Fiction

Once again I have stumbled upon a novel of such brilliant components that I really cannot describe to you the beauty and amazement of this debut novel by Eowyn Ivey. Based upon a Russian fairytale, The Snow Child will take you on a magical journey through the frigid winters to tell you a heartwarming story of love, family, belief, and strength.

Taking place in the great Alaskan wilderness, The Snow Child is the story of Mabel and Jack creating a life in their new homestead in the desolate Alaskan mountainside. Moving away from Pennsylvania to start a life of quiet farming in an unexplored territory seemed like the perfect remedy for Mabel and Jack's tragic loss of their stillborn baby a few years earlier. They both wanted adventure, they both wanted to be a part of something new, and they both wanted to find something more to life than just what they new back east. But the adventure isn't what they had in mind--preparing the land for farming was hard, and Jack couldn't do it before the snows hit. And just when it all seemed like a lost cause, blessings came in all shapes and sizes, and the magic of the first snow changed Jack and Mabel's lives forever.

I have never felt as instantly emotionally connected to a character in a book as I do to Mabel and Jack, but I found myself smiling, laughing, and crying as they go through the joys and pains of their lives. Readers are introduced to Mabel from the very first line, and within the first 8 pages I found myself to be already a part of her--we know exactly where she is, exactly where she's coming from, exactly how she feels...and we've only known her for 8 pages. That's really a tribute to Ivey's beautiful writing style, intertwining her readers into the mind and heart of her character from the start. And then there is Jack, who is strong yet so desperate for things to be okay that he is willing to do the unthinkable and head north to the mines for paid work. You can literally feel the pain between them as they struggle to communicate their hurt and sorrow to each other. Ivey showcases her brilliancy by establishing this strong connection between the readers and her characters, pulling readers into her story while simultaneously nestling her characters into the reader's heart. This novel is, quite literally, the in-page/out-of-page experience.

Each and every character in this novel plays an important role in the lives of Mabel and Jack, and through each of them they both go through a beautiful transformation, from living in despair and pain to finding the joys of life again. And the most important of these characters is Faina. Faina the girl who magically appears in their lives one winter day. Faina, who becomes the center of their life, bringing a beauty and a grace that is indescribable. She brings them hope, she teaches them not only how to fall in love with a child, but also how to fall in love with each other again.

I find that I do not want to tell you any more about this novel because I think it would ruin some of the magic of your first reading if I told you a lot more about it. So I will just tell you that this novel is more than just a book--it truly is a transcendence of the soul. This novel will touch you in ways that other stories could never come close to reaching because this is everyone's story. Everyone needs a Snow Child in their life, something to inspire them, something to encourage them, something to teach them how to love. The Snow Child is not just about reading--it's about experiencing.

Find this item in the catalog The Snow Child

I do not exactly know what I was expecting when I opened The Language of Flowers and started reading, but I do not think that I was expecting to be completely and utterly amazed and captivated by the story right from the very first paragraph:

For eight years I dreamed of fire. Tree ignited as I passed them; oceans burned. The sugary smoke settled in my hair as I slept, the scent like a cloud left on my pillow as I rose. Even so, the moment my mattress started to burn, I bolted awake. The sharp, chemical smell was nothing like the hazy syrup of my dreams; the two were as different as Carolina and Indian jasmine, separation and attachment. They could not be confused. (pg 3)

Those lines provided me such a lyrical and intriguing introduction to a beautiful story of a girl-from-the-system.

This is the story of Victoria, an 18-year old girl just emancipated from the foster-care system who, after spending the last 8 years in a group home, is finally free to live on her own. With nowhere to go, and no one to go to, she turns to the only source of comfort and solace that she has ever found: flowers. This is the story of how her past meets her present, of how she uses her gift of the language of flowers to inspire and heal the lives of those she comes in contact with, and how she eventually is able to heal her own life.

Diffenbaugh does a brilliant job of meshing Victoria's past with her present by providing readers with two distinct storylines, which are told in alternating chapters. In her present, she meets a Russian flower-shop owner by the name of Renata, and after proving her worth in the flowering business, is hired as an assitant. It is while working with Renata and venturing to the flower market that she meets the mysterious flower vender who knows the language of flowers too. She comes to find out that she has met him before, a long time ago. In her past, we learn of her childhood on the vineyard with Elizabeth, the woman who almost became her mother, and who taught her the language of flowers.

Throughout the whole novel, we know that things in her past do not work out, obviously, because we are reading her present, and that keeps you wondering why, and how, and compelling you to continue with the story. And the beauty of the novel, and of the language, and of the writing, continues, and readers will fall in love with all of the characters, from the crazy Mother Ruby to the gracious Renata to the patient and loving Grant to the motherly and forgiving Elizabeth. But readers will fall in love with the heroine of this story and watch her as she stumbles and falls, and picks herself back up, over and over; as she grows and learns and then retreats again; as she learns to love and forgive herself, and as she learns to love others, and most importantly, let others love her.

