Mirror Mirror

I searched for the hardcover and found it at a great price. Was hesitant at first though because you never know if the original sleeve is going to be in great condition. I’m glad I did, the condition was perfect. The shipping time was great and the packaging was well preserved. Will definitely purchase from them again.

Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister and Wicked being two of my favorite books, I was excited to dig in to Mirror Mirror. However, after only about two dozen pages I found myself losing interest because I was profoundly confused about who was telling the story.In a nutshell, that was the main problem I had with Mirror Mirror: though Maguire's descriptions were as textured as ever, the fragmented narration made it difficult to fully relate to the characters. The characterization in his other books was so layered that I cared about the major and minor characters alike (even in Son of a Witch, which while good was not quite as dazzling as its predecessor). This story focuses on Bianca and her father, Vicente, but I did not feel particularly connected to either of them - they seemed to function more as symbolic placeholders than as actual people. The one real exception to this problem was Lucrezia Borgia: Mirror Mirror was really her tale, and she was by far the most engaging character to me. But her voice is only peppered throughout the narrative; Bianca, Vicente, and the dwarves also speak at different times, and I found the structure too fragile to be effective.The magical elements in this story did not gel for me, either. The magical elements in Wicked were inherent to the story and Confessions used folk superstition to create an air of the supernatural, but I did not feel I had to totally suspend disbelief to read either one. With Mirror Mirror, though, the branch from the Tree of Knowledge was a hard pill to swallow (what the heck was up with the final chapter?), as was the dwarves' characterization. The dwarves are first described as primitive creatures born of the earth, more mineral than human, yet simply by Bianca speaking to them are they able to speak the languages of men with complete fluency. While I realized that Maguire was asking the reader to explore the idea of imagining something into your own reality, that whole concept seemed out of place in this setting.I managed to finish this book because I do adore Maguire's descriptive prowess and the sly wit he incorporates into the dialogue, but Mirror Mirror is definitely not his best showing - which is sad, because he had some fantastic ideas to work with. If you're a fist-time Maguire reader, start with Wicked or Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister.

First, I just have to say that I adore Gregory Maguire. I've read the entire "Wicked" series, and am completely enamored with it. It was such a wonderful story, full of detail, and plenty of good writing. He is definitely a master of storytelling. I am a huge fan of Wizard of Oz in general, but I find myself enjoying Maguire's Oz more than the Oz we're all used to.I read "Confessions of An Ugly Stepsister" after I finished the "Wicked" series. I thought it was a wonderful retelling of "Cinderella" and I just knew that when I picked up "Mirror, Mirror" I'd be captivated from the first page. I was sadly disappointed. I had so much trouble getting through all the description of Montefiore. It seemed that Maguire could go on and on for pages and pages about the landscape and architecture. Beautiful descriptions, don't get me wrong, but there was simply too much of it. Also, Vicente's personality is so drab to me, and I didn't understand why it was necessary to spend so much time describing his moods and behaviors. I also feel as if there was entirely too much back story of the Borgia's. This could be because I've never been a fan of history, especially regarding a family from 1500 Italy. It was just boring, and unnecessary to the plot. I feel Maguire could have compressed their history into less pages, leaving more room for the actual story to develop. Even the hunters history was more lengthy than it needed to be.I am disappointed that it has taken half the book for the story to really get started. I haven't finished this book yet, and am debating whether I should. I have never had to force myself to read any of Maguire's books and am sad that that's what I've had to do with this one since the first sentence. I can't imagine the story unfolding as it should with only the last half of the book remaining. Seems to me it's going to be a mad dash to the end, which won't end well.

I read WICKED last year and fell in love with the dense, vibrant perfume that lured in every corner of the text. gregory maguire had written such a magnificent tale that I immediately ordered all his other works, and MIRROR MIRROR was the one I picked up first. I expected the same magic, the same intricate anxiety-ridden traumas that wash through over the characters like waves on the shore, the same amazing lightness and precisenss of a very dense and powerful pen. I did not find it.MIRROR MIRROR is snow white rewritten, this time set in 16th century italy. the great clan of borgia stands in the middle of the tale. the potential is great, the historical enviroment full of exciting and wildly interesting facts and tales and events, but where WICKED shocked and entertained, MIRROR MIRROR falls absolutely flat.it is not a bad tale - it is mediocre. it does not captivate, but neither does it push you away. it just IS, like a crack in a concrete wall or a dried flower in a pot - and that is the problem. gregory maguire has the capacity to write great books, as he showed with WICKED, but this tale goes nowhere. its most (and only!) puzzling aspect is its mere existence. embarrassingly, it almost appears like the author is aware of his shortcomings, because the book is cut up into exceedingly short chapters preceded by small fragments of irritating verse which [unsuccessfully] attempt to mask the large holes in the story.if you want to read maguire, read WICKED. stay away from MIRROR MIRROR unless you have absolutely nothing else to read at home.come on gregory maguire. you can do better than this.

This book has become highly addictive and I read it within the day. It kept me on the edge of my seat from the second I picked it up and could not put it down until I had finished.I LOVE THIS SERIES

I love Gregory McGuire and Confessions of An Ugly Stepsister is one of my favourites. Mirror Mirror just isn't in the same league though. At points there are hints of his potential, but often it just doesn't flow and the idea of entiwining the Snow White story with the historical Borgia's is clunky; the metaphors either a little obtuse or way too obvious. Disappointing.

Not as good as his other books.

Great

Gregory Maguire continues to impress me with this retelling of Snow White.He has cast the tale in the scenario of a political backwater in Renaissance Italy; as the daughter of a minor nobleman comes within the sphere of influence of one of the most reviled women of the period, Lucretia Borgia.It doesn't take much to guess who the wicked stepmother figure is going to be, but don't expect the details of this story to follow the fairy tale exactly. The dwarves are particularly interesting in their origins and how they develop. I think their names in here should supplant the horrible Disney ones that have been forced on our culture.The characters are all finely drawn and sympathetic - even the indolent Borgias are painted with a full pallet of colours, not just the blacks and greys that many villains receive.