Breadcrumbs

by Anne Ursu

[nannah]

Ahhh, a retelling of The Snow Queen (one of my most favorite fairy tales!) with an Indian American lead--this should have been a guaranteed favorite!

But ... I don't know. I just couldn't connect to the story. There were so many parts I enjoyed, but the changes Anne Ursu made to adapt the tale to a modern audience didn't feel like the added anything to the story--and seemed to detract from the original themes that made The Snow Queen so compelling.

Book content warnings:
adult/child manipulation
bullying

Hazel, an adopted Indian-American girl living with her (white) mother, really only has one friend in Jack, her neighbor. She's bullied at her new school for not following rules and having too much of an imagination. Instead of studying, she wants to have adventures with Jack--be a knight or a pirate--someone more interesting than a no one in school who can't do anything right.

Her wants are answered when one day Jack leaves with a "white witch" after getting something in his eye during a snowball fight. It's just not the adventure she imagined she'd be having. Instead of something glamorous and fun, Hazel is trudging through dark forests and knee-deep snow. She's hungry and cold, and wolves stalk her day and night. And for what? For someone who might not even want to be saved.

The premise (even besides my love for the original fairytale) is so intriguing! As for the execution ... that, I wasn't so fond of.

For one, Jack's mom has depression ("sick with sickness" is the phrase the book uses. For some reason, "depression" is never ever used in the book. I wish it was ...). But her depression is treated abysmally. So much so that I'd say her treatment in the book is extremely ableist, as someone who has depression myself.

Both kids think of her as "not a real mom" (the book's exact words), and as if Jack doesn't have a mom, similar to Hazel not having a dad (her father left her). Yeah, just because she has a mental illness. Her depression is so severe that most of the time she can't leave the couch. But when she does, people push her to go back to the couch, saying "What are you doing up? Go back there and sleep or something.". Um, that's the opposite of how you should treat someone with depression. This author has No idea how to write a character with a mental illness, and it's painful to read.

Her depression is a theme somewhat, as it comes back at the very end, but it's not connected well enough, (living with something -- I don't want to spoil it--and I wish it was just done better.

When Hazel begins her adventure the book becomes more charming, but the story doesn't have much resemblance to the fairytale it retells. Instead, it seems to have more in common with the Chronicles of Narnia, to be honest! With the Snow Queen being called the White Witch, the forest being full of wolves, Narnia references abounding, and more. The theme of warmth & summer versus winter is lost (which could definitely a personal choice of the author!), instead the book goes for something that's probably more common among YA: the personal strength of the protagonist overcoming self-doubt.

I can see it's a satisfying read, but I just couldn't get into it. :S