4 Stars
Just wonderful.
Valente has a powerful voice and a gift for visceral descriptions, which breathe a vibrancy to the stories and the uncanny ability to take myth and fable and turn them into modern tales. Allegories of womanhood and what it means to be female. The themes are universal and in many ways cautionary tales.
I loved this version of Snow White in the Old West. I was captivated by the concept when I spotted it, but it was even better than I tried to imagine. Valente took the story and turn it inside out. I'll be honest, the ending confused me, I reread it. When I began this the ending would always be a tricky endeavor, and while I like the concept of it, not sure if I loved the execution. I'm still thinking on it, and will be for sometime, but the fact is that it doesn't detract from the strength of the story.
Valente's stories are ones mothers should give their teenage daughters because they do not lie. They tell the paradox of being female. The sacrifice and choices we all make. Discussions of what is danger and being prey, the illusions of fairy tales are deconstructed with the real price shown. How all of these things play into women's lives now is sophisticated and an approachable vehicle.
This is my second Valente book after DEATHLESS earlier this year, and without a doubt not my last. I'll be stalking her backlist, now.
Favorite passage: This is what it means to be a woman in this world. Every step is a bargain with pain. Make your black deals in the black wood and decide what you'll trade for power. For the opposite of weakness, which is not strength but hardness. I am a trap, but so is everything. Pick your price. I am a huckster with a hand in your pocket. I am freedom and I will eat your heart.
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