Ashes in the Snow is a thought-provoking collection of short stories and poems rooted deep in the traditions and dialect of West Virginia's hill country. Spanning more than a century, these tales often mirror the history unfolding beyond the mountains: the financial fallout of the Great Depression, the flu epidemic of 1913, and the catastrophic melt-down at Three-Mile Island. Yet at their core is the distinctive bedrock of Southern Appalachia, a region populated by characters whose strength and resilience makes for memorable reading. Like the stalwart heroes of his stories, L. Milton Hankins doesn't mince words. His tales are crisp and concise, making short work of a people and place for whom excess is a rare commodity. Nonetheless, Ashes in the Snow captures the full flavor of Appalachian life, offering up a rich tableau of birth and death, redemption and sin, humor and sorrow. At their best, these vignettes reveal a raw beauty that will linger long after the final page is turned.