Salvation on Sand Mountain: Snake Handling and Redemption in Southern Appalachia

A haunting exploration of faith, from a preacher convicted of attempted murder to a first-hand account of holiness serpent handling--One of the best books on American religion from the last 25 years (Chicago Tribune)

For New York Times reporter Dennis Covington, what began as a journalistic assignment-covering the trial of an Alabama pastor convicted of attempting to murder his wife with poisonous snakes-would evolve into a headlong plunge into a bizarre, mysterious, and ultimately irresistible world of unshakable faith: the world of holiness snake handling.Set in the heart of Appalachia, Salvation on Sand Mountain is Covington's unsurpassed and chillingly captivating exploration of the nature, power, and extremity of faith-an exploration that gradually turns inward, until Covington finds himself taking up the snakes.

Author: Dennis Covington
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Published: 08/01/2009
Pages: 288
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.55lbs
Size: 8.20h x 5.40w x 0.80d
ISBN13: 9780306818363
ISBN10: 0306818361
BISAC Categories:
- Religion | Christianity | Denominations
- History | United States | State & Local | South (AL,AR,FL,GA,KY,LA,MS,
- Religion | Christian Living | General

About the Author
Dennis Covington is the award-winning author of several books of fiction and nonfiction, including Lizard and Lasso the Moon. He teaches creative writing at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.