Coal Black: Stories by Chris McGinley

These ten stories mostly fall into the category of crime fiction. Their titles point to dimensions of the Appalachian experience that are well-publicized, including quilts, serpents, haints and hellbenders. “Oh. My. God. Have y’all read Chris McGinley’s Coal Black: Stories? If not, hasten to them. This shit is brilliant, this shit is real. It launches with ‘Hellbenders’ and doesn’t slow down. Lord, this is great story telling. It’s Appalachians trying to survive, trying to get past the mines. If that means drugs, so be it. As McGinley writes in ‘These Hills,’ ‘All this shit around us. Drugs, poverty, sickness. The forest is the only good thing left around here.’ Beautifully written stories; this is a stunning collection.” —Rob Peirce. “Chris McGinley’s aptly named Coal Black grabs the reader by the shirt collar and doesn’t turn loose. These stories are as dark as the coal that is no longer in the mountains McGinley writes about . . . These are tough tales about tough people and I can’t