Fairy Tales with Teeth

by E.F. Schraeder

Strange parents that a child doesn’t quite trust. A peaceful but isolated setting. A neat-as-a-pin little cottage tucked into the trees where things aren’t quite what they appear to be. A hidden truth that someone must face, even as it slices through their most basic assumptions. As a coming of age tale of transformation, there’s a familiar, fairy tale feeling about some of those starting points, but to me Ginger’s story isn’t exactly a fairy tale.

The backdrop of Ginger’s story begins with a blunt edge of violence in the aftermath of a rampage— the rampage of a girl who felt betrayed by those she thought she could trust. Not all stories hint at optimistic, happy ever afters, but the main sleeping giant in AsFast as She Can is the fury that gets unlocked when Ginger realizes how powerful she really…