Born in 1977, I grew up on the “original” Disney princesses, and Snow White was my favorite. I did have the benefit of knowing that the Disney movies were just “modern” versions or interpretations of Old World fairy tales. Published in 1972 and awarded a Caldecott Honor, I am shocked that I do not remember ever having seen this particular version of Snow White before. This is gorgeous!
This Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs: A Tale From the Brothers Grimm was translated by Randall Jarrell and illustrated with stunning pictures by Nancy Ekholm Burkert. This has to be one of the prettiest versions of Snow White I have ever seen.
If you grew up on the Disney version of Snow White and are unfamiliar with the Grimm Brothers translation, you may be a bit surprised by this story. Unlike other Grimms tales, however, this one is not very gory or “dark” in its presentation. It is just rich storytelling that moves quickly and elegantly through the scenes we know and love.
The ending, however, may be a shock to some readers, so I am quoting it at the very bottom of this review for anyone who wishes to know.
The back of my copy quotes John Gardner at the New York Times Book Review: “. . . the illustrations are magnificent. Looking at them, you wish they were the first pictures you’d seen in your life.”
I feel something similar to Mr. Gardner. I wish this had been the first Snow White I had ever seen and read. And I would love to have some of these illustrations on my wall so I could get lost in them again and again. This Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs: A Tale From the Brothers Grimm is in print and available at Amazon. I plan to use this Snow White next time I do a Tending the Heart of Virtue book club.
A truly lovely retelling and a gorgeous picture book, if you were only going to read one Snow White, this would be the one. I am truly surprised that it did not win the 1972 Caldecott Medal.