1: A witty and welcome surprise!
I picked this book up for my 8 month old the other day. As a "Bookie Monster" (i.e. "One who passionately devours anything with a cover and pages!") and children's writer, I tend to be choosy over the books I purchase for my daughter; I will spend hours in bookstores previewing potential books and picking them apart: "How on earth does drivel like this get the greenlighted by an editor? I've found four words spelled wrong on the first three pages!"
I can't begin to tell you what a surprise this book was. It is beautifully illustrated and written in a no-nonsense, non-dumbed down conversational style. Any adult with a hearty sense of humor will be able to appreciate this work. I laughed out loud more than once as I read through the first page; the classic view of the Queen we grew up with is shattered as she tells her story: She doesn't want your pity; as a single mother, The Queen has had little support in raising Snow White, but has done her best.
A interesting gem from the Queen points out how regular mothers are allowed to fly off of the handle now and then, and folks don't give it a second thought. Stepmothers, however, are not afforded that luxury and branded as evil when they do likewise. That's deep thinking for a children's book, but then again, I am a firm believer in not watering things down for children. They are smarter than most adults would care to admit. Any book that provokes deeper thought in a child's mind gets a huge golf clap from me.
In conclusion, this is a fresh work and a new way of seeing the flip side of the bad guys. If you are weary of tedious tales and the fruitless garbage that clutters the bookshelves of the children's section these days, I highly recommend you pick this one up. I do not have any of the other titles in this series as of yet, but that will change!
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