Get lost in Andrea Thalasinos’
debut novel, An Echo Through
the Snow, a story of survival,
healing, and the transformative
bond of love that can
be formed between dog and
guardian. Switching between
two stories, one past and one
present, Thalasinos weaves
together two transfixing tales
of the overcoming of hardship and loss. In the present-day story,
set in rural Wisconsin, a desperate and lost Rosalie Mackenzie
comes across Smokey, a Siberian Husky who is in desperate
need of a home and companionship. Recognizing broken pieces
of herself in Smokey, Rosalie rescues the dog, setting in motion a
series of events that effectively change her life.
The second narrative neatly dovetails with the first when Rosalie
discovers the tragic history and sufferings of the little known
Chukchi people of Siberia circa the early 1900s, a story that comes alive through the travails of the young Chukchi woman
at the center of this tale.
Thalasinos paints a vivid picture of stark Wisconsin and
Alaskan winterscapes, and in doing so draws surprising parallels
between the two. The poetry of the landscapes, the interwoven
stories, and the rich emotional connection between
Rosalie and her Huskies make the novel a historic, inspiring
and uplifting race to the finish.–SI
