Storming Heaven

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Storming Heaven
Denise Giardina
1987

The Summary
Set during the earliest years of the twentieth century, Storming Heaven reveals the darkest side of the embittered battles between coal companies and coal miners.  In particular, it tells the stories of four individuals who were each influenced and, in some ways, damaged by the coal mines of West Virginia.

More importantly, the author, Denise Giardina, attempts to tell the long-forgotten story of Blair Mountain:  the location for one of the largest rebellions in America after the Civil War and the first (and only) time the American military dropped bombs on American citizens.

The Good
Giardina has an amazing capacity for combining historical fact and creative license, borrowing both from her skills as a writer and her indepth investigations into history.  Although her novel may occasionally deviate from the raw facts, Storming Heaven remains true to life.

Moreover, Giardina also has a unique skill for bringing her characters to life and giving them a distinct set of qualities all their own.  Whether you are reading the chapters of C.J. Marcum, a socialist newspaper publisher, or Rondal Lloyd, a dedicated union man, or Carrie Bishop, a gutsy young nurse, or Rosa Angelelli, a Sicilian immigrant, each provides a specific view on the conflict and invites you to spend a few moments in the middle of their lives.

The Bad
Giardina does tinker with dialect and speech in her novel.  Storming Heaven is, after all, set within the mountainous regions of West Virginia and Kentucky, so certain inflections of speech and quirks in spelling will inevitably occur.

And, for some readers, this may prove to be a formidable barrier.

Although decidedly not as difficult as trying to understand Jim, or even Huck, in Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, this novel may make you look twice.

The Ugly
In writing her novel, Giardina has no interest in remaining impartial or unbiased.  She ardently supports the position of the coal miner and the people most harmed by coal mining companies, as will become apparent from page one.

Additionally, Giardina intends no gentleness in chronicling the events leading up to the Battle of Blair Mountain.  Much of her book will rattle your faith in humanity, or perturb you to the very core of your being - or, yes, simply break your heart - for the sheer weight of misfortune visited upon these people facing the pure, unimpeded greed of mining corporations.

And I can guarantee Storming Heaven won't end on a note of great happiness.