Dark Forests and Castles in Winter: ‘Snow White’ by Josephine Poole and Angela Barrett

I keep one book with me no matter where I move. I read it perhaps once a month, and have ever since early childhood. Its illustrations are so intricate that even now I find new details. I feel as though I have inhabited its dark forests, looming castle and glowing cottage in the glen. It set the tone for my childhood, which was one of mystery and imagination, solitude and an abiding affection for place. The book is ‘Snow White’, written by Josephine Poole and illustrated by the incomparable Angela Barrett. It captures all the eerie wonder of those fairytales that kindle the imagination, that stir the heart with the endurance and tenderness of their characters, even while chilling you with evocations of dark, thorny woods on moonless nights.