by Lily Blake
Date Read: 07/18/2012
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
I saw the movie before I read this book. I enjoyed the movie so much, that I had to pick up the book and see how they compare. Now, I know this book was written based on the script, so I knew it was going to be very similar. There were things I liked better in the movie and some things I liked better in the book.
Better in the movie:
1) Most of the backstory was told at the beginning of the movie - you knew who William was before she was trying to escape, etc. In the book, only the part about the Queen killing the King was really at the beginning, so a lot of the backstory came from memories in the characters' heads. So I felt like I didn't relate to them as much because it was just a quick recap of something important that needed to be said, but it was more in passing.
2) I didn't get as attached to the dwarves, and specifically Gus, in the book. They spent such little time with the Dwarves in the book, and Gus wasn't really mentioned in the book [SPOILER: except when he danced and then when he got killed.]
Better in the book:
1) You get inside Snow White's and the Huntsman's minds more. You are able to see their relationship build better. Obviously in the movie you root for him because he's one of the main characters and he's Chris Hemsworth for Pete's sake. I liked seeing that relationship grow. And you could see and feel better why the Huntsman is the one who wakes her.
2) In the book you really see the Huntsman's transformation from sulking widower to having some hope again, which I really enjoyed. Even though the book was only 220 pages with a lot of wasted pages for chapter numbers, you still really saw character growth in Snow White and the Huntsman. Now, perhaps some of this came from it being a movie script prior, but you really don't get to see the inner thoughts of Snow White and the Huntsman in the movie, so you attach to them better and really see why the things that happen do happen.
3) The book still ends the same way without a kiss! What kind of fairy tale ends without a kiss???? In the movie she just smiles at him in the end while he's kind of off to the side. [SPOILER: But in the book, he told her that he couldn't stay with royaly. So he leaves!] I liked in the book, though, that it specifically called out that she only thought of William as a friend, but she really liked the Huntsman. I liked how it wrapped up who she actually cared about, but I was so annoyed at that ending, when he obviously loves her - the only girl or person in the world who was able to pull him out of his depression. Sigh. I know it's based on a fairy tale, but I'm really hoping for a sequel that will have a happier ending in terms of love!
Overall thought I really enjoyed this Snow White story. The only thing was that in some parts, the perspective changed abruptly. One moment it was Snow White's perspective, and then the next paragraph it was the Queen's. That was a littl jarring. Normally perspective changes happen with breaks in the chapter or just a new chapter. But this had several times where one paragraph was from one perspective and the next another perspective. I understand that the author needed to tell the scene from two perspective sometimes, and obviously no one wants to read the same scene twice, but it was still jarring for me. But otherwise it was great. I think if you liked the movie you will really enjoy the book and vice versa. And I thought this was a very good version of Snow White. Modern yet still true to the medieval times that Snow White is usually told.
0 comments:
Post a Comment