'Rednecks' chronicles the largest labor uprising in American history

'rednecks' chronicles the largest labor uprising in american history

St. Martin's Press hide caption

toggle caption St. Martin's Press

Coal, plucked from deep within the earth, helped build this country and got it through many wars. But to get that coal, miners had to put their lives at risk daily and for long, grueling hours.

Between cave-ins, explosions from methane gas, accidents, and black lung, coal mining was a deadly job, and those who benefited from it the most never faced any of those dangers. The result of that division between those putting their lives on the line and those who made the money led to the Battle of Blair Mountain in 1921. Around 10,000 miners from all races revolted against the mine owners that fought their union, the government, which sided with the owners, and the state militia.

Taylor Brown's Rednecks is a superb historical drama full of violence and larger-than-life characters that chronicles the events of 1920 and 1921 as it explores the people and reasons behind the largest labor uprising in American history.

Rednecks is a sprawling narrative that kicks off with the Matewan Massacre, which happened in the spring of 1920 when local coal miners and their allies had a bloody shootout with the Baldwin–Felts, who were in charge of evicting people who had joined the miner's union. From there, the novel follows the major events leading up to, and during, the Battle of Blair Mountain.

The chapters follow different characters: "Doc Moo" Muhanna, a Lebanese-American doctor concerned with the health of those stuck in the tent camps and who helped everyone and was respected on both sides of the conflict; Frank Hugham, a Black coal miner and World War I veteran who is beaten and left for dead by the men trying to control the miners and subdue the union; and Beulah, Frank's grandmother, a woman with an unbreakable spirit and a great sense of humor. The novel also has some real-life historical figures in its page: Mother Jones, the fiery, indomitable labor organizer and "Smilin" Sid Hatfield, who played a vital role in the Matewan Massacre and whose mouth full of gold teeth and talent for righteous violence made him a legend.

Rednecks drags readers into the middle of conflict, pulling them into the battlefield, the mines, the streets full of armed men itching to pull the trigger, the courts where good and bad decisions were made, and the cold, muddy tent camps where those displaced by the owner of the mines scraped out a living. Brown, a writer who always delivers impeccable prose, also delivers great pacing and economy of language here, telling a very big story from a variety of perspectives without ever slowing down or getting too caught up in the plethora of details his research surely unearthed.

In fact, there are passages in Rednecks that describe more and accomplish more than some short stories. This paragraph about miners looking at the homes they were kicked out of is a perfect example:

"Now other men slept in those same beds, in the shelter of those hard roofs and milled plank walls. Scabs. Men from out of state, whose labor kept the mines smoking on the hillsides, the coal-carts and conveyors trundling toward daylight. The company ledgers in the black. Kept the Union miners sleeping in canvas tents, their demands unmet. Their wives dull-eyed with hunger, their feet dark-slopped with mud. Their children's faces gaunt, so they could see their little skulls pressing through the skin, creeping toward the surface."

Historical fiction sticks mostly to facts, but that doesn't mean authors can't take a stand and make a point. In Rednecks, Brown makes it very clear from the start: Ihe miners were right. Every time the novel talks about the conflict in depth and explores how it all came to be, Brown reminds readers that the coal miners worked very long hours in awful conditions and mostly wanted things that would help them live longer, things as basic as better ventilation down in the mines. On the other hand, the mine owners were soft men with soft hands who had never set foot inside a mine and who were happy to send entire families to live in cold, muddy encampments or to order murders and beatings just to maximize their earnings. History hasn't been kind to those who stood against the miners unionizing, and neither is Brown.

While this is a novel about something that happened more than 100 years ago, it also feels very timely. Even today, many big companies are very anti-union, and their focus on revenue is the same as it was for mine owners. The division between those who work for a living and those who profit the most from that work is still an issue, and makes this action-packed, character-driven novel feel extremely contemporary.

Gabino Iglesias is an author, book reviewer and professor living in Austin, Texas. Find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @Gabino_Iglesias.

