The Reading Perusals of Rose Summers

Quick review for a quick read. I'll admit that as a little girl, I was very taken by many fairy tales, particularly many of the stories that Hans Christian Andersen penned. I'll admit that "The Snow Queen" was one I remembered pieces of, but I couldn't remember all of the seven stories. Julia Whelan's narration of this Audible freebie was well done - I usually love her audio narrations anyway because she captures the heart and voice of her characters well.

This is the story of Kay and Gerda. Kay is the lost boy and friend who is taken by the lure of the Snow Queen, while Gerda is the girl who searches relentlessly to find him, having many adventures along the way. Having watched Disney's "Frozen" - I see where the inspirations for that film came from the root of this story. "The Snow Queen" is decent, but it meanders quite a number of times, and I'll admit my attention wavered in the middle part of the story. I did find myself taken by some of the imaginative imagery and dark parts of the tale, though. I liked Greta's determination to find her friend, and I was fine with the religious references made throughout the story, because it feels like a coming of age tale given what both characters go through in the events of the story. All seven stories link together into one, but I wish I'd had more connection through the entire narrative versus having places where it pulled me in but then lost me for a time before pulling me in again.

I find that I've liked stories that reference "The Snow Queen" or do reinterpretations of the tale better than the original tale, but I appreciated having the chance to re-read a tale from my childhood.

Overall score: 3.5/5 stars.