Rating: 
Summary: Beautifully Written, but One Chapter Short
Review: There is something about a translation that appeals to me. Though I've read several of Haruki Murakami's books, this was my first exposure to Peter Hoeg. Both authors share that subtle but surreal twisting of language and character that constantly makes you realize just how foreign other people's lives and perspectives can be. Though I found little to relate to in Smilla, I cared what happened to her on her quest. It was so much fun to follow this woman through her quirky, lonely life that the central mysteries of the book almost became secondary. This may be why, when the book ends abruptly after the final reveal, I felt somewhat robbed. Though the narrative was technically complete, I still wanted to know what happened next, as I had throughout the book. In fact, if it weren't for the excellent use of language and the complicated nature of the characters, it would be possible to read this book simply as a modern thriller: a murder mystery that points to a bigger mystery that ultimately leads to a conspiracy. The cinematic locales and visuals, dramatic confrontations, and screenplay-esque pacing only add to feeling that, more than reading a novel, you're watching a film unfold in your mind.
Rating: 
Summary: Exquisite and dreamlike
Review: This book doesn't have a genre. It's just literature, and it's good literature. Sometimes it seems to be the general opinion that if a book is entertaining it cannot possibly be a work of art. "Smilla's Sense Of Snow" is another book that proves it to be wrong.The most surprising thing about the book is its genuine feeling, its incredibly surreal and yet exquisitely natural flow. Nowadays most authors feel the need to set a fast pace so that the reader doesn't get bored. And, indeed, people have learned to hurry. "Smilla's Sense Of Snow", however, allows one to look around, actually experience things, not just rush through them. The book seems strangely dreamlike, reading it is a lot like moving through water - you are awed by the alternate world that can be found underwater, and you cannot move swiftly, and after some time you learn to understand the water and appreciate the beauty of simply being. When it comes to women, literature is full of clichés. Peter Hoeg's Smilla is certainly not one of them; she is original to say the least. Still, the essence of woman is there. One cannot help but wonder at the way a man has been able to create a woman who's very unlike most women in literature (or life, indeed) so perfectly that she doesn't need to be feminine to convince the reader she is one, even when the reader happens to be female. "Smilla's Sense Of Snow" is a fascinating book. Books such as this one are rare nowadays.
Rating: 
Summary: Not What it Could Have Been
Review: The author weaves a complex tale and stirs some powerful images. Chock full of historical and scientific tidbits, the books falters in character development. The actions and motives of the major players are highly implausible, and glossed over too frequently. And there is no plot resolution at all. I was listening to this book on tape and I was certain there had to be more...but there isn't. A good read, albeit flawed, and entirely unfinished. Write your own ending!
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite and dreamlike
Review: This book doesn't have a genre. It's just literature, and it's good literature. Sometimes it seems to be the general opinion that if a book is entertaining it cannot possibly be a work of art. "Smilla's Sense Of Snow" is another book that proves it to be wrong. The most surprising thing about the book is its genuine feeling, its incredibly surreal and yet exquisitely natural flow. Nowadays most authors feel the need to set a fast pace so that the reader doesn't get bored. And, indeed, people have learned to hurry. "Smilla's Sense Of Snow", however, allows one to look around, actually experience things, not just rush through them. The book seems strangely dreamlike, reading it is a lot like moving through water - you are awed by the alternate world that can be found underwater, and you cannot move swiftly, and after some time you learn to understand the water and appreciate the beauty of simply being. When it comes to women, literature is full of clichés. Peter Hoeg's Smilla is certainly not one of them; she is original to say the least. Still, the essence of woman is there. One cannot help but wonder at the way a man has been able to create a woman who's very unlike most women in literature (or life, indeed) so perfectly that she doesn't need to be feminine to convince the reader she is one, even when the reader happens to be female. "Smilla's Sense Of Snow" is a fascinating book. Books such as this one are rare nowadays.
Rating:
Summary: Profoundly beautiful...
Review: Even those writing laudatory reviews, here, ding this truly superior work for having a psychologically, rather than literally, explosive conclusion. I can only suggest that Hoeg is an author for whom theme is ever unfolding through his characters, and it is the characters to whom we must look here. The character of Smilla, the heroine of this novel, is developed with such nurturing and painstaking clarity and depth that she is breathtaking. She is so sharply defined that even the remarkable mystery in which we meet her becomes secondary. This book is a work of art of the highest order and it may be read for style alone. But make no mistake, this is a compelling story, which is intellectually demanding of the reader. "Smilla's Sense..." is a story of the strength and determination required by social outsiders in sussing out the underlying motivations of people involved in normative systems of control, and protecting themselves from those systems and the people maintaining them. This novel is about power and survival. Like all of Hoeg's other novels, especially "Borderliners", "Smilla" takes us on a journey describing characters traveling the real and emotional dialectic of moving away from the social center as they are drawn into a deeper understanding of its aims and of its archetypes. Smilla discovers not just facts, but the mythos underlying them. "Smilla's Sense of Snow" is an ontology of the marginalized psyche interlaced within a remarkable story of the lengths to which a system can be bent towards the individual ambition for power and control. I hate to make comparisons, but a good summer's serious reading list might include this novel with titles such as Morrison's "Song of Solomon", Eco's "Foucault's Pendelum" and DeLillo's "Libra".
