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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
4.5 stars
initially, i was attracted to louise nealon’s snowflake as it was being compared to both my favourite irish novelists' works, sally rooney and naoise dolan. naturally, being a huge fan of rooney’s works, it had to go into my personal tbr straight away and i was thrilled to have received a copy of this book from definitely books by pansing. despite the endless comparisons between nealon’s debut to these acclaimed irish literary works, snowflake stands on its own with its natural uniqueness that dives into the deeper side of relationships we formed on a daily basis.
debbie is THE main character in this coming-of-age story, and by emphasizing that i truly do mean that she is one of us. we are the main character in our coming-of-age story just as much as she is in this story of hers. i find myself relating to every aspect of debbie’s new life entering college, more so to being in our early twenties era. the way that she thinks of the world felt like my own personal thoughts was being projected onto the paper, like it was calling me out for being just as insufferable as debbie are from time to time. my annotations truly consisted of the words “ouch” and “felt” nearly 99% of the way through and i cherished this experience with my whole heart because as sick as i am, i love nothing more than a book that calls me out on my insufferable behaviour.
as said before, this book dives into the deeper side of relationships and it’s more than just following debbie’s story on being that “different country girl”. we also follow her close-knit relationship with her uncle billy and with her mother, maeve. all of which i find to be so heartwarming and yet so tragic as i dive into their story further. i love how beautifully connected the greek mythology references are to their lives, and even maeve’s infatuation with the philosophical wondering of dreams. recollecting, dissecting, and reliving her dreams almost as if they were prophecies which she and debbie somehow slowly comes to believe as the book progresses. debbie’s rollercoaster of a friendship with xanthe was also very fulfilling to read. i somewhat relate to their friendship so much, especially with my own branches of friendships that i’ve had previously and even now. this book is just charming with its simplicity and that dash of magical realism to it.
speaking of simplicity, i adore nealon’s writing as it is simple and yet it hits you in your heart just in the right spot. it somewhat echoes of rooney’s writing which i find understandable now as to how it’s being heavily compared to rooney’s work but as far as the plot goes, snowflake is an entirely different being from any of rooney’s works. it stands brightfully on its own and it definitely deserves more recognition. louise nealon is a brilliant writer and i cannot wait to see what she comes up with next.
content warning: mentions of suicide, mental health issues, death and more but this is all i have on the top of my head for now. nevertheless, approach with caution!
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”when we fall asleep, we go to a place where words dissolve and become meaningless, like rain dropping into the ocean. as soon as rain hits the ocean it is no longer called rain. as soon as a dreamer enters a dream there is no longer the dreamer. there is only the dream.”
initially, i was attracted to louise nealon’s snowflake as it was being compared to both my favourite irish novelists' works, sally rooney and naoise dolan. naturally, being a huge fan of rooney’s works, it had to go into my personal tbr straight away and i was thrilled to have received a copy of this book from definitely books by pansing. despite the endless comparisons between nealon’s debut to these acclaimed irish literary works, snowflake stands on its own with its natural uniqueness that dives into the deeper side of relationships we formed on a daily basis.
debbie is THE main character in this coming-of-age story, and by emphasizing that i truly do mean that she is one of us. we are the main character in our coming-of-age story just as much as she is in this story of hers. i find myself relating to every aspect of debbie’s new life entering college, more so to being in our early twenties era. the way that she thinks of the world felt like my own personal thoughts was being projected onto the paper, like it was calling me out for being just as insufferable as debbie are from time to time. my annotations truly consisted of the words “ouch” and “felt” nearly 99% of the way through and i cherished this experience with my whole heart because as sick as i am, i love nothing more than a book that calls me out on my insufferable behaviour.
as said before, this book dives into the deeper side of relationships and it’s more than just following debbie’s story on being that “different country girl”. we also follow her close-knit relationship with her uncle billy and with her mother, maeve. all of which i find to be so heartwarming and yet so tragic as i dive into their story further. i love how beautifully connected the greek mythology references are to their lives, and even maeve’s infatuation with the philosophical wondering of dreams. recollecting, dissecting, and reliving her dreams almost as if they were prophecies which she and debbie somehow slowly comes to believe as the book progresses. debbie’s rollercoaster of a friendship with xanthe was also very fulfilling to read. i somewhat relate to their friendship so much, especially with my own branches of friendships that i’ve had previously and even now. this book is just charming with its simplicity and that dash of magical realism to it.
