Black Woods, Blue Sky is a novel of magic, empathy, and curiosity--in fact, each of Ivey's characters here brim with such empathy and curiosity that, even in their most flawed or dangerous moments, it's impossible for a reader not to sympathize with them and home for good. With those characters carrying the story, and with Ivey's gorgeous writing of the Alaskan wilderness and a way of life that's foreign to most of us, the novel paints a world that feels as magical as it is real, and when the magic does come in...well, that feels very real as a result.
I suspected from the beginning that this work might break my heart open, and it did, but Ivey's storytelling is such that I can only smile at the experience through the tears, and be left in wonder at her storytelling and the way this book unfolds.
Absolutely recommended, whether you come for the writing, the magical realism, or the contemporary fairy tale or the Alaskan wilderness or anything else that might draw you in. This is a wonderous book.