When Kai is cursed by a magic mirror, he can no longer perceive goodness in anything - not his best friend Gerda, nor the roses in the garden. One wintry evening, he is kidnapped by the wicked Snow Queen and swept away to live for ever in her kingdom of ice. Friendless and shoe-less, Gerda must travel through inhospitable lands, with only crows to guide her and bandits for company, in order to find her beloved friend. And when she gets there, how will she melt the ice in his heart? Nearly two centuries after its first publication, The Snow Queen endures as a tale of love and loss, good and evil, and loyalty in the face of great hardships.
From Goodreads
This classic fairy tale had one element I loved, it has a
strong and brave heroine in Gerda. Her name meant guardian. It's a fitting name
for the heroine of this story. She refused to believe that Kai, her friend, was
died when he didn't return home, and went out into the "wide world"
to find him. With this decision she declared herself Kai's guardian.
I liked that Gerda's adventure was split into seven stories,
each one I think symbolic to her growing up.
The story started out slow but the story picked up when Gerda
met the crow and he took her to the princess's palace.
I couldn't help but wonder if the Snow Queen inspired the
witch in C.S. Lewis "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and if
Gerda didn't inspired parts of Lucy's character development.
Netgalley provided and Pushkin Children 's Books provided my copy.
