Customer Reviews

Coal: A Memoir and Critique

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This is a superior piece of scholarship that is readable, educational, and troubling. The author grew up in the coalfields of West Virginia, son and grandson of coal miners, he worked in the mines long enough to earn college tuition. Now, he looks back on the impact of coal mining on Appalachia, specifically on West Virginia.

His research is excellent; the book is well-organized; most important, the book is readable.

His thesis is simple: Coal companies moved into Appalachia in the 19th century and established themselves in positions of total control of the economy, which led them to total control of politics and people's lives. The author describes this process and the impact on the people, culture, society, and politics of Appalachia -- now the same fate awaits the rest of us.

It is this last part of his thesis that is frightening? At the beginning of the 21st century, we are moving rapidly into a "globalized economy" in which fewer and fewer corporations are in control of more and more of our daily lives. The author uses the last two chapters of his book to compare the control that the coal companies had over Appalachia to the control that corporations are now gaining over the rest of us. He warns us that the fate of Appalachia -- raped by unbridled corporate greed -- likely awaits the rest of us if we do not restrain global corporate power.

A breathtaking and moving account of those who risked their lives for the industrial revolution and were "thanked" with continual exploitation by the industrialists they served. Unforgettable!

Before reading this book I didn't know much about the coal industry. I knew it was dangerous and not something I would want to do. This book although obviously bias against coal corporations sheds light on the hardships a mine worker had to endure to earn a living and still has to today.

Its shocking how lives took a back seat to the bottom line and the country took so long to do anything to actually help. This book is worth reading even if you don't plan on reading another book on the subject. You will gain substantial knowledge on the subject and give you a new appreciation for the men and women in the coal industry.