Snow Queen (Cunningham) - Book Reviews

Book Reviews
At its best, the novel is Cunningham in his sweet spot, compassionate, emotionally exhilarating, devilishly fun.... Many things happen in this book, yet its prose is unhurried and sensuous. The Snow Queen takes hold of you in a manner that feels almost primal, the way a fragrance wafts into a room and changes your mood, before you even realize it.
Mario Russo - New York Times Book Review


For pure, elegant, efficient beauty, Cunningham is astounding. He’s developed this captivating narrative voice.... Half Henry James, half James Joyce, but all Cunningham, it’s an irresistible performance.
Ron Charles -Washington Post


Two brothers grapple with aging, loss, and spirituality in this haunting...novel.... As ever, Cunningham has a way with run-on sentences, and the novel’s lengthy monologues run the gamut from mortality to post-2000 New York City. But at its heart, Cunningham’s story is about family, and how we reconcile our closest human relationships with our innermost thoughts, hopes, and fears.
Publishers Weekly


(Starred review.) [T]his new book by Cunningham explores the interconnected lives...awaiting deliverance from their own personal dystopia, a dilapidated Bushwick, Brooklyn, apartment.... Cunningham weaves the secret of transcendence through the mundane occurrences of everyday life. Those who enjoyed his Pulitzer Prize-winning The Hours will be pleased to see similar themes emerging in his newest novel. —Joshua Finnell, Denison Univ. Lib., Granville, OH
Library Journal


(Starred review.) Cunningham’s elegant and haunting new novel examines the complex dynamics among a couple and a brother.... Tender, funny, and sorrowful, Cunningham’s beautiful novel is as radiant and shimmering as Barrett’s mysterious light in the sky, gently illuminating the gossamer web of memories, feelings, and hopes that mysteriously connect us to each other as the planet spins its way round and round the sun. —Donna Seaman
Booklist


An apparition spotted in Central Park has a man marveling at the place of magic in our lives. Or is it all just a trick of the light?... [T]he novel [is] somewhat slight, particularly in comparison to his debut and The Hours (1998).... A drama...energizes the closing pages but feels distant from the book's central concerns. A stellar writer working on a small canvas; Cunningham has done greater work.
Kirkus Reviews