By Eowyn Ivey
A 2024 Top Rated Read
Set in the Alaskan wilderness in the 1920s, married couple Jack and Mabel are setting up their new homestead. Still grieving the loss of their baby many years earlier, their longing for a child has never gone away. One evening, as the first snow falls, they build a 'snow girl' but by morning all trace of her has vanished. However, Jack thinks he's glimpsed a child in the distance and Mabel discovers small footprints on their land.
What a delightful book. It's beautifully written and a joy to read. It's a story about finding inner strength in the face of adversity — life doesn't always turn out as planned but how we cope with hardship and heartache makes us stronger and more resilient. It's a gentle read with each word, sentence and paragraph creating a vivid picture of the beauty and remoteness of the landscape. Determination and a will to succeed is what ultimately shines through. Such a wonderful story.
★★★★★
What a delightful book. It's beautifully written and a joy to read. It's a story about finding inner strength in the face of adversity — life doesn't always turn out as planned but how we cope with hardship and heartache makes us stronger and more resilient. It's a gentle read with each word, sentence and paragraph creating a vivid picture of the beauty and remoteness of the landscape. Determination and a will to succeed is what ultimately shines through. Such a wonderful story.
★★★★★
- Paperback: 432 pages
- Publisher: Headline Review
- Publication Year: 2012
- Author: Eowyn Ivey
- Genre: Literary Fiction
Synopsis
A bewitching tale of heartbreak and hope set in 1920s Alaska.
Jack and Mabel have staked everything on making a fresh start for themselves in a homestead 'at the world's edge' in the raw Alaskan wilderness. But as the days grow shorter, Jack is losing his battle to clear the land, and Mabel can no longer contain her grief for the baby she lost many years before.
The evening the first snow falls, their mood unaccountably changes. In a moment of tenderness, the pair are surprised to find themselves building a snowman - or rather a snow girl - together. The next morning, all trace of her has disappeared, and Jack can't quite shake the notion that he glimpsed a small figure - a child? - running through the spruce trees in the dawn light. And how to explain the little but very human tracks Mabel finds at the edge of their property?
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