Book Guide

The sharp blast of the mine whistle echoed through the valley, sending nine-year-old Tina Wilson on flying feet down to greet her father as he returned from his day's work at the coal mine. It was a custom for every father to have a treat in his bucket, and the miners’ children scrambled to be first to get theirs.

But the mine whistle could mean other things in the lives of the miners and their families. Sometimes it was the signal for disaster. And sometimes it did not blow at all, when the mines were closed and there was no work for the men. Tina and her brother and their friends learned some hard lessons about hunger and hardship that winter; but they also learned about hope and courage. And, of course, there were lots of happy times, too: square dances, a wedding, and rides on Grandfather's ponies.

As in all Lois Lenski’s regional books, the events in this story are based on true happenings, so her picture of life in a “coal camp” is a real and vivid one. And because of the author's rare understanding and insight, young readers will be able to look beneath the soot-grimed surface of life in this typical West Virginia coal-mining town and find there excitement, adventure and even beauty.

From the dust jacket

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Lois Lenski

Lois Lenski

1893 - 1974
American
Lois Lenski was born in Springfield, Ohio. She spent her childhood years in Ohio, graduated from Ohio State University in 1915, studied for four yea... See more

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Coal Camp Girl Reprint

Coal Camp Girl
Reprinted in 2021 by Purple House Press
Available formats: Paperback
View on the Purple House Press site


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Content Guide

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Reviews

Plumfield and Paideia

Coal Camp Girl
Reviewed by Kathy Andrews
The coal camp, or Company town, is a mixture of homes built many years previously by the coal company. Once houses were bright and new, but are now haggard and worn; not unlike the citizens themselves. Still, the families have their pride, and they live and work very hard to maintain their homes. Other homes have been boarded up and abandoned by families who have moved elsewhere to more profitable, dependable ways to make a living.

Read the full review on Plumfield and Paideia