
Digging a Hole to Heaven
Coal Miner Boys
S. D. Nelson(Author)
Abrams Books for Young Readers (Publisher)
Will be published approx. on 2. September 2014
Book
Hardback
64 pages
978-1-4197-0730-8 (ISBN)
Description
At 12 years old, Conall has already worked in the coal mines of West Virginia for two years. He spends his days deep underground with his faithful mule, Angel, carting loads of coal back and forth between the coal seams and the main shaft, where elevators take the coal up to the surface. One day a tunnel collapses, and his brother is trapped with others on the wrong side! How can Conall and Angel help to save them?Mixing archival images with his original artwork, in this historical fiction picture book acclaimed author and illustrator S. D. Nelson gives voice to the poverty, grueling labor, and dangerous conditions experienced by child laborers across our nation in the past, echoing conditions today, especially for migrant fieldworkers.Praise for Digging a Hole to Heaven "Nelson's acrylic-paint illustrations are gritty and realistic; more evocative still are the historical photographs that appear on nearly every page. A useful and thorough piece of work combining fiction and nonfiction, with an extensive author's note detailing the history of coal mining." --Kirkus Reviews
Reviews / Votes
The narrative comes alive with colorful descriptions, such as stout timbers that groan and a "massive mountain...forever leaning in upon itself." Beautiful textured paintings rendered in the style of 19th-century Plains Indian drawings, with acrylic on wood panels, accompany the narrative. -- Toby Rajput, National Louis University, Skokie, IL * School Library Journal * STARRED REVIEW"The vivid narrative is valuable in helping readers understand not just the facts but also the experiences of miners in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century America." -- Carolyn Phelan * Booklist * The illustrations...are alive, historically accurate, expressive, and realistically rendered. -- Marion Mueller, Library Media Consultant, Rawhide Starr Academy, New London, Wisconsin * Library Media Connection * Nelson's acrylic-paint illustrations are gritty and realistic; more evocative still are the historical photographs that appear on nearly every page. A useful and thorough piece of work combining fiction and nonfiction, with an extensive author's note detailing the history of coal mining. * Kirkus Reviews *
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Publishing group
Abrams
Target group
Children/juvenile
Interest Age: From 8 to 12 years
Product notice
Picture book
sewn/stitched
Paper over boards
With dust jacket
Illustrations
Full-colour illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 257 mm
Width: 262 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Weight
680 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4197-0730-8 (9781419707308)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
09/2014
Abrams
€20.49
Available for download
Person
S. D. Nelson is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in the Dakotas. He is the award-winning author and illustrator of numerous children's books, including Black Elk's Vision, Gift Horse, Coyote Christmas and The Star People.