OTHER NEWS

21 minutes ago

Britain's July 4 election is fast approaching. Rishi Sunak is running out of time to change the tune

21 minutes ago

Emma Raducanu turns down place at Paris Olympics

21 minutes ago

House of the Dragon season one recap: Everything that’s happened in the Game of Thrones spin-off so far

21 minutes ago

Lily Allen reveals comment that was ‘edited out’ of BBC podcast with Miquita Oliver

21 minutes ago

Egyptian President Hails Good Organization of Hajj and Services Provided

21 minutes ago

Rahul Gandhi says EVMs are a 'black box' that nobody is allowed to scrutinise as Elon Musk raises hacking concerns

21 minutes ago

What to know about Trump's outreach with Arab Americans led by his daughter Tiffany's father-in-law

21 minutes ago

New report shows common medication puts at-risk individuals in danger — and heat is only making matters worse

21 minutes ago

‘Complete dud’: Matt Canavan and Abigail Boyd go head-to-head in heated net zero debate

21 minutes ago

Former SAA chairperson Dudu Myeni passes on at 60

21 minutes ago

25 people penalized for transporting 103 illegal pilgrims

21 minutes ago

Man Utd Transfer News: Red Devils told to hijack move for ideal Casemiro replacement Joao Palhinha

21 minutes ago

How the ‘least cultured’ place in Britain reinvented itself

21 minutes ago

'Geez, he's raw!' - Michael Owen sends WARNING about misfiring Liverpool forward

21 minutes ago

Emma Raducanu’s Olympic decision confirmed as Team GB squad for Paris 24 is revealed

21 minutes ago

He plays like Kroos: Man Utd could land "special" 51m Mainoo partner

21 minutes ago

Terminated Red Bull junior driver speaks out following axe

21 minutes ago

United Rugby Championship Team of the week: A Springbok in waiting, ‘Huwipulotu’ and the Bulls front-row all feature after semi-finals

21 minutes ago

Hunter Biden beams as he's seen out in Hollywood after felony gun conviction

21 minutes ago

Trump threatens to cut off aid to Ukraine 'prior to taking the White House as president-elect'

21 minutes ago

Fourteen Jordanians die during Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia

21 minutes ago

How explosion of mega warehouses is turning America's heartland into a hellscape, as raging locals say soulless eyesores are ruining their lives

21 minutes ago

Inside the bitter fight between the Mormons and small town America: Church accused of 'bullying' picturesque hamlets into letting them build towering temples

21 minutes ago

Glamorous socialite 'dupes Palm Beach elite with $2M scam' at heart of shopping mecca for the mega rich

21 minutes ago

Video: Fury after police ram terrified runaway cow with their squad car down London street - with cops forced to refer itself to watchdog amid backlash and Home Secretary demanding explanation over 'heavy-handed' incident

21 minutes ago

Video: Fury after police ram terrified runaway cow with their squad car down London street - with cops forced to refer itself to watchdog amid backlash and Home Secretary demanding explanation over 'heavy-handed' incident

26 minutes ago

Why student loan forgiveness sparks anger: A philosopher, attorney general, sociologist and religious thought expert weigh in

26 minutes ago

Detroit pastor thanks Trump for visiting the ‘hood’ as Biden, Obama who ‘never came’ attend LA fundraiser

26 minutes ago

Andrew Garfield keeps it casual as he enjoys a date night with glamorous doctor girlfriend Kate Tomas at Chiltern Firehouse

28 minutes ago

Olympics-Kipyegon targets double gold in Paris

28 minutes ago

Wilding review – a biodiversity success story in West Sussex

28 minutes ago

Lok Sabha Elections 2024 | Rajeev Chandrasekhar Counters Elon Musk’s EVM Tampering Remark | News18

32 minutes ago

Hamburg police fire shots at axe-wielding person at Euro 2024 fan parade

34 minutes ago

Feeney claims back-to-back Darwin race wins

34 minutes ago

Exodus of skilled workforce rises 119%

34 minutes ago

American VAR expert Christina Unkel gives ITV edge over BBC at Euro 2024

34 minutes ago

Insider Today: Meta's manager squeeze

34 minutes ago

Fewer than 200,000 Britons living abroad apply to vote in UK election

34 minutes ago

Frustration and loathing in Las Vegas: What Nevada voters REALLY think of a Trump Biden 2024 election

34 minutes ago

Video: As Kate Middleton gets back behind the camera, how the Princess' passion for taking pictures has seen her capture some of the most touching royal photos in decades