Iffy Magic's Muse & Author Dean Hughes's Review

I started writing Iffy Magic in the fall of 2008, about eight months after my mother's sudden passing in February. I needed a way to push against the ache of silence, a way for me to find her again—

Bonnie. Mom. Teacher. Artist. Storyteller.

Many of my happiest memories of my mother involve stories. She was always reading to my sisters and I, always marking little blue and black x’s in the wispy paper-thin Scholastic catalogue they sent children home with from school, and taking us to the library for ink treasure hunts. Always teaching me to believe in the wonder of fairy tales and how to learn from the kindness and bravery of characters like Taran Wanderer, Cimorene, Aslan, Frodo, and Barbara Cooney's Hattie. Creating Primrose and coming along with her on her journey to become a true fairy godmother allowed me to find joy again not just as a writer, but as a daughter. As a (once-upon-a-time) child. As just another soul in this scarred and beautiful globe of wishes we call Earth.

I am so thrilled to share Iffy Magic with the world tomorrow! But first, I would like to share a review given by writer Dean Hughes, author of over 100 published books including Soldier Boys. I was serendipitous enough to be a student in his creative writing class at BYU over ten years ago.

Without further ado—

“Queen Calypso, a character in Iffy Magic: Confessions of a Faux Fairy Godmother, describes the ‘Motley crew of vagabonds’ who inhabit the story:  ‘We have a stray Lord of Feles, an Elder unicorn, a faux fairy godmother and a wicked fairy . . . all working together to create unparalleled mischief.’

But more than mischief, these vagabonds create a delightful team of eccentrics who use their magic to create an intriguing plot, an enchanting world—and great fun for the reader.  The plot may take the Cinderella story for its inspiration, but the wonderful characters, ingenious plot and unfailing writing style make for a more layered, evocative and entertaining story than the original tale ever achieved.

S. E. Page is a skilled stylist [ . . .] Her descriptions, her clever language, her funny insights, create a voice that holds and charms the reader with every sentence.  Readers of all ages will come to love Primrose Goodwing, the would-be fairy godmother, and the magical world she lives in.”