Rose is a wonderfully rich and intricate novel set in nineteenth-century Wigan, a town located in the coal country of Lancashire.  Its protagonist, Jonathan Blair, is a mining engineer who has been chased out of Africa for "stealing" from the missionaries' Bible Fund in order to pay off the porter of his expedition into the interior of the Gold Coast; he is now down and out in London.
Blair's employer, Bishop Hannay, promises...

Tells the story of the 1909 coal mine disaster in Cherry, Illinois, that killed hundreds of men, left more than four hundred children fatherless, inspired the first worker's compensation laws, and helped bring about changes in child labor practices.

"This is the story of how Clay, a coal miner in love with his hometown but unsure of his place within it, finds the family he's been seeking"--Jacket.

During the Second Empire, Etienne Lantier experiences the miserable life of the coal miners in northern France and enters the struggle between capital and labor.

A fictional tale, drawn to typify a child miner's work experience at the turn of the last century.

From before the dawn of the 20th century until the arrival of the New Deal, one of the most protracted and deadly labor struggles in American history was waged in West Virginia. On one side were powerful corporations whose millions bought armed guards and political influence. On the other side were 50,000 mine workers, the nation's largest labor union, and the legendary "miners' angel," Mother Jones. The fight for unionization and civil rights sparked...

The story of Loretta Lynn, who rose from the poverty-stricken Appalachian area to become one of the biggest country singers of all time.