Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter One

  Snow White was standing in front of an empty canvas with a brush in her hand.

  She had been looking forward to this so much! Painting was her passion, although somehow it seemed she could rarely find the time to do it.

  Still, she was here now, and in her mind she could see the lovely picture she was going to paint.

  But suddenly the door of her studio flew open and in marched her husband, Prince Charming. He was wearing a fancy riding outfit.

  “So this is where you’ve been hiding!” he said. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere, sweetheart. I wondered if you could do me a teensy tiny favor?”

  “Of course, my love,” murmured Snow White, chewing the end of her brush as she thought about how to begin her picture. “What do you need me to do?”

  “Oh, nothing much,” said Prince Charming. “I need you to pick up my dry cleaning, that’s all. I forgot, and I’m about to go riding with some friends.”

  A slight frown crept over Snow White’s face. Prince Charming could be very forgetful about doing things like that, and part of her just wanted to start her painting. But another part thought it wouldn’t be nice to say no, so she put down her brush and smiled.

  “No problem, my love,” she said. “You run along and have your fun.”

  “That’s great, thanks!” said the prince as he dashed off. “See you later!”

  Chapter Two

  Snow White left the palace and headed into town. She felt a little miserable, and that made her angry with herself. What right did she have to be unhappy?

  Everyone knew her story — the Evil Stepmother hating her ...

  the kind Huntsman letting her live ...

  the Seven Dwarfs taking her in ...

  the poisoned apple putting her to sleep ...

  and the Prince waking her with true love’s kiss, which led to their magical wedding.

  Chapter Three

  These days, Snow White’s life was perfect, of course. Although it would be good to have time to paint as well.

  There was a lot of dry cleaning to collect and Snow White wondered how she could carry it all. But as she was leaving she noticed a poster on the shop door.

  Snow White felt very excited and wrote down all the details. She would love to enter.

  But then, as she hurried back to the palace, her mind began to fill with doubt. She probably wasn’t good enough. Although maybe she should enter anyway. Soon her head was spinning with confusion. What should she do?

  She badly needed some advice, and she knew just who to ask — the Magic Mirror! It was the one thing belonging to her stepmother that she had kept.

  “Mirror, mirror, on the wall. Should I bother to enter the contest at all?” she asked.

  “Go for it, girlfriend! Don’t let this pass by,” sang the Magic Mirror, its cloudy surface shimmering mysteriously. “Put yourself first, and give it a try.”

  “I won’t know if I come in first unless I enter and win. But thanks, you’ve helped me make up my mind!” said Snow White. She was confused about the answer but happy for the support.

  That night, Snow White found it hard to sleep. She kept thinking about what she was going to paint, and how amazing she wanted it to be.

  She was in her studio bright and early the next morning, getting her paints and brushes ready. She was just about to start when her phone rang.

  “Hi there, Snow White!” said a deep voice. “I wondered if you could do me a favor. You know I wouldn’t normally ask, but we’re really desperate.”

  Snow White’s heart sank. She knew instantly the voice belonged to the Huntsman, who was now her friend. He and his wife were lovely people, but they didn’t seem to be any good at organizing themselves, which meant they often called Snow White for help.

  “I’m not sure I can,” said Snow White. “I’m right in the middle of something …”

  “Oh, please, Snow White,” said the Huntsman. “Mrs. Huntsman starts a new job today and I’m going to the dentist, so we need you to look after the kids.”

  Snow White bit her lip. It wouldn’t be very nice to say no, would it?

  “I’m on my way,” she said, putting down her paintbrush with a sigh.

  The Huntsman’s children were lovely, but they could also be quite lively. Snow White ended up babysitting for most of the day. The Huntsman told an exhausted Snow White that he’d bumped into a friend after he’d left the dentist, and they had lost track of the time.

  Chapter Four

  Snow White would have to wait until tomorrow to start her painting. She slept heavily, and it took her a while to get up and into her studio in the morning. But when she stood in front of the blank canvas, her mind began to fill with doubt once more.

  She decided it might be a good idea to have another chat with the Magic Mirror.

  “Mirror, mirror, you’re so wise,” she said. “Do you think I’ll win a prize?”

