| View Larger Image | Ice | Hardcoverby Sarah Beth Durst (Author)
| List Price: | $16.99 | | Price: | $11.55 | | You Save: | $5.44 (32%) | | | Available: | Usually ships in 24 hours |
| | Binding: | Hardcover | | Publisher: | Margaret K. McElderry | | Edition: | 1st Edition | | Page Count: | 320 Pages | | Publication Date: | October 06, 2009 | | Sales Rank: | 52,752nd |
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FEATURES | - ISBN13: 9781416986430
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
When Cassie was a little girl, her grandmother told her a fairy tale about her mother, who made a deal with the Polar Bear King and was swept away to the ends of the earth. Now that Cassie is older, she knows the story was a nice way of saying her mother had died. Cassie lives with her father at an Arctic research station, is determined to become a scientist, and has no time for make-believe.Then, on her eighteenth birthday, Cassie comes face-to-face with a polar bear who speaks to her. He tells her that her mother is alive, imprisoned at the ends of the earth. And he can bring her back -- if Cassie will agree to be his bride.That is the beginning of Cassie's own real-life fairy tale, one that sends her on an unbelievable journey across the brutal Arctic, through the Canadian boreal forest, and on the back of the North Wind to the land east of the sun and west of the moon. Before it is over, the world she knows will be swept away, and everything she holds dear will be taken from her -- until she discovers the true meaning of love and family in the magical realm of Ice. |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 32 reviews)
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Ice is a story of how one teen learns perspective. by Clarktx (Too Close to Civilization)  4 Stars
November 29, 2009
Life is full of undesirable situations that are forced upon us. We can all use a new example of how we should be open minded and flexible. This book delivers that example.
This is a nice little story. The author does a fairly good job of creating an alternate reality. The story revolves around an interpretation of how the functions of life and death work. I didn't find it fascinating, but it was engaging enough to make for a nice story.
Cassie is demanding, requiring everyone in her path to help her and being incredibly stubborn along the way. Character development is a bit of what you make of it: sometimes it seems a bit sparse but you can suspend your disbelief in some sketchy sections if you feel like it.
In the end, Cassie is able to solve a problem larger than herself. Along the way she figures out how small her worldview really is. She grows and matures into a better person, and in the end she willingly accepts the mantle of her responsibility. Its amazing what a little perspective can do. For Cassie, perspective doesn't come easily. Which is realistic for a young adult and a good topic for this book's intended audience.
Pros:
The book becomes more interesting as you progress through the story.
The book reads smoothly and stays true to itself (true enough, anyway).
The story has some excellent lessons. Cassie starts off with a very rigid worldview and a petulant (and typical) mentality. This changes.
Cons:
At times the writing and dialogue leaves something to be desired. Maybe its a bit too realistic, sometimes Cassie talks like a very unsophisticated and petty teen. This is a conundrum for the author: I'm sure the author wanted realistic dialogue but we all know how irritating young adults can sometimes be when they are expressing themselves.
If you are thinking of gifting this book, it provides an excellent example of how something that at first seems detestable may turn out to be preferential, if you just give it a chance.
I wouldn't put it at the top of your reading list. If you have the time and the inclination I think many people would enjoy this story.
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Perfect ending by Walruz Flatz (New York) 4 Stars
November 27, 2009
For some reason, i've always longed to read a novel with talking Polar Bears for characters. I loved the movie The Golden Compass so much that I decided to try this book out and I am very pleased I did. I love the concept of munaqsri. Throughout reading this novel, i felt like munaqsri were actually real and thought I would one day eventually meet Jaime, the human munaqsri, when my death date arrived. Then i realized this is a novel...FICTION!! This novel consists of three parts. Parts one and three were very exciting and i couldn't wait to see what happened next; however, part two seemed to drag on a little bit. The author seemed to be very repetitive. It got a little annoying to me, but the way she writes is beautiful. The ending was very adoring and I honestly didn't see it coming. I recommend this book for everyone who enjoys a great, original fantasy.
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Good retelling by T. Parmer 4 Stars
November 24, 2009
I love fairy tale reworkings, so long as they are not too heavy-handed. I think this story finds the right balance between magic and realism. I would love to read more re-writings of fairy tales by the same author.
