I finished reading The Snow Child last weekend and I can’t stop thinking about it. I loved this book so much. It was perfectly bittersweet and a great read for cold weather. I felt so immersed in the atmosphere of the Alaskan wilderness. I cared so deeply for the characters and was truly invested in their journey. Definitely one of my favorite books I’ve ever read.
Warning for spoilers:
I was interested in seeing other people’s theories as to why Faina disappears at the end of the book, as it’s left open-ended. I liked how the touch of magic the character seems to possess is really left up to the reader to decide. My theory is that Faina *was* a normal little girl that froze to death with her father, but was bestowed a second chance at life by some sort of mystical/magical force. Hence her growing and aging like a normal child, but also possessing seemingly magical abilities with her snow-related powers, ability to survive alone in dangerously cold temps/the wilderness, etc. When she gave birth to her baby, she gave up that second-chance life force to him, hence her ultimately melting and returning to the snow (as Mabel always knew she would.)
I look forward to reading any other theories on this – or thoughts on the book in general. 🙂
by Kowskie
4 Comments
I don’t really have any theories but I do have a very deep love for the book!
It has been a while since I first read it but it was absolutely one of the most magical reading experiences I had. No other snowy book has lived up to it. I’m really looking forward to rereading it this winter.
Love hearing you enjoyed it. This is one of the books I’m hoping to read by the end of the year. It’s been on my TBR list too long.
That book was gorgeous and I need to reread it!
I was disappointed. I tore through it because I thought people said it had a major twist at the end. For a while I thought Faina and Garrett were somehow the same person, since they seemed to appear at different times. Or that something else would happen with the Fox. Instead, the ending was completely telegraphed so it was a let down for me.