If you love books about fairies, Disney, the movie Pinocchio, magic, adventure, family, friendship, love, and fantasy, I highly recommend you checking out “When You Wish Upon A Star” By Elizabeth Lim. This is another great Disney Twisted Tales series I have read along with other ones I have checked out in the past. This book focuses on the Blue Fairy who we know from the movie helps guide Pinnocchio in becoming a real boy, but we get to read her life story before she became the Blue Fairy and she was a young woman named Chiara who lived in the same village as Geppetto and Pinocchio many years ago. The first part of the book takes us to her life as Chiara who loves to make others happy. Chiara lives with her mother, father, brother, and sister in the village of Pariva where she has a very happy life. She is very close to her family, especially her sister Illaria. Chiara’s sister Illaria loves music and singing where she has a grand dream of becoming a world famous opera singer. Chiara’s desire to help others will open up a new world and fate that will change everything when she saves a young man named Geppetto from drowning in the sea due to a mysterious sea monster that tries to get him when he is out on his boat near the village. After she rescues him, she is then approached by a fairy where she offers Chiara a chance to join their world by becoming an apprentice by working under one of the senior fairies. The fairy offers this opportunity due to Chiara’s pure heart and desire to help others find happiness. Chiara however, will learn that there are restrictions where she cannot grant certain wishes when helping those who seek out the fairies for wishes. One of the examples is that fairies cannot grant wishes that others want instantly like material things/fame. Fairies also cannot grant wishes to those who were once family or loved ones they were close to in their previous lives especially when Chiara asks her mentor if she can help her sister achieve the dream of becoming a famous opera singer. This will cause Chiara to face some tough decisions, leave behind her loved ones, and an argument with her sister that will change their bond. Then the book goes back to the present when Chiara is the Blue Fairy. She will take a big risk by breaking the rules she was warned not to do many years ago when she hears Geppetto’s wish for his toy puppet Pinocchio to become a real boy. When she brings Pinocchio to life as a puppet this will summon the Scarlet Fairy. The Scarlet Fairy wants to seek revenge by turning the Blue Fairy in due to breaking the rules, however, they decide on a bet to see how Geppetto and Pinocchio’s fate will turn out and if the Blue Fairy can successfully get Pinocchio to become a real boy with the help of his conscience . I will leave you with these questions: Will the sisters find each other again and make amends? Will Geppetto and Pinocchio have their wish come true? Will the Blue Fairy lose everything she worked hard for or win the bet from the Scarlet Fairy? You will need to read more to find out!

This was an excellent book to read. I love how the author covered the backstory behind the Blue Fairy’s life before she became a fairy and after she did as well . I also love how the author connected Geppetto and Pinocchio to the Blue Fairy’s past and current life to see why her role played a significant importance to them . The plot had a lot of interesting twists and turns that made me want to read more to see how the book was going to end. I had a lot of emotions when reading the book that were sad, happy, frustrated, angry, etc. due to some of the challenges the characters had to face along with the way some of the characters’ fates played out in the book. I wished some of the choices they made could have been done differently because they could have gotten the dreams and happiness they wanted without the sacrifices they had to make which caused changes in the connections with one another as well as the way their lives turned out later on in the book. I was very surprised how the ending turned out, which I will not reveal, but it turned out better than what I was expecting. I encourage teens and older to read this book along with the other Disney Twisted Tale Series which you can find in the NOBLE catalog! They are amazing books and fun fanfiction books to read!