this elegantly bound edition of amanda lovelace’s you are your own fairy tale trilogy includes all of the poems from break your glass slippers, shine your icy crown, & unlock your storybook heart that you fell in love with, as well as a new & never-before-seen introduction written by the author. you are your own fairy tale is a must have for every lover of beautiful things & magical words.

★

Genre(s): Poetry, Retellings
Series: you are your own fairy tale #1-3
Published by Andrews McMeel Publishing on January 3, 2023

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➤ Representation (click to show)

anxiety, depression, queer relationships

➤ Content warnings (click to show)

child abuse, toxic relationships, sexual harassment, sexual assault, eating disorders, fatphobia, suicide, trauma, mental illness, self-harm, sexism, queerphobia, death, grief  

No one asked, but here’s a fun fact about me: I control my book-collecting habit by only buying books I’ve already read and loved and am sure I will want to read again. This is relevant because I not only bought but preordered you are your own fairy tale as an early birthday present for myself — I read and loved ARCs of each individual collection, and I knew I would want to revisit them. 

Which I already have! I read it through when it finally arrived in the mail, and again a couple weeks later when I was feeling down. About an hour well spent, even (especially?) the second time.

Bear with me a moment while I revel in what a pretty book this is. It’s solid, at 451 pages, bound with a ribbon bookmark, a fantastically lovely cover design corresponding to the three collections within, lush illustrations, and even the poems are formatted beautifully. Seriously, this might be the most aesthetically pleasing book I own.

As previously mentioned, I adored the individual collections and individual poems, but this is one of those rare cases where the anthology edition is greater than the sum of its components. Each of the three narratives has its own storyline and themes; when you read them together, the similarities and resonance become even more pronounced. (Plus, as a much more minor perk, I feel less like I’m padding my read count with poetry when I’m counting the bound edition as just one book.)

If you’re familiar with Amanda Lovelace’s other work, you probably already have a sense of whether you like her general style of poetry. Personally, I think this is some of her best: I love the reimagining of both classic and original fairy tales, to comfort and encourage and gently challenge the reader to create the happy ending they deserve.