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Gr 5 Up—Watkins tackles narrative nonfiction with a sobering account of the mine wars in Mingo County, WV, in the early 1920s. While mine workers in other parts of the country had successfully unionized with the United Mine Workers of America, those in western West Virginia had been unsuccessful. Watkins begins the book with the story of the Matewan Massacre, as unemployed miners revolted against mine owners and their hired men whose job it was to keep order. "Order" meant firing, attacking, or killing workers who even appeared to sow the seeds of union organization. Subsequent chapters highlight...Log In or Sign Up to Read More