A review by johndiconsiglio
The Cold Millions by Jess Walter

3.0

It’s 1909 Spokane & brothers Gig & Rye are riding the rails, searching for work with farms, mines & logging camps. They’re on the right side of union champions (many drawn from real life) & the wrong end of baton-wielding cops. This is an atmospheric novel, filled with flophouses, train cars & prison cells. Unapologetically pro-labor, it’ll remind you of Dos Passos & Upton Sinclair (& only occasionally comes off as preachy). Mostly, it’s an attention-grabbing adventure with colorful characters—some of whom speak Joe Hill-like from the grave. “What they can never kill/went on to organize.”