  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 08/01/2015 Gr 7 Up—Snow White meets Sleeping Beauty in this fairytale mash-up where things are not what they seem. When three dwarfs learn of a sleeping plague spreading throughout the land, they alert their queen. The queen, already feeling that marriage means the end of her ability to make choices in her life, gladly postpones her wedding, grabs her sword, and sets off with the dwarfs to get to the bottom of the magical curse. On their way, they encounter throngs of cobweb-covered sleepers. To their surprise, the slumbering masses talk in their sleep and eventually begin to lumber after them. The team forges ahead to the castle, where they find the sleeping princess and an old woman. The queen's kiss, shown in a sumptuous spread, wakes the princess. The quest turns out to be just what the queen needs to be reminded of the choices she has. Riddell's spectacularly intricate ink drawings, gilded with gold, bring Gaiman's inventive story to life. Each page is packed with marvelous details—vines claustrophobically twist everywhere and expressions convey far more emotion than the words let on. Gaiman's narrative about strength, sacrifice, choice, and identity is no simple retelling; he sends readers down one path then deliciously sends the story veering off in an unexpected direction. The only downside—the tale ends far too soon. VERDICT This highly recommended visually stunning twist on two classic fairy tales will be well received by fans of graphic novels and fantasy stories.—Amanda MacGregor, Great River Regional Library, St. Cloud, MN - Copyright 2015 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 08/01/2015 You think you know the story of Sleeping Beauty? Not once Gaiman gets his hands on it. At this almost-graphic-novel’s outset, a raven-haired queen is resignedly preparing for her wedding—marriage, she has decided, “would be the end of her life . . . if life was a time of choices”—when three dwarves arrive to report that a plaguelike enchanted sleep is creeping toward the kingdom. Learning that the key to lifting the spell lies in waking a spindle-pricked maiden, the queen dons her armor and strikes out in rescue. Gaiman’s storytelling immediately casts a spell over readers and contains more twists than merely substituting a daring queen for a charming prince—cobweb-covered sleepwalkers shambling about like zombies, for example. Kate Greenaway winner Riddell’s black pen-and-ink illustrations are accented in gold, lending a rich, gothic beauty to the tale. There are moments where this revised Sleeping Beauty misses the mark, but it’s nonetheless refreshing to see its cast of women actively making choices and carving out their own destinies. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Commander of an avid fan base, Gaiman always draws a crowd. Riddell’s recent appointment as the UK’s children’s laureate will only boost demand. - Copyright 2015 Booklist. Loading...
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