Book Blurb:
Birdie’s keeping it together, of course she is. So she’s a little hungover sometimes on her shifts, and she has to bring her daughter Emaleen to work while she waits tables at an Alaskan roadside lodge, but it’s a tough town to be a single mother, and Emaleen never goes hungry. Arthur Neilsen is a soft-spoken recluse, with scars across his face, who brings Emaleen back to safety when she gets lost in the woods one day. He speaks with a strange cadence, appears in town only at the change of seasons, and is avoided by most people. But to Birdie he represents everything she’s ever longed for. He lives in a cabin in the mountains on the far side of the Wolverine River and tells Birdie about the caribou, marmots and wild sheep that share his untamed world. She falls in love with him and the land he knows so well. Against the warnings of those who care about her, Birdie moves to his isolated cabin. She and her daughter are alone with Arthur in a vast wilderness, hundreds of miles from roads, telephones, electricity, or outside contact, but Birdie believes she has come prepared. She can start a fire and cook on a wood stove. She has her rifle and fishing rod. But soon Birdie realizes she is not prepared for what lies ahead.
My Review: 4 stars
Black Woods Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey was at once a story of survival amongst the harshest lands of Alaska as well as an ode to motherhood and true love. This book offers a bit of mystery, a touch of fantasy and a ton of hard-earned grit!
I’ve never been to Alaska but am familiar with my many friends and family that have done an Alaskan cruise. After reading this book, I’m not sure that the cruise will give you the real down and dirty of Alaskan life, but I’m confident that this book will bring it to life.
This book is purported to be a loose retelling of Beatuy and the Beast, which are the vibes I got from the book. I had no clue of this because as per usual, I went in totally blind. Many super fans of the original Beauty and the Beast have issues with the book but I say who cares, a good story is a good story – no matter if it’s a retelling or not!
I loved the relationship between Birdie and Emaleen and felt for Birdie as she tried so hard to be good mother. She was tough as nails and often made inappropriate choices, but I still enjoyed her passion at making her life work.
The audio version of this one was amazing, and I was rapt to attention by the narrator. The characters came alive, and I saw the movie of this exploding in my head. I loved the author’s earlier book, The Snow Child, and I was thrilled to read something new from her.
Quotes I liked:
I am loving you. As if love, once it came into existence, radiated backward and forward, encompassing all of time.”
“It was bewildering, how closely grief ran alongside joy.”
“Now are the woods all black, but still the sky is blue. May you always see a blue sky overhead, my young friend.”
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