Patch Town by J.A. Stein is a must-read for family members who have ancestors who worked in the coal mines. It is a book about a small Patch town in Schuylkill County that refused to succumb to corporate greed. In the depths of the Great Depression, drifter Patrick Kane walks into Maryd with nothing but a desperate need for work. Taking a job in the newly reopened Mary D Coal Company mine, he soon finds more than just a paycheck. He discovers a community bound by hard work, friendship, and a tension that shakes the very ground beneath his feet. As the town welcomes him with open arms, Patrick wonders if he's finally found a place to call home - as long as no one pokes too far into his past. To Ruth Flannigan, Patrick is the perfect temptation at the worst time. Her alcoholic husband, Jack, has left her alone with three children and one on the way. She doesn't know if he is alive or dead, if he'll come back or stay away forever. She knows she has to survive by any means necessary, even if that means opening her home to strangers and keeping her allies close. All around town, the conflict between bootleggers and the coal company grows. Glasses rattle off the shelves as blasts go off beneath their homes. The new strip mining shovel threatens to scrape away the residents' backyards. The law says there is nothing they can do. But Ruth and the other residents won't accept that. When Jack makes an unexpected return, Patrick and Ruth are faced with the question of who will stand strongest in the town, family, and love. This gripping tale of courage and community is based on the true story of Mary D, the town that refused to succumb to corporate greed. It is a tale of courage, loyalty, and above all else, the power of community to create change.
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