Q&A with Maddie

Meet Maddie
AKA americangirlemmie 

Maddie has been a book blogger since January 2010 and has been "writing" even longer (though it has only recently gotten any good). She is a pre-professional ballet dancer and college student, and she is currently working as a dance instructor. There are few things that she loves more than stories, and she hopes to be able to share hers with the people on Swoon Reads (and the masses, as well, of course. But, you gotta start somewhere).

Who is your favorite famous but misunderstood character in classic literature or a fairy tale?

Tiger Lily from Peter Pan. In almost every adaptation of the novel, we see Tiger Lily painted as the jealous, unrequited love, to whom Wendy harbors nothing but bitterness, and who Peter just ignores. However, Tiger Lily is a leader and heroine in her own right. I appreciate her ability to be kind to people who did nothing but invade her personal life, but also to stick up for herself. However, this protection of her territory, her home, is so often painted as her just being jealous. If I could change her story, I would eliminate her "damsel in distress," plotline, and allow her to become the leader that she was clearly intended to be!  I love the book in general, but the treatment of Tiger Lily (in the original, and all the adaptations, honestly) is less than preferred.

From more about Maddie, check her out on Swoon Reads and her book blog.

Check out The Tale of the Red Shoes!

In this retelling of the classic fairy tale “The Red Shoes," we follow spunky ballerina Karen as she lives out the summer of her nightmares. That summer was the cultivation of everything that she hated−cultish towns, uncertain ballet training, and worst of all...human interaction. While staying in a town with no contact to the outside world, Karen seems to have stumbled straight into a storybook. However, this all becomes mundane to Karen as she meets her soul mate... Literally. When Karen discovers a pair of handmade red shoes, she instantly falls in love with them. Even amongst the likes of pixie-esque girls and boys who seem straight out of the fairy tales, Karen wants nothing more than those crimson heels. As this desire increases, everything comes into question... How much of her own story was Karen really a part of?