Snowflake

This strong and poignant novel, a narrative of love and family, despair and joy, and coming of age in the twenty-first century, is the literary debut of an extraordinarily brilliant young Irish writer, reminiscent of a cross between Sally Rooney and Colm Tóibín.

Debbie, who is eighteen, grew up on the family's rural dairy farm, which is located forty minutes from Dublin. She shares a home with Maeve, her shy mother, who spends days curled up in bed, denies knowing Debbie's father, and thinks her dreams are fantasies coming true. Maeve's brother Billy, who lives in a caravan behind their home, drinks excessively, and enjoys impersonating well-known deceased writers online, completes their small family. The Whites' intense love for one another is undeniable, despite their oddities.

Debbie's life, though, is evolving. After being accepted to Trinity College in Dublin, she travels a couple days a week for her lessons. For the first time, Debbie is thrust beyond her childhood's protective shell and is simultaneously overwhelmed and let down by her classmates, the fast speed of the city, and the anonymity of city living. Even though Debbie is comfortable on the farm, she still feels drawn away from it. However, when she starts to consider the prospects for the future, a return of bizarre nightmares makes her fear that she might suffer the same fate as Maeve. Subsequently, a catastrophic mishap upsets the family's balance, and Debbie realizes she might not be able to decide what to do next.

Snowflake is a striking coming-of-age tale about a young woman trying to navigate a society that continuously challenges her sense of self. It is gorgeous and masterfully made.