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Searching... Hardwood Creek Library (Forest Lake) | J FICTION HAR | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
The Way Past Winter is a riveting adventure about magic, an eternal winter, and one girl's unbreakable determination to reunite her family.
Mila, her sisters, and her brother, Oskar, live in a small forest cabin, surviving in a world gripped by frost and snow.
When a mysterious man shows up on her doorstep, Mila and her family grant him shelter for the night. But in the morning, the man is gone--and he's taken Oskar with them.
* Written by awardwinning and internationally recognized author Kiran Millwood Hargrave
* Inspired by European folklore
* Middle grade novel that explores deeper topics--grief, inner strength, and the unbreakable bonds of family
Determined to save their brother, Mila and her sisters set out on a mission to rescue him. But challenges await them at every turn: wolves with the speed of demons, tempestuous gold, an untrustworthy mage--and always the relentless, stinging freeze of winter.
The Way Past Winter is a classic adventure story in the vein of Phillip Pullman, Anne Ursu, and Kelly Barnhill that evokes the best of the middle grade fantasy genre.
* A beautifully written, smartly paced tale of riveting adventure with a focus on family
* Perfect gift for children ages 10 and up who love fantasy and magic
* Great for librarians and teachers looking to expand their classroom novel collection
* Add it the the shelf with books like Greenglass House by Kate Milford, Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend, and The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill.
Author Notes
Kiran Millwood Hargrave is a bestselling author and winner of many prestigious awards for her books The Girl of Ink & Stars, The Island at the End of the World , The Mercies , and The Deathless Girl. She lives in Oxford, in the United Kingdom.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Five years before this volume's start, Mila's father abandoned her family as Eldbjørn Forest and its surrounding lands, including their family home, was plunged into a never-ending winter that transformed their way of life to one of cold and hunger. Now Mila, 12, and her siblings--older sister Sanna, brother Oskar, and younger sister Pípa--eke out a meager existence near the forest. After a mysterious group of purportedly wealthy travelers spirit Oskar away with the boys of nearby Stavgar, Mila speaks with Rune, the town's ageless mage, who tells her they were stolen by Eldbjørn, the ancient bear who guards the forest. Under Rune's guidance, Mila and Pipa travel north to the magical island realm of Thule to save Oskar and confront an implacable creature. With this chilly fable, Hargrave (The Deathless Girls) invokes a feeling of folklore set in an ambiguous era and location. Sibling bonds and resilience run strong as the sisters trek through forbidding territory to face an enemy capable of controlling their very thoughts. It's a tense journey that boasts a mythic essence and a well-earned end. Ages 10--15. (Oct.)
Horn Book Review
Twelve-year-old Mila and her siblings Oskar, Sanna, and Pipa are barely hanging on after their father abandoned the family during an unending winter. Then a stranger with a troop of boys in tow appears, seeking shelter, and by morning they've gone, taking Oskar with them. The girls learn that all the boys in town, save the mage Rune, have vanished following the stranger's passage. Rune offers to accompany Mila and Pipa to rescue their brother but the rescue itself is up to the sisters. Hargrave balances the narrative between wintry adventure and spellbinding fairy tale, incorporating Mila's late mother's stories about a bear, the Eldbjorn, who protects the forest and his home in the heart-tree, and mingling magical elements with thrilling survival episodes of getting caught in an avalanche or attacked by wild animals. Mila's connection with Rune is one of the novel's emotional touchpoints, a haven in an unforgiving world, and Rune honors Mila's ability to care for others and truly see the world around her, qualities that make her moments of heroism authentic. (Pipa has her time to shine as well.) A generous helping of action adventure flavors this engaging folkloric fantasy. Anita L. Burkam November/December 2020 p.100(c) Copyright 2020. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A young heroine sets off into an endless winter to rescue her brother from a mythic bear. This Scandinavian-inspired fairy tale starts off strong with a mesmerizing legend of the bear Eldbjørn, who protects the forest. Three siblings--Sanna, the oldest girl; brother Oskar; and the youngest, Mila--learn of the destruction of the woods and the heart-tree to which the bear is drawn. The story then jumps forward many years--Mama died after Pípa, their fourth sibling, was born, and Papa left five years back, never to return. It is endless winter, and the children are hungry and cold and abandoned. The morning after an enormous stranger with golden eyes accompanied by a group of men arrives at their door, 17-year-old Mila discovers 16-year-old Oskar missing. The chase--in a sleigh pulled by dogs--to find and save him begins. The edgy atmosphere of the closed-in cabin is rapidly replaced by adventure as Mila's drive to locate her brother brings to life stories Mama told them about the Bear. Imagine Narnia's Lucy rescuing brother Peter from Philip Pullman's armored bears. The focused plot contains Brothers Grimm--like scenes of horror and death. The book is quite violent for younger readers, but the spare storyline and simple characters may feel too young for older ones. Still, there are those who will embrace this frozen fantasy. Characters are White. An atmospheric tale for older readers wanting an action-focused fairy tale. (Fantasy. 10-15) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
In a Nordic-inspired land, winter has not loosened its grip for five years, the same length of time since the father of the four Orekson siblings walked into Eldbjørn Forest, never to return. Hargrave (The Island at the End of Everything, 2018) deposits readers into this frigid corner of the world, where the three Orekson sisters set out to find their brother, Oskar, who vanished after an imposing stranger camped nearby with his company of boys. While Sanna, the eldest, believes Oskar willingly left with the man, abandoning their hardscrabble life, 12-year-old Mila is positive her brother was forcibly taken. It's this belief that leads Mila to trust the boy mage Rune when he tells her that Oskar and those boys were captured by the man, who is actually the ancient bear of legend, Eldbjørn. Together, Mila and her tag-along little sister, Pípa, slip away with Rune to find the magical island where the boys are being held. It is a journey full of danger and wonder, and Hargrave effortlessly sweeps the reader along with her protagonists. Bravery in all its forms proves invaluable to the quest, and the notion of myth-made-reality adds a sheen of magic to the narrative. Readers enamored with the works of Matilda Wood or Katherine Rundell's The Wolf Wilder (2015) will revel in this wintry adventure.
