Friday Recommends...

Published February 2012

The Snow Child

by

Eowyn Ivey

After they fashion a snow child, both Jack and Mabel are bewildered when they glimpse a young girl running in the snow -  is the child real or a figment of their imagination.....?

I enjoyed this magical fantasy set in the wilds of the Alaskan wilderness. The starkness of the landscape is portrayed in such a believable way that you can sense the chill from the snow and feel the isolation as pioneers, Jack and Mabel try to eke out a living in this inhospitable land.

At first the child, Faina, answers a need in them which is painful to witness but as the story progresses it becomes more obvious that the child, Faina is with them for a reason.

Based on the classic Russian fairy tale Snegurochka, The Snow Child is a haunting tale of love, loss and the power of friendship.

4****