Up Close BY SHELLEY DIAZ Why the World Needs Fairy Tales Gregory Maguire injects Egg and Spoon with humor and magic hile many people recognize him as the author of Wieked (HarperCollins, 1995), the adult book on which the blockbuster Broadway play is based, Gregory Maguire is also the creator of distinguished books for younger readers, Among these are What-the-Dickens (2007) and now Egg and Spoon (2014, both Candlewick). Maguire talks with SL] about his latest otherworldly work, its intended audience, and why fairy tales are necessary “nutrition” in the ‘modern world What is it about children’s books that ‘make you return to this audience again ‘and again? For me it is more striking to write for chikdren because of their position in their life experience. They'e innocent ‘and untried and they brook no nonsense ‘They dowt want to waste their time n they'e reading a book. Writing for children isthe most demanding exercise. In £6g and Spoon, the entire country of Russia feels as ifs a protagonist. What inspired you to write about the last years of tsarist Russia? Russia isa character in this novel because so much hangs con whether itis dead or alive—alive with magic. One of the [reasons] that I like writing about [it] is similar to why love writing about Oz. They're both equally extensive as maps of possibility. Each can serve as an analogy to the great and complicated United States of America, Your signature snark is evident in this book, which can be ‘appreciated by kids and adults. Who Is your target audience for tis work? Probably me at about the age of 14. I was very full of my- self and thought I was much more of an adult than my parents, teachers, and priest. My book is meant for any- one who remembers that feeling of aggressive affection with authority Is intended to appeal to [fans] of Wicked and kids who are good readers at 14, or those who are not embarrassed by reading fantasy. 24. School Library Journal NOVEMBER 2014 My favorite character in this novels the hitrious Baba Yaga. And Cat and Elena have such spin. Do you havea favorite character? Baba Yaga is a combination of Auntie Mame and Eleanor Roosevelt played by Carol Burnett. She's someone with an incredible range of voice and a capacity for change and affection. Her voice was inexorcisable. She was hys- terical and at times I felt like I was channeling a deranged Miss Piggy 1 just listened. And I took dictation whenever Baba Yaga decided she had something to say Tove the child characters. They are named after my children Luke, Alex, and Helen. I'm concerned about the fate of the world for them, And that’s why I put them at the center ofthe fate } of the world in this novel ‘So many of your books have strong con- neetions to fairy tales. Why is it impor- tant for kids and adults to read these kinds of stories? In the world at large—I don't know if it'sa side effect of staring at flat sees the whole day—adults and kids have become more and more literal-minded and less capable of grasping analogy and symbolism. Fairy tales promise us from the very start that they/te not the real world, “Once upon a time” right away releases us. I think the more Google-fied we become, the more we believe that there's factual interpretation for everything, and the more we rely on our skepticism and become immune to fairy tales, poetry, and dreaming. We need them more now than we did 40 years ago. Ithas become harder for us to live in comfort with analogy and suggestion. We want concrete- ness and absolutism. And fairytales do not promise absolutes. ‘That's why they're essential nutrition, One of the things that gg and Spoon emphasizes is that the world ‘magical As literal and conerete as | am asa father, in my hieart Lam a child, and I believe that the world is still magic. (Ed. note: See (http://ow.ly/Chel.C) for the full interview.) Shelley M. Diaz is senior reviews editor for SL]. wow.sij.com Uewmon Aouy Aa oxoug