A review by ravensandlace
Snowglobe by Soyoung Park

4.0

Title: Snowglobe

Author: Soyoung Park

Genre: YA Dystopian

Format: own hardback book

Series: Snowglobe Duology (#1)

Star Rating: 4 stars

tw: dementia, extreme weather, murder, parental death, cancer, assault, alcoholism, drugging

This book haunted me on Facebook. I saw ads for it for at least two weeks until one day I had enough and picked myself up a copy because I knew it wasn’t going to go away until I did something about it. I didn’t feel like reading my other current reads at the time so I started it and I was just so impressed with this book. It was such a different take from other dystopian books I’ve read. 

The main character, Chobahm, was a great main character. I enjoyed her POV quite a bit. But one thing that kind of bothered me about her was how chill she was about murder. One of the TV shows shown from the Snowglobe was someone murdering men and this girl was just so chill with it. Like oh yeah, it’s totally cool they are watching someone kill others. It was kind of mind boggling how chill she was. 

While I enjoyed the book quite a bit, the pacing threw me off. It started a bit slow. We were getting a feel for the world and Snowglobe. Then the middle of the book hit and suddenly things were happening and happening quickly. I started to get a little lost. I think because the book was translated some things might have gotten lost. Some subtle transitions and things like that. 

Since I keep mentioning Snowglobe, I should probably explain what it is. Snowglobe is an area that is warm all year round. In Chobahm’s world, it is winter all year round with temperatures so cold, you will get frostbite in mere minutes. Snowglobe is warm and is powered by people on the outside. In exchange for the citizens keeping Snowglobe going, 24-hour reality TV shows are happening. There are a variety of shows and regular citizens can even try their luck at becoming actors and work in Snowglobe. As I mentioned, it’s an interesting concept for a dystopian. 

I think this book shows how damaging reality TV is for both the actor and the viewer. You saw the stress the actors went through in Snowglobe. You could feel the desperation. How hard they tried to stay relevant so they could stay in Snowglobe. I also felt the desperation of the viewers. They lived for those shows as a way to forget about the horrible cold. While it provided an escape, it was the only thing people lived for. It was truly sad.

Overall, I loved this book quite a bit and the concept was so interesting. It was a fresh and unique take on dystopia. It breathed new life into the genre. I can’t wait to read the sequel, especially since this book ends on a very interesting cliffhanger.