who work in the publishing industry. 99% of the time, it’s portrayed in this whimsical, carefree way which is both hilarious and infuriating and well, insulting, i.e. I take it all a bit too personally. So in those cases, I wish I could take the hat off!

Thank you so much for sharing your journey with this lovely book, Gaia, and for giving us the gift of such wonderful stories. You can follow Gaia on her newsletter,

Gaia Makes Books for Kids

Let’s Talk…

If you could write a children’s book, what would it be about?
Would you do your own artwork? If not, who would you love to have to do the illustrations?