Daughters of the Mountain: Women Coal Miners in Central Appalachia (Rural Studies Series of the Rural Sociological Society) [Paperback]

Suzanne E. Tallichet (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rural Studies | Publication Date: November 10, 2006

Much has been written over the years about life in the coal mines of Appalachia. Not surprisingly, attention has focused mainly on the experiences of male miners. In Daughters of the Mountain, Suzanne Tallichet introduces us to a cohort of women miners at a large underground coal mine in southern West Virginia, where women entered the workforce in the late 1970s after mining jobs began opening up for women throughout the Appalachian coalfields. Tallichet's work goes beyond anecdotal evidence to provide a sophisticated combination of qualitative and quantitative research. Starting from the oral histories of female miners, Tallichet goes on to explore several key topics, including social relations among men and women, professional advancement, and union participation. She also explores the ways in which women adapt to mining culture, developing strategies for both resistance and accommodation to an overwhelmingly male-dominated world.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This new book contains a wealth of information about work experiences and work relations of several women who entered coal mining as an occupation. --Goldenseal

Her writing is elegant and compassionate. . . . Tallichet's study will be a valuable addition to the literature exploring the nature of our socially constructed world, the ways in which we are assigned our place and the small acts of resistance, which cause the 'normal' to be adjusted to the complexity of human life. --Frank Bonner, Work, Employment and Society

The book is very well written, and Tallichet is careful to substantiate her claims with the rich data she collected over fifteen years. She treats her subjects with respect and recognizes the tensions, contradictions and fault lines in their collective accounts of working in the mines. This is the work of a seasoned social researcher. --Mary Margaret Fonow, Contemporary Sociology

About the Author

Suzanne E. Tallichet is Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology, Social Work, and Criminology at Morehead State University in Kentucky. She has authored or co-authored more than ten articles, including "Gendered Relations in the Mines and the Division of Labor Underground" (Gender and Society, 1995), which was reprinted in the textbook A Psychology of Women Reader (1999).

Product Details

• Paperback: 210 pages
• Publisher: Pennsylvania State Univ Pr (November 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0271029048
• ISBN-13: 978-0271029047
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,007,464 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Great!, December 11, 2009

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Vicky J. Barker (Olive Hill, KY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Daughters of the Mountain: Women Coal Miners in Central Appalachia (Rural Studies Series of the Rural Sociological Society) (Paperback)

This book gave me an excellent perception of women in the coal fields and a great theoretical perspective on what the coal miners in general had to go through. Loved it!