The Breaker Boys - Paperback

by Pat Hughes (Author)

Nate Tanner is a rich boy whose family owns coal mines near Hazleton, Pennsylvania. He has everything a kid could want or need - except a friend. Then he meets Johnny, an easygoing Polish American boy who works sorting coal in a filthy, dark building called a breaker. Unaware that Nate is the boss's son, Johnny invites him to play baseball with the breaker boys. As the summer of 1897 progresses, Nate finds himself piling lie on top of lie to keep his identity secret from Johnny, and the friendship secret from his family. In the patch town where the mining families live, Nate confronts disturbing realities; back at home, he learns of his family's fears about the future. Meanwhile, the miners are joining a labor union to challenge the owners - and the owners are trying to stop a strike. As Nate's moment of truth draws near, so does a violent confrontation that will alter coal country lives forever. Originally published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux, now in paperback for the first time, "The Breaker Boys" explores both sides of a timeless issue through a nuanced portrayal of both immigrant laborers and the coal-mine owners who employed them.

Author Biography

Pat Raccio Hughes is an author of children's and young adult books. Her mom claims Pat taught herself to read at age 4 by perusing the obituaries in the local newspaper. Soon after that, she started writing stories and poems. Her most recent work is "Five 4ths of July" (Viking) a historical novel about a Connecticut boy's tumultuous life during the American Revolution. ALA/YALSA named it as one of 2014's Popular Paperbacks for teens. It was also in Booklist's Top Ten Historical Novels for Youth in 2012. Other books include "The Breaker Boys" (Backshore), set in 1897 Pennsylvania coal country; "Guerrilla Season" (Farrar, Straus & Giroux), a novel of guerrilla warfare in Civil War Missouri; "Seeing the Elephant" (FSG), a picture book set during the Civil War; and "Open Ice" (Random House), a contemporary novel about a high school hockey star forced to quit playing after his third concussion. "Open Ice" was an ALA/YALSA Popular Paperback in 2008. "The Breaker Boys" and "Seeing the Elephant" were National Council on Social Studies/Children's Book Council Notable Books. "Guerrilla Season" and "Seeing the Elephant" were Bank Street Best Books. "Guerrilla Season" was also a Junior Library Guild Selection. Pat was born and raised in Hamden, Connecticut, and now lives just outside Philadelphia. She is married with two sons.