jenn’s February pick — a little early
Ok, so I know it’s my February pick, but the books are in NOW and I just can’t wait! So, with no further interruptions, here it is: The Girl with Glass Feet, by Ali Shaw.
As someone who never grew out of fairytales, books like Shaw’s debut novel are a true pleasure. Meet Midas Crook, photographer and recluse extraordinaire, and Ida Maclaird, who is slowly but surely turning into glass. In the remote landscape of St. Hauda’s Land — a place so realistically portrayed you’ll forget it doesn’t exist in real life — stranger things can (and do) happen.
I knew from the beginning that I would love the story, but I had no idea how much I’d come to love the characters. It’s an ensemble cast beautifully rendered, each with surprising dimensions and hidden quirks. I hate to use the much-repeated “I laughed, I cried,” but I really did (ok, I didn’t ACTUALLY cry, but I almost did, and I absolutely laughed out loud). Midas’s young and spunky friend Denver and the pompous and blustering Carl Maulsen, whose strange relationship with both Ida and Midas drives the story in new directions, are two of the stand-out minor characters that still bump around in my head.
I was caught by the simplicity of Shaw’s style, as well. The novel is descriptive, full of small details and gorgeous panoramas, but his prose never becomes flowery or ornate.
For anyone who loves to meet new characters, is open to the stranger and more delicate sides of life, or just loves a good yarn. Let me know what you think!