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In creativity and charm, there are few books that equal ICE by Teenreads.com (New York, NY)  5 Stars
November 23, 2009
Cassie Dasent has a storybook life. As a girl, her grandmother told her that she was part of a real fairy tale, recalling the legend of Cassie's lost mother, Gail. Cassie remembers the words of the story by heart:
"ONCE UPON A TIME, the North Wind said to the Polar Bear King, `Steal me a daughter, and when she grows, she will be your bride.' And so, the Polar Bear King kidnapped a human child and brought her to the North Wind...She grew into a beautiful, but lonely, young woman. One day, while the Winds were gone (as they often were), she met a human man. She befriended him, and it wasn't long before they fell in love. When the Polar Bear King came to claim his bride, she refused him. Her heart, she said, belonged to another. `I would not have an unwilling wife,' he told her. `But your father has made a promise to me.' Knowing the power of a magic promise, the North Wind's daughter sought to counter it with her own bargain: `Then I will make a promise to you...Bring me to my love and hide us from my father, and when I have a daughter, she will be your bride.'"
The story ends with Gail and her love being discovered by the North Wind, who flew into a rage and blew his daughter to the ends of the Earth. Cassie's mother was blown all the way to the kingdom of the trolls, where she still remains, captured. It's a story Cassie believed in as a child, but somewhere along the way, she understood that Gail, her mother, must have died.
Now a research scientist working at a camp on the arctic ice, Cassie is part of a team that includes her father. She grew up in the camp, and so destiny ensured that she would be near the polar bears as she reached her 18th year. It is on her birthday that Cassie sets out alone across the ice, encountering the largest bear on record. He eludes her when she tries to shoot him with a tranquilizer dart, simply walking through the ice. Not believing her own eyes, Cassie returns to camp empty-handed, but upon mentioning the story to her father, he becomes alarmed. Her grandmother too is panicked and attempts to convince Cassie to leave, but she refuses to believe.
When Cassie sets out again across the ice, she discovers that her grandmother was right. In front of her is the giant she encountered before, but this time he speaks. The Polar Bear King reminds her of a binding promise made by her mother, telling her that he has come for her now but would not have an unwilling wife. Cassie sees an opportunity in the offer and makes a magically binding promise to marry him in exchange for the freedom of her mother. Then climbing on his back, the bear whisks her away to his castle in the realm of the munaqsri.
The Polar Bear King introduces himself simply as Bear and assures Cassie that he would never hurt her. His home is a creation of his own magic, a beautiful enchanted castle of ice. After sharing a delightful meal, he leads her to his bedroom and, after freeing her mother, comes to her that night. In darkness, Bear transforms into a naked human man and slips quietly into bed beside her. Panicked and unnerved, Cassie sends him away. Her days in Bear's castle bring Cassie closer to the man-beast, and she is surprised to find that he is a munaqsri, a caretaker of Earth's souls. Though he is strange, Bear proves himself a gentleman and Cassie has a magnificent time. His kind and patient nature appeals to her heart, yet as the days pass, she yearns to see her parents again. She can't quite bring herself to leave Bear and her new home, but she feels changed; indeed she is, because her destiny has taken hold. There will come a day when Cassie will return to humanity, but she won't stay long --- fate will see her journey east of the sun and west of the moon, to the very ends of the Earth.
In creativity and charm, there are few books that equal ICE. The storyline and quality of writing give it a timeless appeal. Readers will adore the charismatic, modern characters and the way the old fairy tale fits in with the new. But most exciting of all is Cassie's long journey across the ice. Her travels take her across the arctic Taiga and the boreal forests, all the way to the North Pole. Upon witnessing the beauty of the aurora boreal and the treacherous ice, Cassie survives both a freezing ocean and temperatures under 40 below. Along every step of the way, she encounters creatures of the north. True to its name, it's a tale that really does begin and end on the ice.
--- Reviewed by Melanie Smith
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Lovely story by Eclectic Maven (Southern CA) 4 Stars
November 23, 2009
I thought this was a good spin on a familiar tale. The main character although rather annoying at the beginning develops and what you hate about her you learn to admire. I really wish the story had been fleshed out a bit more as I liked it but it feltit esd rushed and everything happened very quickly. If you can get past your initial annoyance with Cassie, our main character, you will find a sweet and interesting tale about a spunky girl.
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