Hachette (Publisher)
Blanche-Neige et Ses Amies les Betes (Pop-Up Book)
Paris: Hachette, 1938. First edition. Quarto (240 x 185 mm). 60 pp. Bound in pictorial card boards (no dust jacket issued with this copy). Three elaborate double-page pop-up scenes of Snow White with forest animals; numerous in-text black-and-white marginal drawings. French-language text.
Condition: Near fine. The three pop-ups are pristine and appear unopened. Pages are clean and bright with no writing, tears, or bends. Original binding remains tight. Boards with light edge wear. No dust jacket present.
Collector’s Corner:
(Much of the historical context included here has been informed by research from The Snow White Museum (https://snowwhitemuseum.com), an independent site dedicated to documenting the global legacy of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.)
To coincide with the French premiere of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1938, Hachette Editions acquired the license to produce a series of books adapting the animated film for the French market. Among these was Blanche-Neige et Ses Amies les Bêtes (Snow White and Her Animal Friends), part of Hachette’s “Hop-là!” album collection (No. 27336-8-38). While the title suggests a thematic spin-off focused on Snow White’s forest companions, the text is identical to the narrative used in Hachette’s primary film tie-in volume.
The book was printed by Brodart et Taupin in Coulommiers-Paris, though no author is credited. It received notable promotion during the 1938 holiday season, including mentions in Le Figaro (December 20) and Le Jour (December 19). It also appeared in 1939 New Year’s gift catalogs, such as the Aux Dames de France department store catalog in Marseille, where it was priced at 40 francs.
Although clearly influenced by the animation studio’s visual style, the illustrations appear to have been created specifically for this edition. The interior features black-and-white marginal art alongside three large, double-page pop-up scenes in full color. These pop-up tableaux—showing Snow White surrounded by woodland creatures—are where the book’s title takes its full meaning. The alternating use of black-and-white and color elements likely invited children to participate by coloring the line drawings themselves.
The first of the three pop-up scenes—depicting Snow White in a layered forest setting—is structurally similar to the shadowbox-style pop-ups popularized in Bookano volumes, particularly in its use of staged cut-out depth.
As a whole, this volume exemplifies how Disney’s earliest cinematic successes were localized for international audiences. The incorporation of pop-up mechanisms elevates the book beyond traditional illustrated adaptations, offering a rare glimpse into how paper engineering and licensed storytelling merged during the Golden Age of French publishing.
For more on Disney’s international movable books including Hachette, see our research article https://www.vintagepopupbooks.com/category-s/1864.htm
References:
Snow White Museum. “Snow White and Her Animal Friends (Albums Hop‑la) 1938.” The Snow White Museum. Accessed July 10, 2025. https://snowwhitemuseum.com/merchandising/books/french-books/snow-white-and-her-animal-friends/
Movable Stationary. “Blanche-Neige et ses Amies les Bêtes.” Movable Stationary, vol. 8, no. 2 (2000): 22. https://archive.org/details/movablestatione822000mova/page/n21.
Aux Dames de France (Marseille). Catalogue des étrennes, January 1939. https://snowwhitemuseum.com/merchandising/miscellaneous-merchandise/aux-dames-de-france-department-store-catalog/