Cahas Mountain: Appalachian Fiction

The rural and deceptively monotonous lives of four generations of two families from 1933 through the 1950's, woven together by marriages, love, illness, lies and hope are vividly presented in this riveting first novel where revolving first-person narratives carry the story along. In a world of surprises and deceit, law-breaking and religious fervor, a beloved mountain holds center stage and provides security and peace. The Natural world, especially apples, plays important roles throughout, whether as apple moonshine, a rotten apple of a son, or mountain orchards that offer shade and sanctuary. Simmons has selected historical and cultural details of Franklin County, Virginia, and stories and characters that weave as intricate a microcosm of the larger society, as do the Fiddle Spiders that bring huge changes to the residents of Cahas Mountain. Rhodessa Rose and her kin will live on in your heart. Elizabeth "Ibby" T. Greer, author of "Moonshine Corner, Keys to Rocky Mount" and widow of T. Keister Greer, Esq., author of "The Great Moonshine Conspiracy Trial of 1935."