On Christmas Eve, two children, a brother and sister, leave their grandmother's house in an Alpine village and get lost in the mountain snow. They become trapped among the rock crystals of the frozen glacier. This short and gripping novel, by 19th century Austrian master Adalbert Stifter, influenced Thomas Mann and others with its suspenseful, simple, myth-like story and majestic depictions of nature. Poet W.H. Auden called the work "a quiet and beautiful parable about the relation of people to places, of man to nature."(Introduction by Greg W.)

Lovely story of two children who get lost in a hazardous winter crossing of an Alpine pass after visiting their grandparents in a neighboring village. Full of beautiful details about the lives of the hardy villagers, and their love for their families and their mountain home. - Summary by Carol Pelster