Amy Snow

Tracy ReesGuangxi Science and Technology Publishing House2016

Rating 4.5
Word count
230K words
Chapters
6
ISBN
9787555106777

Tags

Literature Foreign Literature Hidden LineageSuspenseful ToneGrowth ThemeClass PrejudiceFirst PersonFull-Length NovelVictorian EraBritish FictionFemale Protagonist

Summary

Amy Snow (original English title: Amy Snow) is the debut novel of British author Tracy Rees. Set in Victorian England in the nineteenth century, the story begins in 1831, when Aurelia, the young heiress of Hatwilly Manor in Surrey, finds an abandoned baby in the snow and names her Amy Snow. Amy's status remains ambiguously poised between companion to the young heiress and servant of the estate, and only Aurelia's insistence spares her from being cast out. Years later, the frail heiress Aurelia dies, and seventeen-year-old Amy is promptly expelled from Hatwilly Manor. She then receives letters and parcels left behind by Aurelia: a carefully orchestrated journey unfolds, guided by a series of cryptic clues, taking her through London, Twickenham, Mulberry House, Bath, and beyond. As Amy deciphers the clues, makes new friends, and confronts class prejudice, she draws closer to the secret Aurelia had always kept from her and to the truth of her own origins, and thereby attains rebirth and freedom. The book is narrated in the first person by Amy, with letters linking the plot, combining elements of mystery and coming-of-age. It was the winner of the first "Richard & Judy" "Search for a Bestseller" competition and, after publication, entered the upper ranks of Amazon UK's historical fiction chart.

Editor's review

这是一部从雪地开端、在火光中收束的小说：一个连姓名都由雪赐予的弃婴，用一场由逝者安排的旅行去寻找自己到底是谁。特蕾西·里斯的笔法轻盈而克制，把维多利亚时代的庄园、马车、礼服与阶级偏见写得纤毫可感，却不靠浮夸的年代细节取胜；真正牵引读者往下读的，是奥芮莉亚留下的那一封封信和一个个包裹。作者四十余岁才出版这部处女作，并凭它在英国电视书友会“理查德&朱迪”的“寻找畅销书”大赛中夺冠，获得出版合约；故事的可读性在英文读者那里已经得到验证。中文版由佘玺翻译，叙事节奏从容，对白自然，艾美那种既敏感又倔强的口吻保留得较好。如果你喜欢《简·爱》式的成长叙事，又偏爱带一点解密意味的阅读体验，这本书值得一个周末。

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. 先不急着猜结局，跟着艾美的信件顺序读下去，线索本身即是叙事节奏
  2. 留意奥芮莉亚的信件语气变化，那是理解她隐瞒秘密动机的关键
  3. 读到后半段时回看前文关于哈特威利庄园人物的细节，会发现不少伏笔
  4. 可搭配《简·爱》或维多利亚时代英国社会背景资料一起读，理解更充分

About the publisher

Guangxi Science and Technology Publishing House

Public information about Guangxi Science and Technology Publishing House is limited. Judging from the 32 titles in the catalog, its publishing focus leans toward psychological self-help and foreign literature. The psychology list covers emotional adjustment and personal growth, including Jim Dincalci's The Power of Letting Go, works by Claire Weekes and Ron Coleman, and Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones, which encourages ordinary people to express themselves through writing. In literature, it offers novels and foreign literary works by authors such as Jojo Moyes, Matthew Thomas and Tracey Rees, spanning categories like quality fiction and world classics. Overall, the press shows a publishing profile that pairs applied psychology titles with translated literature.

Contents

  1. Prologue
  2. Part One: Hatwilly Manor
  3. Part Two: Mulberry House
  4. Part Three: Hardes House
  5. Part Four: Fountain Cottage
  6. Finale

FAQ

这本书的原名是什么？ 原名 Amy Snow，中文版由佘玺翻译，广西科学技术出版社2016年出版，属于该社“知更鸟文学”品牌引进的作品。
故事发生在什么年代和地点？ 主要背景是十九世纪维多利亚时代的英格兰，起点约为1831年，故事空间涉及萨里的哈特威利庄园、伦敦、特威克纳姆、巴斯等地的庄园与宅邸。
作者特蕾西·里斯还有什么来头？ 她毕业于剑桥大学，长期在威尔士生活，曾在非虚构类图书出版领域工作八年。本书是她的长篇处女作，凭此书赢得“理查德&朱迪”首届“寻找畅销书”大赛冠军。
这本书和“新知文库”有关系吗？ 没有直接关系。新知文库是三联书店的人文社科译丛，而本书是广西科学技术出版社引进的英国长篇小说，只是被收录在部分电子书合集里，容易产生混淆。

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About the author

Tracy Rees Author

Tracy Rees is an English-language author whose name has also appeared in the Chinese book market in translation. Publicly available information about her is currently limited: her nationality, dates of birth and death, and personal background have not been clearly recorded, and only one of her works, *The Mark in the Snow*, is held in the collection. In common classifications, this work is placed under literature and foreign literature, and thematically it tends toward narrative fiction set against a snowy atmosphere, with a style that emphasizes emotional development and the delicate portrayal of characters' fates. Because verifiable information about the author is scarce, readers' understanding of her and her work comes mainly from this representative title itself. For readers interested in contemporary English-language women's narrative, *The Mark in the Snow* may serve as an entry point for learning about her writing, while a fuller picture of her creative trajectory and literary standing must await the disclosure of more material.