My Book Review of Seriously, Snow White Was SO Forgetful!: The Story of Snow White as Told by the Dwarves (The Other Side of the Story)
Seriously, Snow White Was SO Forgetful!: The Story of Snow White as Told by the Dwarves by Nancy LoewenMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Interesting Retelling
I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the title of this book caught my attention. Reading it left me mixed, especially with the target age. The images work well for 4-8, but the text is more middle grade, or 8-12, in my opinion. I think this one will depend on the child as to how well received it is.
What I liked was there was no kiss. There was no “prince to the rescue.” It was more a story of circumstance. However, it retained the truths of the original fairy tale while giving it a new spin.
What I disliked was how many times Snow White could be poisoned and choked to death, yet still live. Being a cautionary tale, this does a poor job illustrating the reality of these dangers. Had they played the magic aspect up more, the author could easily have easily emphasized the silliness. However, they leaned too much on kids knowing the original story, which I felt lessened the value of this one.
The questions at the end helped to give better context and enhance the moral lesson. That was a lovely choice. Overall, it’s a cute book, but it’s probably just not my taste.
