Mirror, Mirror
by Nancy Butcher
Mirror, Mirror is a dark retelling of an already dark fairytale: Snow White. In this version, Queen Veda is the most stunningly beautiful woman in the land, and is determined to remain so at all costs. Her daughter, Princess Anna, knows that if she wants to keep her mother's love she cannot overtake her in beauty. For years now, she's been purposefully making herself as unattractive as she can: over-eating, leaving her hair unwashed, dressing in unbecoming rags.
But the queen's 'mirror' - the weird, supernatural creature called the Beauty Consultant - warns the Queen that the Princess could still outstrip her in beauty. With his help, the Queen decides on a scheme to do away with all the beautiful young girls in the kingdom forever, including her own daughter.
Anna only knows that her best friend is to be sent to a wonderful new school that she herself hasn't been considered for. Devastated at first, she's thrilled when her mother changes her mind, but upon arriving at the school, it's clear that all is not what it seems. Will she survive her mother's plot to destroy her?
This is the first book I've read by American author Nancy Butcher, and her writing is just wonderful: subtle, succinct and emotionally rich. This is children's fiction at its finest; I was entranced from the first page. The story itself is divided into two parts - Anna's life before going away to the 'school', and after. If there's a weakness to the novel, it's here, as the book does feel a bit too compartmentalised, with the first half stronger and more involving than the second. We don't really notice how lightly Butcher's fairy-tale world is sketched in the first half - Anna's life at the castle has its own logic - but in the second half, plot holes begin to show themselves and to niggle somewhat.
While the story didn't quite live up to its initial promise, I would definitely recommend it - Butcher's writing is stunning, and the ideas she explores are wonderfully thought-provoking. The packaging seems a bit misplaced, though, with a pink, 'girly' front cover, and also seems aimed at a younger age group than I'd expect would be appropriate for this story, which touches on some very adult themes. Highly recommended for 13+ .
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