Boy, Snow, Bird

Written by Helen Oyeyemi

Narrated by Barbara Barnes

Boy: Novak turns twenty and takes a bus from New York to the end of the line, Flax Hill, Massachusetts. Here she finds Snow a mild-mannered and deeply cherished girl. Snow displays a certain inscrutability, that's simply harmless until Boy gives birth to Snow's sister, Bird. When Bird is born Boy is forced to re-evaluate the image Snow's family have presented to her, and Boy, Snow and Bird are broken apart.

• Language: English
• Publisher: W. F. Howes Ltd
• Release date: Sep 4, 2014
• ISBN: 9781471272080

Helen Oyeyemi

Helen Oyeyemi is the author of The Icarus Girl, The Opposite House, White is for Witching (which won the Somerset Maugham Award), Mr Fox, Boy, Snow, Bird, Gingerbread and the short story collection What is Not Yours is Not Yours. In 2013, Helen was included in Granta's Best of Young British Novelists.

Reviews for Boy, Snow, Bird

[mjlivi · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I really struggled with this - the characters voices were nearly indistinguishable, the plot oddly paced and the point hard to discern. It toys with some interesting themes, but there's something about the way it's written that meant I caught myself repeatedly glazing over, unsure what major plot shift had just been sneaked in between slightly pointless digressions. The big reveal at the conclusion of the book is crazy and the motivations of the characters throughout hard to engage with. Can't win them all I guess.

[kymmac · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Finished outside Babelia. Lots of people at bookclub. Loved the book, and the ending, which many people didn't like, really impressed me for the depth it gave the novel. Expounded on the mirrors, abuse, search for love. Also loved the sister bonding. Jealous.

[meredk · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An interesting, original book - I've never read anything quite like it. The basic ingredients of the Snow White tale are sort of pulled apart and rewritten into something totally unique. The ideas about race and color are integrated in a fascinating way, and the writing is really good.

[rmarcin-630843 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This was definitely not the book for me. It was supposed to be a retelling of Snow White and it did not resemble the fairy tale at all. Instead, the 3 characters in the title, Boy (stepmother of Snow, and mother to Bird), were strange women/girls. I felt the story was disjointed and the ending was ridiculous.Completely disappointed.

[bookfest_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's hard to talk about this book without giving away key elements of the story. It starts with the main character, a girl named Boy, being cruelly beaten by her father, Frank. She runs away to a small New England town and makes a place for herself. She marries a local widow with a young child. Things become complicated when she has a child of her own.Set in the 1950s, the book is about racism, but also about the idea that things are not always what they seem to be, people are not always who they seem to be. At times it becomes too polemic, which might not really have been necessary for Oyeyemi to make her point. Nonetheless, the plot and dynamic characters pull you forward. An interesting read!

[kittycunningh-815148 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I hate stories that stop in the middle. I was enjoying this until the end when it just.

[hemlokgang · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Helen Oyeyemi's writing is whimsical and serious at the same time. The relationship between characters named Boy, Snow & Bird, as well as several others, the author explores themes of sexuality, gender identification, and race. The reader is swept along in the plot and barely realizes the serious nature of the themes until almost the end of the book. Excellent writer, very good novel!

[drfuriosa · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is an interesting premise and start, but the ending fizzles out a bit.

[chris.bulin · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I was really enjoying this book until Part 3. There was a deft touch with racism and colorism throughout the book that was completely ruined by the transmysogyny at the end. It's too bad.

[kohrmanmj · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Started off well, but lost it's way in the middle. The ending felt rushed, forced, and not well-integrated into the rest of the story. I didn't particularly care for the narration from Bird's POV. In short, it was ok, but I don't think the ideas were fully fleshed out and I didn't care for the writing style at points. There were allusions to magical realism at points, but it played no real part in the story and I found myself wishing Oyeyemi would delve deeper into those themes.

[gleipnir-318769 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The first and last book by Oyeyemi that I will be reading. The ending was disgustingly transphobic.

