title: Snow in May: Stories
author:  Kseniya Melnik 
description: *Starred Review* In her first book, Melniks nine tender, linked stories constitute a stark mural painted against the backdrop of political change in late-twentieth-century Russia and the Soviet Union, images only a Russian could craft. Pre-perestroika, post-perestroika, it all makes little difference to the residents of cold, snowbound Magadan on the northeast Russian coast. Melnik knows these people well, and portrays them and their determination, stoicism in the face of regime changes, and dry sense of dark humor with an economy of language that mirrors their economy of life. There is the young mid-century woman who yearns only to escape the crowded bed she shares with her two sisters and who grasps at the only available route, marriage. She learns too late that life as a military officers wife can be its own punishment. The glasnost generation differs little, caught up as it is in the fantasies that television delivers. Its difficult to pick a favorite among Melniks striking tales, but Love, Italian Style, the story of busy working mother Tanya on a trip from Magadan to Moscow to stock up on provisions, creates a surge of poignancy that sets the tone for all the others in this affecting and timely collection. --Donna Chavez
zlib_text: Copyright © 2018 by Wendy Meadows
  All rights reserved.
  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any
  means, without prior written permission.
  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s
  imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any
  resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or
  locales is completely coincidental.
  Printed in the United States of America
  
  CONTENTS
  Chapter 1
  Chapter 2
  Chapter 3
  Chapter 4
  Chapter 5
  Chapter 6
  Chapter 7
  Chapter 8
  Thanks for reading
  Be the First to Know
  About the Author
  Also by Wendy Meadows
  
  S
  C H A P T E R  O N E
  arah stood in front of the kitchen window and sighed. “Snow, snow,
  snow,” she whispered, watching a heavy snow fall outside. “Winter is
  here to stay.”
  “Don't fret about the snow, love,” Amanda told Sarah, sipping on a hot coffee.
  “It's December 27th. We 