This is a lovely, sad, beautifully written book. I feel bad for everyone who rated it one star on Goodreads just because it wasn’t a faithful retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Because if you read it for what it is, instead of what it isn’t, it’s really quite wonderful. Ivey touches on themes of motherhood, love, personal freedom, mental health and the natural world, all in a dark fairy tale setting.
Single mom Birdie does the best that she can for her daughter, Emaleen, while always craving something else, something different. When Birdie gets to know Arthur, a strange, awkward man who lives alone is a small cabin on the mountain, he seems to embody what she’s craving. The story is told from the POV of Birdie, as well as her daughter Emaleen, and Arthur’s father, Warren.
Now, these are not the most likeable/perfect characters you’ll ever encounter. And all of the narrators are pretty unreliable as well. Birdie, for example, wants and wants and wants, even when she gets what she believes she wants, she still wants more. And Emaleen, well, she’s a six-year-old child with a rich imagination and a single-minded love for her mother. As for Warren, I don’t believe that he wholly understood what the truth about Arthur was, in part because he’s his father, and in part because it’s unknowable. Even Arthur himself doesn’t fully know.
But the writing, my goodness, the writing is gorgeous. I’ve never been to Alaska, but I spent my early childhood in the mountains and meadows of the Sierra Nevadas and I felt every description of the Alaskan wilderness in my heart. I also felt Birdie’s struggle with young, single motherhood in my heart. Ivey writes the natural world better than almost anyone I’ve read. And she’s also exceptional at character development. Those skills are on full display in Black Woods, Blue Sky.
Five stars. Favorite read so far this year. Also, if you’ve never read Eowyn Ivey’s other books, The Snow Child and To the Bright Edge of the World are also beautifully written, excellent books.
