In Cali's spin on the classic fairy tale, Snow White keeps house for seventy-seven obliviously unhelpful dwarfs, all portrayed--to wonderful effect--in a rainbow palette. With all the laundry, individual bedtime stories, "beard maintenance," and so on, Snow White decides "to leave and take her chances with the witch." It's brilliant dark humor that will resonate more with parents than kids. (c) Copyright 2015. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

In Cali's cracked version of Snow White, the heroine takes refuge with 77 dwarfs with pointy hats and pointy beards in a crayon box of colors, but life with them is no picnic. "For starters, how was she going to learn all their names?" writes Cali (I Didn't Do My Homework Because...) as Barbanègre blankets a spread with dwarfs announcing their names-Panache, Kiki, Bacon, etc. Snow White becomes responsible for meals, laundry, "beard maintenance," and bedtime stories, and "helping" isn't in the dwarfs' vocabulary. She takes on an increasingly deranged and exhausted appearance in Barbanègre's midcentury-flavored cartoons, until she's had enough; offered a poisoned apple by the evil witch, Snow White screams, "I'll take two!" The jokes hit their marks, and the book isn't hurting for style any more than it's hurting for dwarfs (Barbanègre's work is downright heroic). But the glum reality is that the dwarfs remain selfish oafs (despite repeated claims that they are "kind," there's little evidence of this) and that Snow White's best chance at a happy ending is voluntary unconsciousness. Ages 3-7. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

What'll it be, Snow White? A poisoned apple or keeping house for 77 hyperactive little men?Snow White's gratitude for her rescue from the evil witch undergoes a transformation after having to learn 77 names (all provided to readers, both on an inside spread and a dust-jacket poster), brush as many beards, serve three meals a day to 77 picky eaters and then do all those dishes single-handedly. Eventually the witch looks like the better option: "Would you like a nice poisoned apple, young girl?" asks the crone. "I'LL TAKE TWO!" is Snow White's emphatic response. Readers will sympathize; the spreads positively teem with individually drawn little guys in pointed hats swinging from the chandelier and getting into other mischief. Snow White struggles gamely to keep up as her pretty face takes on a frowny cast and dark circles grow under her eyes. That expression turns blissful, though, as she sprawls in bespelled sleep in the final scene with a do-not-disturb sign posted to deter any princes who might happen along. A must-read for all offspringor so their parents and other caregivers are likely to feel. (Picture book. 6-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

K-Gr 2-On the run from a wicked witch, Snow White takes refuge in a cottage with not seven, but 77, dwarfs. The promise of a safe haven in exchange for help with chores sounds like a good bargain-until the reality of learning 77 names, packing endless lunches, washing mountains of dishes, and reading individualized bedtime stories sets in. With witty aplomb, Snow White decides to "leave and take her chances with the witch." The overworked damsel jumps at the chance for a poisoned apple ("I'LL TAKE TWO!") and falls into a blissful slumber, warding off bewildered dwarfs and prospective kissing princes with a "Please Don't Wake Me Up" sign on her bedstead. Barbanègre's entrancing illustrations are bursting with vibrant colors. The scenes are chock-full of laugh-out-loud details: every pointy-hatted fellow's name (from "randon to Hokey-Pokey) is announced in speech bubbles, and a ruckus breaks out in the long waiting line for "beard maintenance." VERDICT Frenzied, fractured-fairy-tale fun.-Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.