[bookishtexpat · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Beautiful. I love Helen Oyeyemi's writing and her characters, and Boy, Snow, Bird is a fantastic novel. Set in 1950s New England, the story is rich and layered and I was absorbed in the lives of Boy, Snow, and Bird, and all those around them. My only complaint is that I wanted more of Snow from Snow's perspective, though I did like the way Oyeyemi shares Snow with the readers.

All in all, a great book, and I will be picking up more of Oyeyemi's work!

[nwieme-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Really. I liked the writing, but I feel like I wasted some time with this. Maybe I just didn't get it.

[linda.a. · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What a brilliant, brilliant novel! Making allegorical use of the Snow White fairytale the author explored a whole range of complex and inter-linked themes (eg race, bigotry, gender, the search for identity, secrets in families, what constitutes beauty, vanity ... to name just a few!) and has created an enchanting, multi-layered story. As with all fairy-stories, beneath the "magic" there's an all-pervasive underlying darkness and she doesn't shrink from exposing this, at times in ways which made me stop and re-read certain sections because they challenged me to look at something from a different perspective, to dig deeper beneath the surface.There is pain and darkness in this story and certain aspects of it made me feel angry about the experiences some of the characters faced, but there were also moments of joy and laughter which, without in any way denying the awfulness of the pain, lightened the story in a delightful way.This is the first of Helen Oyeyami's books I have read but I'll be catching up on her backlist as soonI can ... I'm just about to start Gingerbread!

[pdill8 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book was a deep dive into identity. Told by a couple of different narrators and over a span of many decades, the strength of this book for me was the characters. Though the subject matter was at times heavy, the charming narrators each had endearing humor and frivolity that kept me thoroughly engaged. To boot, the book examines identity from a multitude of angles: how one sees them self, how one is seen by others, how the perception by others can effect a person and on many levels: race, class, gender. There were certain plot points that didn't quite jibe for me, but the concepts it left me to ponder were well worth it. Good stuff!

[ireneattolia · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

i very much enjoyed the first 9/10 of this novel but ohhhh boy that ending. somehow it managed to be both incredibly transphobic and Fucked Up about rape and it all just comes out of nowhere??

[mal_upnorth · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautifully written novel, almost lyrical. I found the story captivating. Each character is expertly crafted, unique, and multidimensional. I didn't know what to expect but I am extremely glad this book was recommended to me. The ending isn't quite my cup of tea, but I will definitely be reading more of Helen Oyeyemi's works!

[librarycin · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I think the book started in the 1930s. Boy is a girl who was raised by her abusive father; her mother wasn’t around. She doesn’t leave until she is 20ish, when she hops on a bus to take her anywhere else. She ends up in a small town and tries her best to fit in. She does marry and inherits a stepdaughter, Snow. Boy later has a daughter of her own named Bird. This was told mostly by Boy’s point of view, but the middle section is from Bird’s point of view when she’s 13. It was… different. I’m rating it ok, as some parts of it were interesting, but some of it wasn’t. It started off really promising, when Boy was younger, and I probably found that the most interesting part of the book. It wasn’t a long book, so it didn’t take long to read. It was hard keeping track of some of the characters. I skimmed over some of the long paragraphs. At first, I enjoyed the letters between the two sisters, but then they got wordy and talked about things I really didn’t care about… things that I’m not sure really meant anything to the story. Boy made some odd decisions/choices and I didn’t like her much of the time.

[akblanchard_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

In Boy, Snow, Bird Helen Oyeyemi weaves an elaborate story around Snow White's not-so-wicked stepmother, one that involves separated sisters, tricky mirrors, a cruel rat-catcher, and the problems and indignities of blacks passing for white in a racist world.This overstuffed novel simply has too much--too many narrators, too many plot points, and too many secondary characters with similar names. I found it unengaging.

[lamotamant · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I made a comment when I was about halfway through this book that it was a novel I'd imagine Alice coming back from Wonderland to write. Mainly because it feels like it has a bit of Carroll to it and it's easy to fall down into it while more than a little confusing on the climb back out of it's pages. It's choppy yet lush, insightful yet removed, slow but quick, quick, quick at the last. The ending left me wanting to reach out for it's sequel, the lack of which is a big factor in the 2 star rating.

