This was a lovely story - a fairy tale for grown-ups. ( )

Man, did I feel the depression from Alaskan winter homesteading. I felt the ache of infertility. I also felt the beautiful magic of the snow and the well developed retelling of an old Russian fairy tale. What a unique, lovely read. ( )

A retelling of The Snow Maiden set in the 1920’s Alaskan frontier. An older couple, Jack and Mabel, were never able to have children and it haunts their relationship, even as they left their comfortable lifestyle back east for the wilds of Alaska. Until one day when they surprise themselves by playing in the evening snowfall and making a snow child, which then seems to come to life, as they begin to have strange experiences with a little girl who appears to them from out of the woods. She gradually becomes like a daughter to them throughout the years, although she never fully takes to civilized life, never staying with them in their cabin and always disappearing through the spring and summer and returning only with the snowfall. When something happens that ties her even more closely with the ‘real’ world, will she stick around, or will she suffer the fate of the Snow Child in the story, as Mabel fears she may?

A solid retelling of the original story. I think I would have liked more from the snow girl’s perspective, and the other characters could have been fleshed out a bit more, but overall it was an enjoyable story nicely told. I appreciate that the details of the girl’s existence are left mostly unexplained and up to the imagination of the reader. ( )

This is a stunning debut novel by Alaskan native Eowyn Ivey. Set in the 1920s it follows Mabel and Jack, an older couple and recent arrivals to the Alaskan wilderness who attempt to set themselves up a homestead in the harsh landscape. Childless and dealing with grief of miscarriage, they love each other deeply but under the weight of the work the land needs and their isolation it seems they have set themselves an impossible task to complete.

One night after an early winter snowfall they are caught in the magic of their new home and build a snow child. Mabel giving the figure her gloves and Jack carving the face into one of a young girl.

The next morning the snow child is gone but between the trees they both see glimpses of a young girl. Mabel is reminded of a fairytale her father read her as a child of an old childless couple who were blessed with a child come to life from a figure they built in the snow, but as with all fairytales things are not always as easy as they first appear.

So begins a magical tale of love, loss, longing and the importance of family and friends.

I bought this book on kindle probably a year ago but it was only when I saw someone’s else’s review that I added it to my December reading list. To be honest after finishing A Christmas Carol a couple days after Christmas I was going to give myself a break until the new year but this book called to me and I’m so glad it did.

This is a story of few characters but each feels so powerfully portrayed that I know them intimately. From Mabel, Jack and Faina (the snow child) to their neighbours the Bensons, especially Esther who I would read whole novels about on her own.

Ivey also weaves into this an obvious love of the Alaskan wilderness and it is another character we learn to love. From the icy cold of the Wolverine River to the snow capped mountains, the landscape plays an important part in the lives of all inhabitants of this fairytale made real.

A beautiful story and I will definitely be reading more of Eowyn Ivey in the future. ( )

What a wonderful story to spin from the inspiration of Sněhurka. I have a deep appreciation for writers who can bring winter to life with such love and honesty. ( )