Book Review: Light on Snow

I haven't touched an Anita Shreve book in over a dozen years. I remember reading The Pilot's Wife back when Bryce was small. Perhaps the buzz generated by Oprah caused me to pick up the book. While I don't remember my opinion, I know that I purchased a few Shreve paperbacks in the few years before our move to Indiana. Obviously I enjoyed it enough to invest in another read by Shreve (although I read none of those paperbacks despite their continued presence on my bookshelves downstairs).

In Light on Snow, Shreve snags the reader into the story when eleven-year-old Nicky and her father discover an abandoned infant in the snow on their isolated property. Nicky narrates the memories of this shocking turn of events that upended their lives. Nicky's father is still smarting from the wound of an accident that claimed the lives of his wife and youngest daughter, Clara. He has retreated from society but cannot continue this safety when the mother of the abandoned infant shows up to thank him for rescuing her daughter. Nicky, too, experiences an ache for her absent mother and baby sister. Will the renegade mother fill that void?

The book explores grief with a depth of tenderness and insight. It captures the response to life and death in the eyes of an adolescent girl. Shreve certainly has a storyteller's skill. She weaves the tale with flashbacks to flesh out a full understanding of the difficulties each character must face. I relished the audio experience because it held my attention and I eagerly anticipated the few moments I've been able to snag for my treadmill exercise.