James Baquet This is a famous story by the Brothers Grimm. It’s a little different from the Disney version. Once upon a time a good queen had a baby, but died in childbirth. Because the child was born in winter, they named her Little Snow-White. The king soon married again, to a cold-hearted woman. Every morning this vain queen asked her demon-haunted mirror: “Mirror, mirror, on the wall: Who’s the fairest of them all?” The mirror always confirmed her superior beauty, until one day, when the child was just seven years old, the queen was alarmed to hear the mirror reply, “You, my queen, are fair; it is true. But Snow-White is a thousand times fairer than you.” So the queen sent a huntsman into the woods with Little Snow-White, ordering him to kill her. But the huntsman let her run away, thinking the wild animals would do his job for him. Lost in the woods, she found a little house that belonged to seven dwarfs, who were surprised but happy to find such a beautiful child there. After she told the dwarfs her story, they decided she must stay with them, safe from the queen. One day the queen’s mirror told her that Snow-White was still alive. So the queen disguised herself as an old woman, and went to “peddle her wares” to the girl. Foolishly, innocent Little Snow-White let the old woman in, and, after several other tricks failed, accepted a poisoned apple from her. When the dwarfs came home, they discovered she was dead, and prepared to bury her. But she still looked beautiful, so they placed her in a glass coffin. Though she lay there a long time, her appearance remained fresh. One day a prince entered the woods and saw the lovely girl in the coffin. He asked that he might take it away, and the dwarfs reluctantly agreed. But as the prince’s servants were carrying her away, one of them stumbled and the bit of apple stuck in Little Snow-White’s throat was dislodged and she awoke! The prince told her what had happened, pledged his love, and they were married at the castle of the prince’s father, the king. The wicked queen also attended the wedding, and the prince’s men put on her feet a pair of iron shoes that had been placed in burning coals. The shoes caused her to dance until she fell down dead! Vocabulary: Which word above means: 1. promised 2. possessed by an evil spirit 3. hot, glowing bits of wood 4. goods, merchandise 5. sell 6. came loose 7. surprised and worried 8. conceited, overly proud 9. tripped, nearly fell 10. changed one’s appearance | 