Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs [Hardcover]

Belinda Downes (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 7 and up | Grade Level: 2 and up

The story of Snow White, her evil stepmother, a talented mirror, a woodsman, a prince, and seven small, hard-working men has never been more exciting or revealing than in this beautiful and feisty retelling by beloved children's book author Joan Aiken. Belinda Downes's gorgeous embroidered illustrations bring life, depth, and emotion to this classic story of betrayal and the power of love.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

PreS-Gr. 2. Downes, whose embroidery artwork has illustrated such titles as The Starlight Princess (1999), adds her exceptional talents to this charming retelling of the Brothers Grimm tale. Aiken's text is never stilted, with beautiful descriptions, wicked humor, and well-placed colloquialisms: "Now she's really had it," says the queen after Snow White's collapse. The magic mirror's remarks will particularly tickle children: "She is the fairest under the moon / She makes you look like a wicked prune." The queen's demise here is a bit less harsh than in the original tale; instead of dancing to her death in red-hot iron shoes, she accidentally kills herself with a poisoned rose intended for Snow White. Downes coaxes extraordinary atmosphere and expression from her fabric and thread. Children will be transported to the dark, tangled forest and the dwarves' snug cottage, and they'll shiver with delight over the beautiful, vengeful queen; the luscious poisoned apple; and luminous Snow White. Consider this fine, unusual new edition even if your collection already has several copies of the tale. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

Joan Aiken is best known for her Lewis Carol Shelf Award winner, The Wolves of Wilbery Chase. She has since gone on to write more than 30 books for children and 22 books for adult. Belinda Downes is one of the world's most successful embroidery designers. Her books include Silent Night, Every Little Angel's Handbooks, and The Starlight Princess and Other Princess Stories.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 7 and up
  
• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: DK CHILDREN; 1st edition (October 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789487993
• ISBN-13: 978-0789487995
• Product Dimensions: 12.5 x 10.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,423,550 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joan Aiken (1924-2004) was the daughter of Pulitzer prize winning poet Conrad Aiken and started writing herself from the age of five. During her lifetime she published over one hundred books for children and adults, including the acclaimed Wolves of Willoughby Chase series. In the UK she received an MBE from the Queen for her services to Children's Literature.

This year sees the publication of a brand NEW story collection - The Monkey's Wedding - with previously unpublished material that shows Aiken on top form. This collection of funny, spooky, unexpected but classic Aiken stories has received wonderful reviews and will delight her readers. See below for details.

Her work continues to be adapted for film and television; she is established as a consummate storyteller,and recognized as one of the best loved authors of the twentieth century.

"The Wonderful World of Joan Aiken" is at www.joanaiken.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully-Told and Beautifully-Illustrated, December 31, 2002

By 

Lawrence E. Wilson (Mayfield, East Sussex, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Hardcover)

One can always trust the talents of Joan Aiken to put a fresh spin on an enduring classic. It's wonderful to read a version of the Snow White story in which the heroine is not pure sappiness personified, where the wicked queen is not simply the embodiment of all that is evil, where the magic mirror has something of a sarcastic attitude, and where so many little details of the story, long taken for granted, are actually EXPLAINED: why the queen has these magical powers, how she acquired the mirror, how the huntsman handled his deception, what the dwarves' names were, where the charming prince lived...And the embroidered illustrations are, just simply, magical---the detail and cleverness will hold the attention of any squirming small child. I can't wait to read this aloud to my niece and nephew, and show them the wonderful pictures.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW! What exceptional talent!! A beautiful picture book., November 8, 2002

By 

Maatka (Baton Rouge, LA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Hardcover)

All I can say is WOW! It may be hard to tell from the picture, but all of the illustrations in this book are actually very beautiful, very intricate embroidery work. It's unbelievable and very exquisite when you see it in person. ALso look at her other kids book, The Starlight Princess -- Amazon's so great with the ability to see inside of the book and you can see inside the Starlight Princess to see better detail of Belinda Downes' exceptional work. What brilliant illustrations!! Cannot say enough!!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Much too highly adapted, July 28, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Hardcover)

The illustrations are okay, but this adaptation strays too far from the original story. She gives the dwarves silly names, worse than Disney, Fred and Ted--good grief. And naming the dwarves serves no purpose. The ending is totally made up. In Snow White, there is no shattered mirror, no enchanter who reclaims it, if you want to write your own story do so--why muck with the fairy tales.