  “You could be the best, but not this way,” sang the mirror, its surface less cloudy this time, although still shimmering. “Just think of yourself today!”

  Snow White frowned. It seemed a strange thing to say, and she went back to staring at her blank canvas. Then suddenly she heard someone knocking at the palace door. She sighed and put down her paintbrush again.

  It was Kevin, the youngest of the Seven Dwarfs, and he looked worried.

  “Hi, Snow White,” he said. “The others have sent me to ask for a favor.”

  “Don’t tell me,” said Snow White. “You’ve had one of your arguments?”

  Snow White was fond of the Seven Dwarfs, and she was grateful to them for taking her in. But the one thing she didn’t miss about living with them was the constant arguing.

  They fought like cats and dogs, and they were always asking her to come by and sort out their fights.

  She thought of saying no, but decided that wouldn’t be nice. So she went to their house with Kevin and calmed the others down, although it took a while.

  The house was a terrible mess, so she spent the rest of the day cleaning up and doing the laundry.

  She even cooked them a delicious supper before she left.

  Chapter Five

  That night, Snow White was very tired and very fed up. She slept badly, and got up in the middle of the night to look at her empty canvas again.

  The deadline for the competition was only a couple of days away, and she was no closer to getting her painting finished. In fact, she hadn’t even started it!

  “Mirror, mirror, tell me true,” she murmured as she sat in the moonlight streaming through her window. “Why is this happening? What should I do?”

  “I’ve told you once, I’ve told you twice,” the Magic Mirror sang crossly, its surface totally clear this time. “Face it, girlfriend, you’re just TOO nice!”

  Snow White looked into the Magic Mirror, and suddenly understood what it had been trying to make her see. She would never get any painting done if she kept putting everybody else first.

  She realized it might be time to think of herself, although that would mean saying no, and she didn’t know if she could.

  Chapter Six

  Snow White soon had a chance to find out. She was in her studio the next day when Prince Charming came to ask if she would take his library books back for him. They were a year overdue.

  “Sorry, sweetheart, I can’t,” said Snow White. “I’m actually busy.”

  “Oh, right you are,” said the prince, looking surprised. “Well, not to worry.”

  Snow White said no a lot over the next two days.

  She got her painting done in time for the competition and was very happy when she won!

  And strangely enough, once she began to say no, the people in her life began doing more for themselves.

  Snow White was still nice to everyone, but now she had time to do things she enjoyed as well as helping others. And once that happened, she really did live HAPPILY EVER AFTER!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Tony Bradman writes for children of all ages. He is particularly well known for his top-selling Dilly the Dinosaur series. His other titles include the Happily Ever After series, The Orchard Book of Heroes and Villains, and The Orchard Book of Swords, Sorcerers, and Superheroes. Tony lives in South East London.

  ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

  Sarah Warburton is a rising star in children’s books. She is the illustrator of the Rumblewick series, which has been very well received at an international level. The series spans across both picture books and fiction. She has also illustrated nonfiction titles and the Happily Ever After series. She lives in Bristol, England, with her young baby and husband.

  After Happily Ever After is published by Stone Arch Books

  A Capstone Imprint

  1710 Roe Crest Drive

  North Mankato, Minnesota 56003

  www.capstoneyoungreaders.com

  First published by Orchard Books, a division of Hachette Children’s Books 338 Euston Road, Londo
n NW1 3BH, United Kingdom

  Text copyright © Tony Bradman, 2014 Illustrations copyright © Sarah Warburton, 2014 The right of Tony Bradman to be identified as the author and Sarah Warburton as the illustrator of this Work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on the Library of Congress website.

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4342-7950-7 (hardcover)

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4342-7956-9 (paperback)

  ISBN-13: 978-1-4342-9810-2 (ebook)

  Summary: Snow White is just TOO nice and always helping other people out. She never has a moment to herself! She asks her magic mirror for advice but will she ever really listen to the answer? Snow White must learn to say no if she’s going to live happily ever after ...

  Designer: Russell Griesmer

  Photo Credits: ShutterStock/Maaike Boot, 5, 6, 7, 53

 

 

  Tony Bradman, Snow White and the Magic Mirror (After Happily Ever After)

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