What this book is about: Birdie, a young single mother, and her six-year-old daughter, Emaleen, who live in Alaska. Birdie yearns for freedom and flight and wild places. And Arthur Nielsen, a quiet, scarred recluse who lives in an isolated cabin in the mountains beyond Wolverine River. He and Birdie fall in love and for awhile the three of them are happy living together far away from everyone else, exploring the wilderness, picking berries, catching salmon. But Arthur has a secret--a side of himself that isn't so tame. And it threatens their fairy tale ending.
My thoughts: I loved Ivey's fairy tale-inspired novel, The Snow Child. She has a way of evoking a sense of wonder with her lyrical prose while at the same time creating a setting so real you can practically smell the wildflowers. And she's done it again with this novel. I loved the richly drawn Alaskan wilderness setting, and I loved Arthur and Emaleen and their cute interactions, too. But like many a Grimm fairy tale, I sensed early on I might not get my hoped for happy ending in this one. Because this book is sad. Which didn't make me like it any less, though it did break my heart just a little. I wanted more for Arthur, Birdie and Emaleen. But I still love the way Ivey writes.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Happy Reading!
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