Rating: 
Summary: Good storyline and plot twists
Review: Smilla's search for the reason why a young boy runs to his death while the authorities rule it an unfortunate accident makes for a good story. The most interesting and flowing parts of this book surrounded the characters in action. The development of most the characters is too brief causing acceptance of them versus getting to know them. The scientific and environmental detail while necessary and compelling at some points unfortunately more often detracts from the storyline. A little more editing of the story would have helped, and yet at times the text jumps forward causing the reader to fill in the blanks. These inconsistencies are a bit distracting. Overall this not a bad read, I just was expecting more due to the hype about best book of the year. Plot twists are intriguing and creative. Do enjoy this book.
Rating:
Summary: TAUT AND COMPELLING
Review: I probably wouldn't have read this book if it had not been gifted to me at Christmas by my best friend - she had seen the film, and knowing how much I like to read, felt that it would be 'right up my alley'...and once again, she was right in her judgment concerning my tastes. One of the quotes on the back cover (from The New Yorker) puts this novel '...in the league of Melville or Conrad' - while I'm not sure I would go quite that far, Høeg is a fine writer, and his talents for keeping the reader in suspense as he spins this tale are pretty impressive. The central character, Smilla, is of mixed Greenlandic and Danish parentage - and the conflicts between those two cultures, one colonial, one native, are alive within her constantly. The dialectic that exists between these two forces - which has so often transformed and rent the fabric of human society - tears at her life. She is a strong-willed, intelligent woman who is not really sure what she wants or expects from life - she trusts her instincts, but not necessarily her heart. When she comes upon the body of her six-year-old neighbor Isaiah crumpled in the snow outside their apartment building, dead from a fall from the roof, she is immediately suspicious - and when the police almost instantly rule the death an accident, Smilla's initial doubts increase. They continue to do so almost exponentially as she begins to look into the case - and her investigation leads her into one dangerous situation after another. The author balances the emotional with the sociological and the scientific elements nicely in this story - there are plenty of references to Smilla's inability to trust, and to love (and the reasons that lurk behind), background on the treatment of the Inuit people by the Danes (both in Greenland and in Denmark), and plenty of science as well. The author has done his homework. In the note about the author, it's mentioned that before turning to writing, he worked as a professional dancer, an actor, a sailor, a fencer and a mountaineer - and it's pretty evident that he pursued these activities with attention and zeal. You can see elements from several of them within this work. The writing is intelligent, and flows very nicely - and Høeg is masterful in giving away just what he wants to give away as the story progresses. Fans of the literary thriller should give this novel a good, long look.
Rating:
Summary: Intricate and not quite plausible
Review: This book tells the story of Smilla, a half-Inuit woman living in Copenhagen, and her investigation into why a little boy who lived in her building walked off a roof. Smilla is keenly intelligent and hard as nails. She accomplishes physical feats that would put James Bond to shame as the bad guys try to prevent her from learning what happened to the little boy. She is purposefully mysterious as she narrates her story, keeping readers puzzled about her actions and choices until she chooses to explain them. The story ends not with a bang, but a whimper, leaving the reader to figure out what happened as the plot finally drifts out to sea.
Rating:
Summary: a half-breed must-read.
Review: This is one of those multiculti books for diverse author reading lists and I say hip, hip, hooray! Hoeg may not be a Greenlander, and his Smilla-delivered Greenland info may be occasionally inaccurate and overromanticized, but that's what happens to us mixed kids when we're out of one element for too long! We need post-colonial criticism to figure out which parts of us are truly conqueror and conquered. If you're a short hapa girl with power issues, this book is for you.
Rating:
Summary: Not worth your time
Review: Contary to most people's opinion, I truly did not like this book. Sure, it was ok (I'm trying to go easy and be nice), but it lacked any real suspense - I did not feel a single twinge of suspense while reading this book, not to mention the strange coldness of Smilla, yet at SOME moments she seems to almost be human (with emotion). I have no idea why it is a ny times bestseller, but I supposed there haven't been any good books in the past 10 years so this was the best they could come up with (pretty sad, actually). The story was alright, but the ending I'm still "ehh" about. It makes sense (I think?) and I'd like to comment on the ending, but to do that I'd have to give away the ending of the book, which wouldn't be too fair of me. Overall, a tolerable story (in periods of ten minutes per day) with an extremely disappointing ending and strange characters. My suggestion would be to head down to your local bookstore and sip some coffee while reading the book so that you won't have to buy the book (that is if your bookstore has a cafe inside).
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