Friday, December 15, 2017

The Child Finder

"This is something I know:  no matter how far you have run, no matter how long you have been lost, it is never too late to be found."

Her name is Naomi.  She has a gift for finding lost children.  Maybe because she knows what it's like to be lost herself. Her case this time involves a girl named Madison Culver who went missing three years ago in Oregon's Skookum National Forest in the middle of a snowstorm. She'd be eight now...if she's survived. To find her, Naomi must start from scratch.
"Naomi always began by learning to love the world where the child went missing. It was like carefully unraveling a twisted ball of yarn. A bus stop that led to a driver that led to a basement room, carefully carpeted in soundproofing. A ditch in full flood that led to a river, where sadness awaited on the shore ... Each missing place was a portal."
Then there's Madison. Only she's not Madison any more. To stay alive she's had to become something else...someone else.
"The snow girl could remember the day she was born. In brilliant snow she had been created--two tired arms out, like an angel--and her creator was there. His face was a halo of light. ... When she woke it was dark, like the inside of a cave. Snow was falling outside. She couldn't see it, but she could feel it. It's funny how you can hear something as soft as falling snow."
I loved this book. It's a mystery that reads almost like a fairy tale. Naomi is such a luminous character. And I loved the way the author, Rene Denfeld, interweaves Madison's narrative with the Snow Girl tale. In many ways, this book reminded me a lot of Eowyn Ivey's The Snow Child, even though they are two very different stories. Each is magical. And Denfeld's writing is amazing. After two disappointing reads in a row, this novel was a breath of snow-fresh air. I hope Denfeld writes many more just like it.

Happy Reading!

18 comments:

  1. Yes! Lark, I'm so happy you posted about this one. I've had it on my mind for some time to read it, but wasn't so sure. Now I know that have to read it :) Thank you!!

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  2. P/S I'm glad you finally found a good book after those two disappointing ones. Lets hope your next read is just as good :)

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    1. Thanks, Nadia! I hope you like this one as much as I did. :)

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  3. I hope I can find this at the library! Oh, and my copy of If Picasso Painted a Snowman arrived yesterday--don't know if it will be a gift for the child I ordered it for or if I will keep it myself! :)

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    1. Ha! I know what you mean. Some books are worth keeping
      AND sharing, but not giving away. :D

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  4. I'm glad you enjoyed this one. I found it very disappointing, but maybe that's because it was so different than what I was expecting? I don't know, I just wanted to like it a lot more than I did.

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    1. Isn't it funny how one book can resonate so differently with different readers?

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  5. I usually don’t read these types anymore but I’ll admit this one intrigues me. How did the little girl survive?! I have to know.

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  6. Hi Lark, Glad you enjoyed this book. The passages you quoted make it clear Rene Denfeld can write. That's the thing about books, just when we worry that we have read it all, a new book comes along to grab our interest.

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  7. It's always great when a few duff books are finally followed by a good one! Lets hope for lots of great books in 2018!

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    1. Or at least a better way of weeding out the duds before I waste hours and/or days on them! :D

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  8. I am so glad you enjoyed this one! It is one I hope to read as well.

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  9. A mystery that reads almost like a fairy tale. OK, that really piques my interest! :)

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    1. It has a different feel to it than most mystery books, but it works.

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  10. Oh this sounds like a very different mystery but one not to be missed!

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