Whiter Than Snow by Sandra Dallas

Whiter Than Snow by Sandra Dallas
published: 2010
pages: 292
genre: historical fiction

From the Flap:
  On a spring afternoon in 1920, Swandyke- a small town near Colorado's Tenmile Range- is changed forever. Just moments after four o'clock, a large split of snow separates from Jubilee Mountain high above the tiny hamlet and hurtles down the rocky slope, enveloping everything in its path.
  Meet the residents whose lives this tragedy touches: Lucy and Dolly Patch, two sisters long estranged by a shocking betrayal. Joe Cobb, Swandyke's only black resident, whose love for his daughter forces him to flee Alabama. Then there's Grace Foote, who hides secrets and scandal that belie her genteel facade. And Minder Evans, a Civil War veteran who considers cowardice his greatest sin. Finally, there's Essie Snowball, born Esther Schanble to conservative Jewish parents but how now works as a prostitute and hides her child's parentage from the world.
  Fate, chance, and perhaps divine providence all collide in the everyday lives of these people. And ultimately, no one is without sin, no one's soul is whiter than snow, and no one is without the need for forgiveness.
  A quintessential American voice and a writer of exquisite historical detail, Sandra Dallas illuminates the resilience of the human spirit in her newest novel.

My review:

I was pulled into this book from the beginning. Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down. The first chapter relates how the avalanche may have started, and that nine children walking home from school were buried in it. The chapter ends with this line: "Four of the children survived."

I didn't know at first if I liked this chapter ending. I thought it was giving away too much too soon. Where is the suspense if one already knows how many children made it? Turns out, this was an absolutely brilliant move on the author's part. After the first chapter, the avalanche of the present was left behind and the stories of their parents' pasts were told. As I became intimately acquainted with each parent- sharing in their triumphs and heartaches and understanding why they needed their child, my heart ached and I found myself hoping it would be their child who lived. The problem was, I already knew that some of these parents had lost a child- or children.

This book was sad, troubling, haunting, beautiful and incredibly real. Emotions ran high yet one didn't get lost in them. It was easy to relate in many ways with the characters, or at least to understand them. The theme of dealing with past sins and forgiveness is universal. It was incredibly well written and in spite of its somberness, very engrossing. I do recommend this book.

*I was given a free copy of this book to review. All opinions stated are entirely my own.*