Not a Fairy Tale: A Story of Surviving the First Three Years of Being a Stepmom

The inspiring and hilarious story of Maddie Laberge's journey from a carefree, childless life to becoming a stepmom of three.

Nothing could have prepared Maddie for what was about to happen to her quiet, simple life once all three of her husband's children arrived to live with them. Taking us into rich memories of her own childhood through to her present life turned upside-down, Maddie retells circus-like stories of parenting chaos and heart-wrenching episodes of the accompanying lessons learned. Through the madness, Not a Fairy Tale unfolds the story of one woman's adventures in stepparenting, and by extension, getting to know (and accept) herself.

Maddie earned her degree in Human Nutritional Sciences from the University of Manitoba and has built a career in consulting. Once her three stepchildren arrived, her life revved up to full speed and something had to give. She switched gears from identifying as an ambitious working woman, to a struggling stepmom. With her love of writing, Maddie began documenting her parenting wins and fails; finding humour in her complicated situation kept her moving ahead. Eventually, she compiled the tales together in her debut memoir. Maddie loves nature, red wine, and sharing stories with other parents