Guest Post: What Makes For a “Happily Ever After” by Holly Schindler

Hello everyone! Today I have a special visit from author Holly Schindler at Life of a Female Bibliophile. She’s here to share her thoughts on what makes for a “happily ever after” in 2015. Be sure to also check our her new book Fifth Avenue Fidos which is currently available exclusively on Amazon!

About The Book

Mable Barker, a frizzy-haired mongrel from Queens with no real life direction, is never going to snag a man like Jason Mead, a purebred Upper East Side veterinarian. Besides, the shy but adorable Dr. Mead’s awkward ways around women have him dreaming not of finding love for himself but of playing canine matchmaker—breeding blue ribbon champions. Jason’s first breeding attempt yields Innis, Fifth Avenue’s snarliest Pekingese. A dog whose temperament, it appears, will never fit show-dog standards…until he meets Mable, whom Jason hires as a dog walker. Could Mable actually have what it takes to handle Innis and Jason? Can three imperfect beings ever come together to create utter perfection at the Westminster Dog Show—and beyond? Will Mable and Jason ever trust their feelings, allow love to be unleashed? Fifth Avenue Fidos offers a deceptively simple tale that is both a sweet romantic comedy and a satirical look at modern relationships. A smart exploration of the fairy tale promise of a one-size-fits-all happily ever after—and a heartwarming story of love and dreams in dog-eat-dog NYC. Praise for FIFTH AVENUE FIDOS, Holly Schindler’s Comedic Women’s Fiction: “A fun and funny read with adorable, quirky characters of both the human and four-legged variety. Readers who love dogs, romance, and fairytale endings will be charmed by this book.” – Author Jennifer Salvato Doktorski

What Makes For a “Happily Ever After”

I wrote Fifth Avenue Fidos a couple of years into my pursuit of publication. I was getting slammed with rejection right and left—like every writer does at the beginning of her career. I needed to get out of my head, think about something else other than the “No”s coming my way…that was when Jake, my Pekingese, came into my life. I always say Jake came from the breeder, and I’m the rescue dog. But as much as Fifth Avenue Fidos is a story of two people finding love—and their way in life—by bonding over a dog, the book is also a commentary on what makes for a “happily ever after” in 2015. Running side-by-side with Mable and Jason’s story, the reader is treated to a modern-day fairy tale. Each time we hit a new major section or turning point in Mable and Jason’s story, we pause for a moment to catch up with Princess Rosy, who functions as Mable’s fairy tale alter ego. These short Princess Rosy sections offer running commentary on Mable’s own story as it unfolds, and push FIDOS beyond the ordinary sweet, simple romantic comedy, giving the book its satirical slant. Rosy’s sections use the conventions of the fairy tale to address changing social values. Recently, same-sex marriage was legalized coast-to-coast, but right now, more Americans than ever are also staying single. We’re in the midst of revising what happily ever after means. Right now, happily ever after is in no way one-size-fits-all. And the Rosy sections allowed me to address that—to ask the reader to think about what happily ever after means for them. Sure, sometimes a happy ending involves a traditional love match. Other times, it involves (as we see in Rosy’s sections) a brachycephalic dragon. Happiness is just like success—it means completely different things to different people. And the paths we take to “ride off into the sunset” are all as unique as we are…

About The Author

Holly Schindler is the author of four traditionally published books; her work has received starred reviews in Booklist and Publishers Weekly, has won silver and gold medals in ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year and the IPPY Awards, respectively, has been featured on Booklist’s Best First Novels for Youth and School Library Journal’s What’s Hot in YA, and has been a PW Pick of the Week. Fifth Avenue Fidos is her first independently published book. She is owned by a Pekingese named Jake and can be found working on her next book in her hometown of Springfield, Missouri.

She can also be found at on her website: hollyschindler.com, Twitter, and Facebook

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