Wow. I don’t know what to say.
Sophie was too much in the beginning. Too soft, too silly, too naive. Too weak.
That is how the huntsman killed her so easily. That is how her heart was taken. That is how she died.
Princess Sophie died that day, but in place of her, someone else was born. Someone who was kind, but strong. Scared, but courageous. Doubtful, but determined.
It took a long time for it to happen. It felt slow at times. It felt like she’d never change.
But she did.
Her journey changed her. It shaped her into the woman she needed to be. She was not always that way, for she was born with a soft and tender heart. But the battles we fight strengthen us. The places we go teach us. And the lessons we learn change us.
That is what this book teaches us. That growth is a journey, and that we are more than what we think we are.
That day, when the huntsman took out her heart, the princess died. But someone else took her place. That someone was vulnerable and innocent. That someone did not know what to do.
But that someone found her way. That someone not only saved others, but herself.
That someone is a queen. The queen.
Princess Sophie may have died, but another Sophie took her place. Queen Charlotta-Sidonia Wilhelmina Sophia of the Greenlands. The rightful heir to the throne.
The one who would take back her crown.

—

Anyways, that was my poetic way of describing what happened in the book. Here’s my shorter and less elegantly put (but more natural) version of my thoughts:
Okay, so I get why someone wouldn’t like this book, but I personally really liked it. This was a very poetically written book of the author’s beliefs such as kindness being strength and the like. As a poet, I thought it was really cool how the author wrote and made her point. It was just so poetic, and the way the author wrote will always leave me in awe. She really is incredibly talented. ( )

This was a great retelling of Snow White! It shows the darker side of this fairy tale which I always love. This book kept me engaged from beginning to end, looking forward to reading Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly! ( )

An interesting version of Snow White’s tale, told in part from the perspective of the evil in the mirror. ( )

It was a different retelling of Snow White, with mixes of other fairy tales. A metal clock for a heart; a prince. Six Dwarves. An evil stepmother. A strong willed princess determined to fight her way back to the throne. This was the first book I read by Ms. Donnelly and it was good. ( )

Just spent the last two hours reading this fantastic book by Jennifer Donnelly! This is the retelling of Snow White but instead it’s Sophie, who is a princess who will be inheriting the crown when she turns 18. Her stepmother, the Queen, with the help of the King of Crows, tries to kill the princess. The entire story is a twists and turns of drama and emotions, and you can’t help but root for Sophie. She learns many things along the way, including kindness is a very special thing along with love. There’s a quote in the book that I think sums up the entire book “encounters in the darkwoods, thieves, girls in trousers ... nothing good can come of this.” Highly recommend this book. ( )