Disfigured - The Library of the Uncommons

paperback, 160 pages

Published March 3, 2020 by Coach House Books.

ISBN:: 978-1-55245-395-7

"Challenges the ableism of fairy tales and offers new ways to celebrate the magic of all bodies. In fairy tales, happy endings are the norm – as long as you’re beautiful and walk on two legs. After all, the ogre never gets the princess. And since fairy tales are the foundational myths of our culture, how can a girl with a disability ever think she’ll have a happy ending?By examining the ways that fairy tales have shaped our expectations of disability, Disfigured will point the way toward a new world where disability is no longer a punishment or impediment but operates, instead, as a way of centering a protagonist and helping them to cement their own place in a story, and from there, the world. Through the book, Leduc ruminates on the connections we make between fairy tale archetypes – the beautiful princess, the glass slipper, the maiden with long …

"Challenges the ableism of fairy tales and offers new ways to celebrate the magic of all bodies. In fairy tales, happy endings are the norm – as long as you’re beautiful and walk on two legs. After all, the ogre never gets the princess. And since fairy tales are the foundational myths of our culture, how can a girl with a disability ever think she’ll have a happy ending?By examining the ways that fairy tales have shaped our expectations of disability, Disfigured will point the way toward a new world where disability is no longer a punishment or impediment but operates, instead, as a way of centering a protagonist and helping them to cement their own place in a story, and from there, the world. Through the book, Leduc ruminates on the connections we make between fairy tale archetypes – the beautiful princess, the glass slipper, the maiden with long hair lost in the tower – and tries to make sense of them through a twenty-first-century disablist lens. From examinations of disability in tales from the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen through to modern interpretations ranging from Disney to Angela Carter, and the fight for disabled representation in today’s media, Leduc connects the fight for disability justice to the growth of modern, magical stories, and argues for increased awareness and acceptance of that which is other – helping us to see and celebrate the magic inherent in different bodies. "

(from the author's website

2 editions

Beholderess reviewed Disfigured by Amanda Leduc

Review of 'Disfigured' on 'Goodreads'

2 stars

Disappointed, although it might be a case of mismatched expectations.

What I have expected is a scholarly analysis of fairytales and their relation to disability. What I have gotten is an autobiography with precious little scholarship. The author’s understanding of a fairy tale seems to be entirely surface level - especially obvious in her preoccupation with happy endings and insistence that fairytale world is portrayed as just and that “good” people are rewarded, which... has not been a feature of fairytales except in the most modern of times.

Another minor grip is the constant use of “what would happen if...?” leading questions that the author then coyly refuses to elaborate on or provide any evidence for, instead engaging with some sort of imaginary implied answer

Frecklemaid

rated it

Feb. 10, 2021