Reviews

Coal River by Ellen Marie Wiseman

jenmangler's review against another edition

2.0

The ending really lost me. I was willing to overlook the issues I had with the book because I really liked the focus on what it was like for miners and their families, but that ending was just a bridge too far.

faithemt's review against another edition

5.0

excellent historical fiction! learned something new: the plight of the breaker boys and the coal mining industry of 1912.

wonderfully developed setting and the characters come to life.

highly recommend.

nicohusko's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.75

lhamilton2835's review

dark emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

Historical Fiction- this is the kind of historical fiction that I like. I was drawn to the characters and felt strongly about them, some good, some bad. She described the scenes so well, I could picture them and I feel like she drew a moving and powerful image of life working for a mining company during that time period.

gmamartha's review against another edition

4.0

PA child labor, etc. Romance.

colleengeedrumm's review against another edition

3.0

3.5 stars overall. Great, interesting story about the history of coal mining in a USA town. The writing just felt a bit juvenile at times. But I was hooked and wanted to find out what happened. I would read this author's other novels just to compare.

She knew the agony of grief all too well, and seeing it break down this tyrant only proved its power.

The book certainly had its sadness but turned out quite alright in the end, as most rewarding novels do.

booksconnectus's review against another edition

3.0

I struggled to get through the first half...it just seemed lighter than I was expecting-but my enjoyment and appreciation for the story being told increased the further in that I got. By the end I found that I enjoyed it and would reccomend it, based on it being based on historical facts and the twists that I didn't see coming but which made for an interesting turn of events.

coltenb's review against another edition

informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

karabou_reads's review

informative mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

jcanton's review against another edition

challenging informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0