AN ADMIRABLE CHARACTER TAKES FLIGHT

books:

	• Snow Goose Paul Gallico Amereon Ltd, 1989 average customer review:based on 45 reviews
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highly recommended

Simply Beautiful

There are some books a person reads, or movies that he sees, that are best described as "beautiful." That is how I feel about this book. I read it after seeing the movie as a child. (It was a Hallmark type movie, starring Richard Burton, I think...) The book is, of course, deeper, much more complex. I can't explain exactly why, but over 35 years later, I still love it, and frequently re-read it!

A must read for ages 12 and up

Paul Gallico is a master of words. The Snow Goose is a study what a person will do to help others, even if the one of the others is a goose. A girl finds the injured goose and takes it to the person she hopes will heal the goose. The man she takes the goose to, is in his own way just as injured. He has a disability, but he is willing to help. From there, he goes on in his small boat, to rescue victims of war. I won't spoil the ending. The book is short, less than 100 pages.
Read it, enjoy it.

Mystery Writer

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The Snow Goose

Probably one of the shortest books I've read in a while (about 30 minutes) but the story is powerful and a "tearjerker". I think it suffers from an attachment to Dunkirk as a period piece with nationalistic undertones during a period when England was searching for its identity under the looming possibility of a Nazi invasion, and the United States was still on the fence about entering the war (a debate at the time as heated as the Iraq War today). But it is hard to be critical of a book like this, it is beautifully written and probably Gallico's most successful and still well worth reading.

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snow goose

I bought this for children and was disapointed when the stories promoted the older man falling in love with the young woman and the women needing a man to save them. I prefer fly away home. However, it does teach that disabilities don't interfere with a person's character or ability to love or be loved and there is pro=nature involvement that I liked.

AN ADMIRABLE CHARACTER TAKES FLIGHT

Paul Gallico is not a novelist. His talent lies in his ability to tell beautiful and inspiring short stories that are a joy to read. The Snow Goose is one of my favorites and I have read and re-read it many times over my lifetime, each time gaining new insight into the author and his characters. At the risk of being accused of blasphemy, it is my opinion that The Snow Goose could have appeared as one of the parables told in the New Testament. It is a short story, a mere 6O or so pages, and tells the story of a physically deformed artist in his late 20's named Rhayader who has retreated from the world and taken up residence in an abandoned lighthouse near a marsh where he attempts to capture the beauty of his surroundings on canvas as well as provide sanctuary to the birds who seek shelter there over the winter months.

One day, a girl of about 12 named Frith, comes to him with an injured snow goose. Although frightened by his outward appearance, she overcomes her trepidation because she has heard of his desire to help the creatures of the marsh. Together they nurse the injured goose until it is able to fly north in spring. The following year the goose returns as does the young Frith. Over several years this cycle continues and the annual return of the bird acts as a catalyst in the developing relationship between the artist and the young woman. We see a lonely young man whose repugnant physical countenance has alienated him from society as he is slowly transformed by the restorative power of friendship and love. Over the years the birds' visits extend for longer periods and by the spring of 1940 it becomes apparent that the bird will remain at the lighthouse. World War II comes to the quiet marsh in a most unusual way and the story takes a different tack.

Although this book may be perceived as "chic-lit" it poses questions about the human spirit and the need for companionship that can be educational to all ages and both sexes. This small little book packs a great big wallop to the readers psyche and I heartily recommend it.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

A curious story involving not only the Snow Goose, the Canada-bred wanderer of the airways, but also a couple and their travels. In print in this small hardcover gift format since 1941.

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