Rednecks

The 1921 Battle of Blair Mountain is a pivotal moment in American history. Part of the West Virginia Mine Wars, it's the largest labor uprising in the U.S., pitting some 10,000 miners against Big Coal, the mining companies' strikebreakers, and the National Guard. Brown (Pride of Eden, 2020) humanizes the events by introducing several indelible characters, including "Doc Moo" Muhanna, who is determined to uphold his Hippocratic Oath amidst the increasing bloodshed, and Big Frank Hugham, a Black miner who helps lead the labor efforts after his grandmother, Miss Beulah, is forced from her cabin by the mine owners. Brown imbues these individuals with the spirit and pathos of people who have been exploited for far too long. Other characters include the inspirational Sid Hatfield, descendant of the infamous Hatfield-McCoy feud, and union organizer Mother Jones, the "most dangerous woman in America." Brown dexterously illustrates the eternal dichotomy between capitalism and labor in this immersive novel about a united multiethnic group of miners who tied red bandanas around their necks as a symbol of solidarity.

West Virginia coalminers stage a violent uprising in this sobering tale from Brown (The Wingwalkers). In May 1920, miners in Mingo County, W.Va., are evicted from their company-owned homes in retaliation for joining the United Mine Workers of America. Matewan police chief "Smilin'" Sid Hatfield, angered at the company's brazen extralegal operation, guns down the private detective in charge of the evictions. By June, the miners are on strike. Nearly a year later, tired of living hungry in a makeshift tent colony, the miners attack the state police, who are siding with the company, and its band of deputized civilians. When Sid is assassinated, heavily armed miners from all over the state assemble near Matewan, dubbing themselves "Rednecks" for the red bandannas they wear around their necks. The violence escalates until the U.S. Secretary of War sends in the Army to put down the rebellion. Interweaving multiple points of view, primarily those of local physician Domit Muhanna, labor orgaziner Mary Harris (the real-life Mother Jones), and Frank Hugham, a Black miner and veteran of the Great War, Brown skillfully examines workers' frustrations with large corporations and the politicians they pay off. Readers will find that this one hits hard. Agent: Julie Stevenson, Massie & McQuilkin Literary. (May)