| $@%&! level: Low “Bedroom” level: Medium-Low Violence level: Low Back Cover: “When Cassie was a little girl, her grandmother told her a fairy tale about her mother, who made a deal with the Polar Bear King and was swept away to the ends of the earth. Now that Cassie is older, she knows the story was a nice way of saying her mother had died. Cassie lives with her father at an Arctic research station, is determined to become a scientist, and has no time for make-believe. Then, on her eighteenth birthday, Cassie comes face-to-face with a polar bear who speaks to her. He tells her that her mother is alive, imprisoned at the ends of the earth. And he can bring her back—if Cassie will agree to be his bride. That is the beginning of Cassie's own real-life fairy tale, one that sends her on an unbelievable journey across the brutal arctic, through the Canadian boreal forest, and on the back of the North Wind to the land east of the sun and west of the moon. Before it is over, the world she knows will be swept away, and everything she holds dear will be taken from her—until she discovers the true meaning of love and family in the magical realm of Ice.” |
Yes, it's “East of the Sun, West of the Moon” again. Or if you prefer, it's “At the Back of the North Wind” again. I don't know why I keep coming back to this same fairytale, but I really do love just about every retelling of it I've encountered. It's different, for one thing, set necessarily in such an unusual climate for a fairytale. (I wonder if the reason people associate tropical locations with romance is that they can't imagine a fairytale taking place in the Arctic.) And here it's been updated to a modern-day retelling, set in my own favorite State, although I've definitely never been anywhere near that far north. I especially like the way it incorporates native legend into the story. It isn't just added on as a polite nod to the location, and then go on with the original Scandinavian story-line. It's integral—it practically makes the whole thing work. Also, I rather like the idea that the Bear wasn't just trying to save his own life by finding a woman to marry him. It adds depth to the story, and a bit of excitement while things are progressing toward the inevitable catastrophe. Another thing I enjoy (and not just with this retelling, but especially with this one) is that the girl gets to go rescue her man. In this case, she does it while pregnant with his child, which adds a whole lot of complication, and oddly enough ends up being the solution to everything. Actually, it's probably that moment when Cassie figures it all out that makes this my favorite retelling of this fairytale. Much as I love the others, and in spite of the fact that it doesn't quite follow the original, I appreciate the cleverness—the little bit of added mystery.
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