The Sleeper and The Spindle + Neil Gaiman's Masterclass

 

I haven't written a blog post in a while (#Bookstagram has kept me busy enough), but today's topic is one that I feel needs a blog post, so here we go...

One of my favorite Neil Gaiman's quotes is "I like stories where women save themselves", and I've been  watching Gaiman's Masterclass "The Art of Storytelling", which I have to say, is marvelous!  Anyway, in one of the episodes of the Masterclass, Gaiman tells us (the students) that one of the ways to get ideas on what to write is to take an old story or fairy tale and write a re-telling...and that's how my mind jumped to The Sleeper and The Spindle, Gaiman's own re-telling of Snow White.  

"A thrillingly reimagined fairytale from the truly magical combination of author Neil Gaiman and illustrator Chris Riddell, in which Snow White puts her wedding plans on hold, swaps her dress for chain mail and a sword, and sets off on a quest to rescue fellow princess Sleeping Beauty and her people. With stunning artwork by Chris Riddell, "The Sleeper and the Spindle" features Gaiman's characteristic dark humor and will appeal to teens and adults."

How about that?  

The book is a quick read, and it gives you a little glimpse of how brilliant Gaiman's imagination and writing talent is.  Everyone should read it.  It's a total spin!

Which brings me to the next point I'd like to make: The Sleeper and The Spindle different covers.

Look at the gorgeous cover on top of this page.  Isn't it stunningly beautiful?  That's the UK paperback cover.

Now, here's the US cover:

Don't take me wrong, it's beautiful also, but why is it different?  Is it maybe that we, the US market cannot handle/accept such a cover?  These questions are my own, I'm just trying to understand how the process works.

Mr. Gaiman, if you happen to stumble onto this page, please shed some light on why the covers are so different.  I obviously think the UK version is a much better fit for the book, but that's just my humble opinion.

What about you?  Which cover do you prefer?

And don't you think it's time to spin all those fairytales where princesses are waiting to be saved?

Do tell me your opinion on this.

Be safe you all!