The Snow Fell Three Graves Deep: Voices from the Donner Party

This fictional poetic retelling recounts the Donner Party’s westward expedition in 1846. Families leave with wagons, animals, and supplies, then choose a shortcut on their journey toward California. Snow traps the settlers in the mountains for the winter. Starvation kills some members of the group, and others consume the bodies of people who have died. The account uses many voices, primarily verse narrators and an omniscient figure called Hunger. It also includes Miwok vaqueros who attempt a rescue expedition.