Memphis Reads Archive

This selection was recently a Popular Library ("7-day") book. The reviewer wanted to make sure you did not miss this noteworthy title. You can now check it out for 21 days!

Heather Lawson reviews LIGHT ON SNOW by Anita Shreve (Little, Brown and Co., 2004).

Twelve-year-old, Nicky Dillon has lost her mother and baby sister in a tragic car accident. Overwhelmed by his grief, Nicky’s father moves them to an isolated farmhouse in a small New England town and cuts off almost all communication with the outside world. They are pulled back into the world when they save a newborn deserted in the snow. Their role as heroes, witnesses in the investigation, and finally, their experiences with the mother accused of desertion lead them on a journey where Nicky’s courage and insight into other’s sorrows is powerfully depicted.

This moving story is largely descriptive with a plot that slowly evolves and includes flashbacks. While thought provoking, and at times heart wrenching, the story possesses a hopeful ending, many likable characters and is not short of humor.

Anyone enjoying Elizabeth Berg’s coming of age stories, such as Durable Goods, will enjoy this story focusing on another resourceful young girl.

Heather Lawson, Adult Services

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Anita Shreve

"My father waves the flashlight back and forth. I'm wondering if we shouldn't turn around and head back to the house. It's dangerous in the woods at night; it's too easy to get lost. My father makes another pass with the flashlight, and then another, and it seems he has to make twenty passes before he catches again the patch of blue plaid. There's a sleeping bag in the snow, a corner of flannel turned over at its opening." Excerpt, Light on Snow

Labels: Mainstream Fiction, Reviews by Heather Lawson