This is a story of growth and of redemption, of forgiveness and acceptance, of family and friends, of mothers and daughters. But most of all, love: love of self and love of others. Vanessa Diffenbaugh captures so many things in this one 300-page novel, and each emotion is felt so strongly and so powerfully. She draws you in to Victoria's story, as if you are a part of her life, as if you are watching her learn, struggle, and grow right in front of you. Her characters become your family, too, and you can't help but love them.

I only have praises for Diffenbaugh's first work--and you would never know that this is her first novel--for The Language of Flowers is powerful and beautiful, and it nestles deep in your heart. Thank you, Vanessa, for this beautiful work.

Mrs. Diffenbaugh will be one of the authors at Southern Voices 2012.

Request this book The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The Postmistress by Sarah Blake

The First Thursday Book Group will meet to discuss this book on Thursday, May 5th from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 in the Theatre-level conference room.

Radio gal Frankie Bard, poses a question to a dinner party, “What would you think of a postmistress who chose not to deliver the mail?” This serves as the dramatic backdrop of Sarah Blake’s compelling novel, The Postmistress. As war rages through Europe, two women isolated physically and emotionally, reside in fictional Franklin, Massachusetts, on the coast of Cape Cod, listening to war reporter Frankie Bard as she details the blitz in London. For the postmaster (never call her a postmistress), Iris James, it’s only a matter of time before the war ends up on Franklin’s shores. Emma Fitch, the newlywed doctor’s wife has to contend with pregnancy and loneliness after her husband has a case go bad and decides he’s needed in London for the war effort. Both women fretfully listen to Frankie Bard’s insistent plea that war is coming. Middle-aged Iris gets involved with the lonely mechanic of the town, Harry Vale, while he seems to devote most of his time above the courthouse keeping an eye out for U-boats from Germany. In the meantime, Frankie Bard digs up human interest stories all around London. After an especially bad shelling, she meets Emma’s husband Will in a bomb shelter – never to be the same again. Ms. Bard decides to head into occupied France and Germany looking for the stories of the multitude of Jewish refugees fleeing Europe. All three women’s lives eventually come together in this complex but very entertaining story. -Shannon

Emily Alone by Stewart O'nan

A review in Entertainment Magazine enticed me to read this story, set within one square mile of the neighborhood where I grew up. The nostalgia prompted a brief exchange of emails with the author. This is no page-turner but rather a sensitive character study on the challenges of old age, disappointing children and coping with change. Emily meets those challenges with intelligence and grace. -Nancy

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Midway through reading this book, it won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction! The reader is taken backwards and forwards through time with a cast of characters deftly woven together by fate and the music industry. For readers who like the format of related vignettes (Olive Kitteridge, Let The Great World Spin, The Imperfectionists, etc.) this is a thought provoking novel on the human condition. -Nancy

The month of March always brings out the Irish in me, and I have just enjoyed two books set in Ireland: the audio version of Patrick Taylor's Irish Country Girl and the print version of Maeve Binchy's Minding Frankie.

The first is read by John Keating and it is delightful to hear his variety of Irish accents, changing for each character. This book is the latest in Taylor's Irish country doctor series and fills in the background of the doctor's housekeeper, Kinky Kincaid. In Minding Frankie, I love the continuing saga of Binchy's residents of St. Jarlath's Crescent, in Dublin. She skillfully interweaves the lives of a diverse population and makes the reader want it to keep on going. I can't wait for the next book in either series!

In Christopher Nicholson’s delightful novel, The Elephant Keeper, eighteenth century England is described in exciting detail as one boy grows up alongside two spectacular companions, Timothy and Jenny, elephants – the first elephants to be seen in Europe.

Owned by a wealthy merchant, the elephants are both marveled at and scorned by the local townsfolk. The merchant encourages Tom to write a history of the elephant which he spends years on. Then, after an accident, the elephants are separated, Tom accompanying Jenny to a wealthy Lord in another part of the country. At this eccentric estate where there is a hired hermit in the woods, Jenny fits right in. Tom documents his continuing affection for his companion in loving detail. However, after the Lord of the manor dies and the estate is broken up, Jenny is sent away to another estate.

Tom and Jenny grow older and wiser through their experiences but his love endures all. After twenty plus years of shuffling from estate to estate, Jenny and Tom end up in a menagerie in London with a pitiful monkey, a tired lion, and a sleeping snake, Jenny delights the dwindling crowds by banging on a drum at Tom’s bidding. We readers are left to wonder at Jenny’s fate – did she escape on a ship captained by Tom’s brother back to the Indies or does Jenny catch pneumonia and die in London? However we imagine her ending, we see Tom faithfully beside her till the end.

The first Thursday book group will meet at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, April 7th to discuss The Elephant Keeper by Christopher Nicholson. We meet in the first floor Theatre-level meeting rooms. Call 444-7820 for more info.