The Deer Park - A Modern Fairytale

It’s that time of year when this website revisits the children’s fairytale , The Deer Park - which is available at

Recently I’ve been messing about with some of the images which could be further used inside the book…

The Deer Park is a modern fairytale written in the tradition of the Brothers Grimm and other European storytellers. By utilizing classic tropes found in old traditional fairytales, The Deer Park follows the story of a brother and sister whose father has gone off to fight in a war.

It is midwinter in their ancient village (which is based on the famous and picturesque Dunster in South West England), and the tale begins when local children are having an adventure in the old medieval Deer Park. Suddenly, warplanes skim low over the hills on their way to the Land of Coal and Steam across the sea-channel.

The deafening roar of engines causes the children run in all directions. Avill, the brother, is soon lost in the dark forest. A winter storm is brewing, and the boy, finding himself in a sheltered dell, hugs the moss-covered trunk of a fallen tree, which is knocking against another tree high above. After a while, the sound of wind in the trees seems to translate into words the boy can understand, and so he begins to know the tree-spirits of the forest.

His sister finds him, and as the snow falls in the dusk, the pair embark on an adventure which will include Christmas at the big castle which dominates the village, a big freeze, deep snow, a sleeping giant, a strange but friendly witch, an ancient dancing hobby horse, and a few more of those threatening aeroplanes.

There is the hardship and darkness often found in the classic fairytales of yore, caused by the cold winter and the threat cast by those aeroplanes. There is also courage, fortitude, hope, and redemption as the children embark upon a plan to bring their father home from war safe and sound.

There’s a great deal of Yuletide atmosphere in the story - as is witnessed when the children have to help serve Christmas dinner up at the huge castle.

There’s also plenty of classic fairytale content - such as the old witch who lives in a cottage with her three large cats….

I’m not sure how this particular witch managed to grow a beard - that’s not in The Deer Park story - but blame the robots who’ve been helping me with the images. Sometimes their enthusiasm gets carried away. At other times they get hugely traditional, like when I asked them to create a picture based on the above synopsis…