Review: A Magical Story!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 2, 2014
"The Snow Owl" by John Hartling is a magical and fantastical short story about a father left to raise his son after his wife dies in childbirth.The father loves summer, his wife loves winter which makes vacations a bit difficult to go on together as a couple.  So, each year, the wife would take a ski trip by herself.  It is insinuated that the wife took a lover during her last ski vacation and she asks for forgiveness while on her dead bed.  But the reader is left guessing whether the wife was truly unfaithful until the very end of the story.As the son grows, he talks about an imaginary place called Lukana and claims to be a prince from the same locale. One winter morning, instead of making a normal snowman, the child makes a snow owl.  He insists the snow owl is a messenger from Lukana.  The father just thinks that the child has a vivid imagination.After the child becomes ill, the story takes the reader on a fantastical journey of hope, love and beautiful imagery that will leave you wanting more.I thoroughly enjoyed this short story and would definitely recommend it those who like short reads that are well-written and are so very original.