Janice M. Del Negro (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, February 1997 (Vol. 50, No. 6))
Inspired by the stories her Italian in-laws told of coming to northeastern Pennsylvania coal country, Bartoletti researched primary and secondary sources, from personal family histories to mining inspection records, to piece together this picture of daily life in the Pennsylvania coal mines. The text is a combination of anecdotes and history, covering the division of labor in the mines (breaker boys, nippers, spraggers, and miners), the roles of the "sweethearts of the mines" (the mules) and the "harbingers of disaster" (the rats), the role of women and families, and life in the patch villages owned and run by the coal companies. The context is a bit sketchy (a timeline and a map would have been useful) and Bartoletti doesn't footnote nearly enough, but the danger and tragedy of life in the mines and the bravery and loyalty it engendered have an inherent drama that makes this compelling reading. The layout is clean, spare, and attractive, with black-and-white archival photographs placed generously throughout. A bibliography is included. R--Recommended. (c) Copyright 1997, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 1996, Houghton, 147p; illus. with photographs, $16.95. Grades 6-9.