This is the best non-fiction I have ever seen. The liberal use of personal histories and stories along with illustrations from periodicals reporting the situation make this compelling and fascinating.

The potato blight that struck Ireland in the mid 1800s produced a nation-wide famine, resulting in "one million dead and two million who fled" to other countries, predominately the US and Canada. Countless other Irishmen, with no food, money or homes, simply disappeared. Susan Campbell Bartoletti's "Black Potatoes" recreates the era year by year from haunting contemporary newspaper illustrations, government records and first hand survivor stories, told to their children and grandchildren.

Bartoletti provides a balanced account of the economic, political and social repercussions of the blight and the ensuing famine. Food was available but the poor did not have the means to acquire it. The British government was slow to react to the devastation. Irish government officials, landowners, and shopkeepers worked to protect their own interests but, finally, in the end, contributed the greatest amount of financial support to the poor. The Friends Church, operating local soup kitchens, and American relatives, sending millions of dollars in financial support, were allies of the Irish poor during these times.

This book is a wonderful historical recounting of the time and is compelling reading for those of all ages interested in their Irish heritage. Bartoletti brings the horrors of famine and poverty to life. The 150-year old drawings, originally published in the "Illustrated London News", will stay with the reader long after the book is finished. The six-page narrative bibliography is as interesting as the story itself, and provides students and researchers with numerous sources for further study.

Susan Campbell Bartoletti, already well known for her award-winning fiction and nonfiction, has reached new heights with this book. It is clearly impeccably researched, yet never reads like a dry compilation of facts. It is by turns moving, horrifying, hopeful, and depressing. Although she points out the general indifference and (often) hostility of some government officials who could have provided some relief, she never falls into the easy trap of making anyone the villain of the terrible story of the Irish potato famine. Instead, she details the general ignorance of the cause of the blight and the sometimes well-meaning but misguided attempts of different people to remedy the situation.

Most importantly, the reader leaves feeling that this is not some strange thing that happened to unknown people a long time ago. The feeling of immediacy, and the way the reader is led to empathize with the sufferers, make it fresh and real.

Readers of "Nory Ryan's Song" who want to get the real history of this terrible time should be encouraged to read "Black Potatoes."

My seven-year-old daughter is reading this book now. This morning, she said to me, "Daddy, I'm so glad you got me this book from the library. But there's one thing I don't like: those companies were so mean! And why? Because of money, that's why! But those people aren't any better than other people are. It's just the way the black people used to be treated, it wasn't fair. People should be treated nicely, not just the rich people, that's what I think." So if you want to nurture a sense of social justice (and maybe a little social rebellion) in your child, this seems to be a good book. I can't wait to read it when she's done.

Kids on Strike is an excellent introduction to U.S. labor history. The book is well-researched and enhanced by the addition of a chapter-by-chapter bibliography. Bartoletti uses her journalism background to weave an eloquent and powerful narrative. Even adults will learn something new. I, for instance, was completely unaware of how a teen-age girl led a widespread (and successful) rent strike in New York City in 1907. A great addition to school libraries.

In Susan Bartoletti's The Christmas Promise, a young girl and her poor father have little to share on Christmas, but they have their love and trust, even when the authorities threaten them for their wayward lifestyle. David Christiana's captivating and sensitive drawings showcase this very fine story of family Christmas spirit.

Yet another great My Name Is America book has been published. This one, The Journal of Finn Reardon, take place in 1899 New York. Finn lives with his family in a crowded flat in New York's notorious Lower East Side. In addition to dealing with school, Finn is a newsie. A newsie was the most popular occupation for teen age boys then. Let the author take you on a journey as you learn about Finn's life including gangs, the strike, and his unique friends. You'll really enjoy this book.

I would recommend this book for a comprehensive and easy to follow activities students enjoy. I used this guide for a Saturday Enrichment class for high school students failing in one or more classes. After completing the STUDY SKILL WORKOUT the students improved in their classes and had a better understanding for a acquiring good study skills and habits. I am ordering a copy of the book to use at a new school in the fall since I am leaving my current school that uses this curriculum.

Of all the books I have read, A Coal Miner's Bride is definetley my favorite. It not only teaches you about the hard times in history, but it really touches your heart. Anetka Kaminska lived a wonderful life in Poland, but when her father, who Anetka says has "American fever", sends her a letter saying he has found her a husband, her dreams are shattered. After riding a ship with her brother Jozef and an "impossible" Czar soldier, Anetka finds out that her future husband hasthree young girls in desperate need of a good mother. But her husband, who terribly misses his wife, doesn't love Anetka as she hoped he would. When she expresses her feelings, things finally shape up for Anetka and her husband. But not long after he finally kisses Anetka good night, he dies in a tragic mining accident. Now Anetka must be a mother to her children and have boarders, including the "impossible" solsier,Leon, to pay off her husband's high debts. I have so many other words to tell, but that would give away theend

This is the best diary ever. Ms. Bartoletti did a FABULOUS job on this book. I loved it. Its about a young girl you is forced to marry an American miner at age 13. Until she reaches the US she doesn't know that her fiancee has two young children also. For a few months she works hard to get her hushand to love her until her husband gets killed in a mining accindent, but her lover Leon, an ex-Russian takes care on her family and.........you'll have to read it to find out more. But by far, this is the BEST dear america book ever! But this has a more advanced context then most DA books, and I too think that this is for kids ages - 13 to 17.