speaking of simplicity, i adore nealon’s writing as it is simple and yet it hits you in your heart just in the right spot. it somewhat echoes of rooney’s writing which i find understandable now as to how it’s being heavily compared to rooney’s work but as far as the plot goes, snowflake is an entirely different being from any of rooney’s works. it stands brightfully on its own and it definitely deserves more recognition. louise nealon is a brilliant writer and i cannot wait to see what she comes up with next.
content warning: mentions of suicide, mental health issues, death and more but this is all i have on the top of my head for now. nevertheless, approach with caution!
twitter ☆ instagram ☆ booktube
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
actually a very, very nice book. there isn't much of a plot but this is one of those books that doesn't really need it. all of the characters are likable and sympathetic, and i was so surprised at how emotional i got at some of the scenes?
xanthe and debbie's friendship was so intruging to me. my lesbian goggles want to see something more there and their interactions towards the end of the book had me raising an eyebrow. everything about them felt so realistic and the audiobook did a wonderful job with their dialogue. i'd love to read more from louise nealon because i believe she has a true gift with her writing.
xanthe and debbie's friendship was so intruging to me. my lesbian goggles want to see something more there and their interactions towards the end of the book had me raising an eyebrow. everything about them felt so realistic and the audiobook did a wonderful job with their dialogue. i'd love to read more from louise nealon because i believe she has a true gift with her writing.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
This was so much weirder than I expected (a compliment).
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
3.5 stars.. thank you to Harper Collins for this arc!!
Snowflake by Louise Nealon follows Debbie as she enters her freshman year at Trinity College, and the difficulties she faces as she is discovering a new world outside of her home: a dairy farm laced with complicated family dynamics.
what i liked the most about this book is how it just kept surprising me: i had no idea it was going to take the turn that it took, but it was really refreshing as a coming of age story and not at all what i expected.
it's very introspective (and Irish) which i think is why people have compared this to Sally Rooney's novels. although i can see the comparison, they are both beautifully different.
i had a couple of issues with the pacing and the magical realism elements; i felt like it lacked flow at times, and the dream component of it could've been expanded upon. however, the writing and character development was incredible, and the way it touched on mental health, alcoholism, family dynamics, romantic and sexual relationships, and academic pressure really makes it worth a read. especially the conversations of mental health.
overall,, this was a great debut novel and i definitely will be picking up future releases from this author!
Snowflake by Louise Nealon follows Debbie as she enters her freshman year at Trinity College, and the difficulties she faces as she is discovering a new world outside of her home: a dairy farm laced with complicated family dynamics.
what i liked the most about this book is how it just kept surprising me: i had no idea it was going to take the turn that it took, but it was really refreshing as a coming of age story and not at all what i expected.
it's very introspective (and Irish) which i think is why people have compared this to Sally Rooney's novels. although i can see the comparison, they are both beautifully different.
i had a couple of issues with the pacing and the magical realism elements; i felt like it lacked flow at times, and the dream component of it could've been expanded upon. however, the writing and character development was incredible, and the way it touched on mental health, alcoholism, family dynamics, romantic and sexual relationships, and academic pressure really makes it worth a read. especially the conversations of mental health.
overall,, this was a great debut novel and i definitely will be picking up future releases from this author!
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
This had so many factors which I love in a book:
-Irish lit
-farming background
-coming of age
-slight magical realism, but not hugely invasive.
Ultimately though, it felt like too neat an ending, and there wasn’t enough depth to any of the characters for them to really stick with me.
-Irish lit
-farming background
-coming of age
-slight magical realism, but not hugely invasive.
Ultimately though, it felt like too neat an ending, and there wasn’t enough depth to any of the characters for them to really stick with me.