The Snow Child in Pick-a-Shelf

Feb 15, 2012 Mmars rated it really liked it · review of another edition

It has been some time since I’ve read a retelling of a fairytale. Though some questions, such as whether the snow child is real or magical, even upon finishing the book, are unanswerable. However, much of the story is predictable. Not only because the sequence of events in the story hews rather close to the original tale, but also because some elements of the story are rather predictable. I won’t reveal these, because not everyone may agree. And I refused to glimpse ahead…..other than the final ...more

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Mar 29, 2014 Nancy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: still-owned, fairy-tales, magical-realism

I was only going to give this book 3 stars for the first part, but it definitely got better towards the end. There is no doubt it was beautiful - the descriptions of Alaska were amazing, and you were never quite sure whether Faina was real, or whether she really was the snow child from the fairy tale. But I felt the book was too long and I also found myself getting really irritated with the character of Mabel, at least until the final section. However, it finished really well and overall I reall ...more

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Jul 10, 2013 Melinda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audio

I read this in audio format:

I did enjoy this book. It is written very beautifully about a barren place. The author describes bland things like snow, quiet, boredom, water very, very well. I wish I hadn't seen the ending coming for miles...but if you enjoy good writing, it's a good book~~especially for commuting since each chapter is a short bite... something like 53 chapters in about 11 hours. No real violence, so it could be a good YA read as it has just enough fantasy to satisfy a teen. I did ...more

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Sep 15, 2016 Dee rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: bookopoly-finished, src-fall-16

I think was a book that was hyped so much that for me it didn't live up to expectations ...more

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Feb 05, 2012 Tara rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: busy-bee, 2012-favorites

I really loved being transported into the lives of Jack and Mabel and their Alaskan homestead. The story, a retold story based on the Russian fairy tale "The Snow Maiden", was wonderfully retold in the white wilderness of Alaska. New to the Wilderness, Jack and Mabel were lonely, barely surviving, and depressed. Although they always wanted a child, they were still haunted by a child that was still born and buried back in their old life in Pennsylvania.
Just when I wondered how they were going to ...more

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Jan 02, 2014 Katie (novel_stitcher) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A magical tale about a couple who moves to Alaska to start a new life and builds a child out of snow. The next day the snow child is gone, but the couple sees a real girl running through the woods. They begin to love her as their own daughter, but things are not always as they appear. This is a book infused with hope, but also one that reflects well all that Alaska is -- dark and cold and wild. A captivating read.

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Feb 28, 2019 Duygu rated it liked it

I started off this book thinking I would most probably give it 4 stars. The way it was written.. the way the author conveys the vastness of Alaska with the poignant sadness of Mabel. You actually ache for her and want her to be happy. But the story itself left me wanting for more. Others have given much more succinct reviews so I will just simply state, the ending was a letdown.

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