Six-Gun Snow White by Catherynne M. Valente
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I think this is an excellent novel with or without its being a retelling of Snow White.

Unfortunately, I'm not and never have been a huge fan of Westerns. That being said, I was only able to get into it as far as Cat Valente could carry it, which was quite far, indeed.

The best things I can say about it is that this was never tongue-in-cheek or a lackadaisical mapping of the fairytale into recognizable parody. It felt like a serious and heartfelt rendition of magical realism, where we are never quite given to believe that the magic is real or a wonderfully metaphorical turn of phrase.

That being said, I loved the horse named Apple. Oh, and Cigarettes Kill. :)

This isn't the most ambitious of Ms. Valente's writings, but it might be one of the most adult-accessible, adult-intended stories that I've read. It really makes me want to look up the un-sanitized version of the tale and see the real differences.

It's a story with a lot of heart. Um. Literally. Nom nom nom. :)

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