It felt like there were these big issues spawned onto the pages, okay, good start. Give me something to chew on and I'm happy. Add a few character perspectives and show them chewing on said issues, also good. But it just fell for me from there because nothing really came of it all. The two scenes that could have really built into a profound novel were brushed over quickly and without resolution. The basic Snow White plot lurked behind unfinished parallels; parallels so unfinished that I found myself thinking it would have been more successful had it not been packaged as the plot twisted/reimagined. I think it's always good for an author to find a line between giving a reader something to consume and going to straight overkill. I don't think this novel reaches a desired and fulfilling line between the two even though the writing style itself is pretty stirring.

[gogglemiss · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I was really disappointed with this. What was promising to be a great story, this was broken up into musings and ramblings which interfered with the main body of the work. I didn't really like the characters involved, either. I still feel this could have been so much better.

[canadianeggroll · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read the book summary from a magazine article and was intrigued. In the end, I wasn't disappointed. Oyeyemi successfully illustrates the benefit of being white/having white privilege in a discriminatory society, and I'm interested in reading her other works. I also appreciate the vast amount of female characters.

[tonstant.weader · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved the language. She is a skilled and poetic writer. The characters were fascinating people and I loved everything about the book except the ending which seemed unrealistic. It seemed like Oyeyemi wanted a resolution to the story, and in many ways it really did not need one.

[bodachliath · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A vivid, stylish and unsettling modern fairytale full of surprises, ideas and striking imagery. Part family story, part reflection on racial identity and nature/nurture, and part exploration of fairytale themes, this is a dizzying and assured book from a talented writer.

[randymetcalfe · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There are so many impressive aspects in any Oyeyemi novel — form, subjects, character, dramatic scenes, etc. — that I’m at a loss for why they don’t work better. Here, an abused daughter in mid-20th century New York escapes to a town in Massachusetts where she begins a new life, falls in love with a man, and gives birth. Is it a fairy tale ending? No, it’s just the beginning of a completely different story about race, difference, passing as white, and motherhood. But then, just as that story is about to close we are treated to yet another substantive subject: sexual identity and transgender misidentification. It’s a bit much.The writing is vivid. Oyeyemi has a knack for startling images. She writes first-person narratives, especially from the point of view of a pre-teen, with sensitivity and insight. All of which sounds great except that throughout the novel it is nearly impossible to know where or when the story is taking place. So, voice over place, subject over narrative. No wonder things seem muddled.Oyeyemi is clearly a novelist with immense potential. I will continue to read her novels in hope that she pulls it all together at some point. And I on that basis, I would gently recommend her to others. Still one to watch.

[joanna.conrad · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Wow, I did NOT see that end coming! That said, I feel half the book could have been omitted, and neither Boy, Snow, nor Bird are the main character of the story.

[viviennestrauss · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really like Oyeyemi's style - beautifully inventive, always surprising twists.

[klburnside · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I thought this book was supposed to be a retelling of Snow White. There was a character named Snow, a stepmother, a mirror, and themes of beauty and jealousy, but it wasn't quite a fairy tale retelling.

I am honestly not sure what it was. The characters and their motivations didn't always make sense, I wasn't sure what the themes were or the point was. It seemed to be jumping all over the place. Then all of the sudden in the last 20 pages, there's another big surprise that comes out of nowhere. I think the book had potential, it was just lacking in focus.

[wagner5sarah35 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This novel is many things - a retelling of Snow Bird, a portrayal of a mixed race family during the Civil Rights era, a revelation of long buried secrets, and an exploration of all the ways to hurt a loved one. While the first chapter really gripped me, unfortunately the book was mostly hit and miss for me. It did end strong, and I would recommend it to someone looking for an usual read.

[brangwinn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Oyeyemi has created a book that combines reality with fairy tales and at times, they clash and at times they meld together. It is difficult to discuss this book without giving away key elements of the novel. An abusive parent forces Boy to flee New York City for the small town of Flax Hill in New England. Read with an open mind being aware continually that truth shifts and nothing is as it seems. This original story will stay will you after you’ve read it, for you’ll be thinking of all the threads that ravel in this story of very original characters