I am a devoted fan of the Dear America series. I have read all of them (except for the two new ones which I have not bought yet.) And A coal miner`s bride has to be one of my favorites. It is a great story. 13 year old Anetka sails over to America from Poland, with her brother and a young, kind, slightly annoying, russian soilder named Leon,to marry her father`s fellow coal miner and be a mother to his three litte daughters.Her husband is alot older and doesn`t love her. Later, she discovers her husband dies in a mine accident. She then becomes a widow and is forced to repay her husband`s large debt. I don`t want to give it all away so read the rest for yourself. All I don`t like about this book (and it probably does not matter, I just think it`s wierd.) Is that Leon is five years older.

I think this book was a very good book because it had action and some sudden things like, A man getting shot in his bodey.
However It whould be good for someone in to the civlwar,or just looking for a book that has a lot of action.

The book was diffrent in a way because it showed the suffering that the men whent threw because of hunger.

ggggggggggggggggreat book to read amazing action and facts on the civel war. It had cool stuff like them camping and batteling. I espessialy liked this book becase it shoed cool and sad stuff like a guy died becase he was to hungry. I liked the book alot.

I really liked this book. You really can understand how the soldiers felt and how camp and battle life was for them. I learned a little about the civil war from this, too. This book has action, emotion and laughter all rolled into one. If you know every thing about the civil war or u know nothing, this is a good book. It sits on my 'Favorite Shelf' this second. A good read.

I bought this book for Easter, since many teachers use this library for seasonal books for their classrooms. It's a little sad for the happy Easter season of bunnies and colored eggs, outside the Christian observance, but it will nicely serve a more pressing need. The is about a dying Grandmother, Babci, retelling her fondest memories of her youth before and after her immigration from Poland. Her granddaughter's dancing reminds her of her late-husband, Dziadziu, and the way they used to dance together. Mother's preparations for Easter reminds Babci of her mother's baking and of the chickens with feet painted blue to distinguish them in the community flock. Through Babci's remembering, the granddaughter sees Babci's desire to dance with Dziadziu again. Children often must face the death of a grandparents and other loved one and this book can help them come to terms with this inevitability.

This is a sweet and gentle story of a young girl's relationship with her grandmother.

Gabriella loved dancing and would practice her ballet for her dear Babci who was very old and bedridden. As the child danced, Babci would start to reminisce about when she was young, and would tell Gabriella stories about her former life in her native country, Poland. She told of dancing with her husband Dziadziu and how handsome he looked in his white shirt. Another of her favorite stories was how the family raised chickens and had to paint their feet blue to distinguish them from their neighbors birds, and she then would talk about the difficult trip across the ocean to America. The book ends with Gabriella and her mother preparing to give Babci a wonderful Easter meal.

The detailed illustrations are memorable. There is one of Babci on board a ship coming to America, and she's trading her Polish pottery teapot for food. Another illustration is of Gabriella braiding Babci's long hair. Each picture is a special treat! The drawings were beautifully done by Annika Nelson. This wonderful story would make a worthy present for any person who has had a loving grandmother. I still have a great memory of my Babci tucking me under a huge feather bed when I was six years old, and kissing me good-night.

It brings back so many memories of the good times had with grandparents and illustrates how special they can be in a child's life. It is truly a heartwarming story! I bought one for all of my aunts. We miss our Babci and Dziadziu very much!

This is a fascinating book about the life and times of the coal miners in Pennsylvania when "coal was king" and child labor laws were things of the future. The photographs, especially those involving children, are haunting; and Susan Bartoletti's text is lucid and poignant. Impressions of the "breaker boys", "nippers", "spraggers", and the "fire boss" lingered in my mind long after I finished reading this book.

A very interesting little book for anyone who grew up in or has an interest in the history of the Pennsylvania Anthracite Region. The stories in this book apply to so many thousands of families that lived there and tried so hard to make a living under the harshest of conditions. Life was anything but easy for the anthracite miner and his family - no medical insurance (but then medical care was almost non-existent), no paid holidays, just dirty and dangerous work. The book is brief, reads easy but generally does a good job of telling it like it was back then and in that place.

i've been researching the history of the anthracite region and specifically the experience of miners and their families, and this was one of the most useful books i've seen. by detailing the different jobs the boys in the mines did, bartoletti also manages to describe how a mine worked in ways that other books on mining don't really explain. it covers the whole process by telling stories about the different jobs the kids did.

the photos too are wonderful. you get a real sense of how much these kids are both children and yet so remarkably grown up, just from the looks in their eyes.

the stories about them range from terrifically sad (i cried a few times) to heartwarming and sweet. the book doesn't come off as bombast or pure sentiment, but keeps a very journalistic view of these kids & their reality.

i highly recommend it.