Title: A Coal Miner's Bride: The Diary of Anetka Kaminska (Dear America; Lattimer, Pennsylvania, 1896)
Author: Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Genre: Historical fiction
Published: 2000
Number of Pages: 219
Recommended for: 10+
Summary: A diary account of thirteen-year-old Anetka's life in Poland in 1896, immigration to America, marriage to a coal miner, widowhood, and happiness in finally finding her true love.
Content Review
Sexual content: A few references to kissing, love, etc. Nothing major.
Profanity: None.
Violence: This is a fictional account of the Lattimer Massacre. Some minimal violence.
Drug content: Drinking, whiskey, and cigarettes are mentioned.
My opinion: A Coal Miner's Bride is the diary of a young Polish girl who goes to America after her future husband, who she has never met, pays her fare. Her future husband, Stanley, has three little girls and his wife had died in childbirth. However a romance blossoms between Anetka and a soldier, Leon, who she claims not to like but anyone who has read a romance before knows they're in love. Leon as well as Anetka's little brother Josef go to America to be with their Papa, leaving behind Poland and all they have ever known.
The story was interesting, the characters were realistic (with flaws) and believable, and it tells the little known story of the Lattimer Massacre. The ending was sad, and it had an Epilogue which read like a nonfiction, with everyone's obituary which was kinda depressing. The ending included more information about the time period, pictures, and a pronunciation guide to some Polish words in the book.
No comments:
Post a Comment