Emma Malloy returns to Coal River with the clothes on her back and nothing more after losing her family to a devastating fire. Now living with her aunt and uncle, cruel people who care more about appearances than anything else, Malloy begins to notice the plight of the coal miners around her and how she might help them.

A nice, simple story about a girl trying to do her best and overcoming the obstacles in her way which also includes the expectations on women during the time period. The writing was good though I did find myself drifting in some places and I didn't overly connect to Emma as a character,

A good book for those who enjoy historical fiction!

Well-developed characters make this a must-read for those interested in the history of child labor, especially those children forced to work in coal mines. There's a little romance and a hopeful ending.

I received the extended excerpt here and enjoyed it so much that I read the full book. Here is my review of the book, which I listened to.

Emma Malloy left Coal River as a teen and planned to never return. She has memories of her brother's death by drowning and blames herself. When her parents are killed in a theatre fire in New York, she is left destitute. Her Aunt and Uncle in Coal River send her a ticket to come and live with them and she finds herself returning to a place she does not want to be. It is 1912, in a Pennsylvania coal mining town, where her uncle is "a boss" who also runs the company store. Mining is a horribly dangerous and back breaking job. The breaker boys, children as young as six are sent into the mines, such a heartbreaking thing. Children were not allowed to be children during this time unless they came from wealthy families. They are maimed, die from black lung disease, lose eyes and have a terrible existence. Even though Child Labor Laws have been passed in the period of this novel, as well as safety laws for the miners, they are all broken by this company. Emma want to help the families and the children.

Emma is a strong female character who has experienced tragedy in her young life and yet still has strength and courage to try to go against an unjust system. She goes against her family, who do not treat her well, to follow her heart. She puts her own life in danger to bring light to the injustice in the ways that are available to her at the time. Many reviewers felt Emma was too good to be true, but I believe she was a realistic heroine, who really did not have much to live for in her life and was very unhappy in her role. All the secondary characters are interesting and complex in their own right. The plot flows to a suspenseful conclusion that was violent, sad and eventful. My big complaint and reason I only gave this book 4 stars was the ending. It was too neatly tied up. As we moved to end, it could have ended sadly as that would have been expected at the time, but the author tied it up in a neat bow with a happy ending.

If you are interested in reading about the "Breaker Boys: you can check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaker_boy or https://thebreakerboysbrianeicher.weebly.com/

Emma returns to town penniless and alone. Her story and that of the children in the town truly pull at the heart strings. This is such a wonderful book.