Rednecks, Taylor Brown
Rednecks, Taylor Brown
2 Rating(s)
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Rednecks

Author: Taylor Brown

Narrator: Ramiz Monsef

Unabridged: 11 hr 25 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 05/14/2024


Synopsis

Winner of the Southern Book Prize for Fiction
An NPR Best Book of 2024An Atlanta Journal-Constitution Best Southern Book of 2024
Co-winner of the 2024 Weatherford Award in Fiction
Audie Award for Best Fiction
A historical drama based on the Battle of Blair Mountain, pitting a multi-ethnic army of 10,000 coal miners against mine owners, state militia, and the United States government in the largest labor uprising in American history.

Rednecks is a tour de force, big canvas historical novel that dramatizes the 1920 to 1921 events of the West Virginia Mine Wars—from the Matewan Massacre through the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed conflict on American soil since the Civil War, when some one million rounds were fired, bombs were dropped on Appalachia, and the term “redneck” would come to have an unexpected origin story.

Brimming with the high stakes drama of America’s buried history, Rednecks tells a powerful story of rebellion against oppression. In a land where the coal companies use violence and intimidation to keep miners from organizing, “Doc Moo" Muhanna, a Lebanese-American doctor (inspired by the author’s own great-grandfather), toils amid the blood and injustice of the mining camps. When Frank Hugham, a Black World War One veteran and coal miner, takes dramatic steps to lead a miners' revolt with a band of fellow veterans, Doc Moo risks his life and career to treat sick and wounded miners, while Frank's grandmother, Beulah, fights her own battle to save her home and grandson. Real-life historical figures burn bright among the hills: the fiery Mother Jones, an Irish-born labor organizer once known as "The Most Dangerous Woman in America," struggles to maintain the ear of the miners ("her boys") amid the tide of rebellion, while the sharp-shooting police chief "Smilin" Sid Hatfield dares to stand up to the "gun thugs" of the coal companies, becoming a folk hero of the mine wars.

Award-winning novelist Taylor Brown brings to life one of the most compelling events in 20th century American history, reminding us of the hard-won origins of today's unions. Rednecks is a propulsive, character-driven tale that’s both a century old and blisteringly contemporary: a story of unexpected friendship, heroism in the face of injustice, and the power of love and community against all odds.

About Taylor Brown

TAYLOR BROWN grew up on the Georgia coast. He has lived in Buenos Aires, San Francisco, and the mountains of western North Carolina. He is the recipient of the Montana Prize in Fiction and a finalist for the Southern Book Prize. His novels include Fallen Land, The River of Kings, Gods of Howl Mountain, and Pride of Eden. He lives in Savannah, Georgia.


Reviews

When I first discovered Taylor Brown in 2015, I was immediately drawn to his beautiful writing and story telling. I’ve read all of his novels since then and while I loved the others, especially Fallen Land , this one felt deeper and more important since there seems to be so little known or taught ab......more

Goodreads review by Karen

4.5 The story of the Battle of Blair Mountain.. the coal miners trying to become part of a union in West Virginia. The bigwig owners of the mines weren’t having it and even the military was called up against the miners. I knew nothing about this story. Some really great characters in this book. My mate......more

3 stars. Eye-opening and informative! 1920’s. West Virginia. Coal miners have no rights. Coal mine owners and managers have no respect for their employees working extremely long days in horrendously unsafe conditions. This novel follows the shocking West Virginia Mine Wars. I was fascinated to learn a......more