Dig Too Deep

by Amy Allgeyer

It's not just that Liberty Briscoe feels like an outsider in Ebbotsville, Kentucky. She expected it wouldn't be easy to move from the city to her granny's farm during her junior year of high school. Still, Liberty can't shake the feeling that something's not quite right. Everyone says the water's safe, yet nobody drinks it. When Granny becomes sick, like so many others in town, Liberty starts to wonder about the water, the people who tested it, and the coal mining company that took the top off Tanner's Peak.
Now, Liberty must follow her instincts to uncover secrets, despite those who think she's crazy to ask questions, including her own boyfriend. But even as the threats become consequences, she digs deeper. What's more the water in the valley or the search for the truth?

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary, Mystery, Environment, Suspense, Teen

272 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2016

About the author

The youngest of seven kids, Amy has been writing stories since she first learned to make her letters face the right way. Her work has appeared in Family Fun, A Fly in Amber and Stories for Children. As an architect, she spends her days restoring hundred-year-old homes in Boise where she lives with her son, a feral house cat, and a fake owl named Alan. She hates chocolate, but loves vegetables. She also loves travelling to foreign lands and the smell of honeysuckle on humid Southern nights.

Amy is represented by the lovely and amazing Danielle Chiotti of Upstart Crow Literary.

Reviews

[S. M. Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, this book! I thought I knew what I was in for when I chose to read an ARC of this debut. Kentucky. Coal country. Corrupt mining practices and the all-encompassing impact that environmental devastation can have on a community. And one teen girl who saw the wreckage first hand.

Well, I wasn’t prepared for Allgeyer’s ability to create this singular sense of place on the page, making me experience all the stark and all the lush at once. I wasn’t prepared for how much she made me love pragmatic and fearless Granny, how this character would burrow into my heart and pulse there. I was truly unprepared for how much I would root for Liberty as she combed her way through corruption and love and trust and forgiveness. Even Allgeyer’s secondary characters experience glorious character arcs that are important and interconnected and tightly woven into this feverish plot.

This debut, for me, was remarkable. It is filled with the power of simple moments. It pulses with ageless wisdom as well as heartbreak. It is a story of advocacy and making peace with your roots, your family. It is a story of fighting for what you believe in. Fighting for the natural beauty our country affords. Fighting for love. This is a story that will stay with me for a very long time, and will forever connect mountains with starfish. Because as Allgeyer’s book proves, everything is connected.

[Sarah Ahiers · Rating 5 out of 5]

DIG TO DEEP is about a girl named Hope, who, because her mother is in prison, has to move from DC to rural Appalachia to live with her grandmother. Hope has a single focus - get straight As at her new school and get into Georgetown, but that's before she sees how ill her grandmother has become. Before she sees the mountain top removed for coal mining. Before she sees the neon orange of their drinking water the county says is "safe to drink". But it's not only Hope's grandmother who's ill, and whenever Hope tries to ask questions, she's told to stay out of mine business. But she can't let it alone, not with Granny getting sicker and sicker. And so she begins to dig, and find answers and more questions ad secrets that maybe could put her life in jeopardy.

I was lucky enough to get to read this book as an arc in return for a fair review and I'm so glad I did! I read it in less than a day because I just couldn't put it down. I knew I had a good book on my hands when at one point, when I was doing chores, I was thinking about how I was excited to get home to finish watching Erin Brokovitch only to remember that I hadn't been watching it. I'd been reading DIG TOO DEEP.

Hope is such a great character. I rooted for her from page one. She doesn't take crap from people, even when those people threaten her or hurt her. She sasses her granny back as often as her granny sasses her, and she's not afraid to protect herself, when needed.

And the side characters are fantastic. Especially Dobber and even Ashleigh, who is well-developed and complicated.

Highly recommend for anyone who likes books where the little guy (girl in this case) takes on the power of a large corporation or a corrupt system.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I read this book nonstop, unable to put it down because there was never a moment where it felt safe to do so -- there was always something looming down the road. Allgeyer created a tense and riveting read, with characters so rich that they won't leave me even after the book is gone. Liberty in particular, the main character, is utterly amazing and yet not perfect -- flawed in a completely human way. Her love for her grandmother, her indignation as to what she sees around her, her anger toward her mother: they read true and authentic.

I can't wait for more books from this gifted author!

[Wendy MacKnight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an Advanced Copy of this novel in return for an honest review.

First things first - this book is so timely. With its unflinching approach to how sound environmental practises are often tossed aside in the name of profits and local employment, Dig Too Deep does a masterful job of discussing mountaintop removal in coal mining, something I'd heard of but was not too familiar with.

The book tells the story of high school student Liberty (love the name), who is forced to move to Kentucky to live with her Granny when her mother is jailed for suspected environmental terrorism. But Granny's world has changed - the mountains are being destroyed, the well water is bright orange, and people in the area are getting sick, including Granny. And Liberty, who until now has been a gifted student in a private school in Washington, finds herself in a strange new world where everyone seems to know that something bad is happening, but are too afraid or powerless to stop it. And while Liberty may think her public school classmates are hayseeds and chickens for not confronting the issue, she comes to realize the complexity of the issue for all involved.

Allgeyer is a world builder. You feel you know this world and even the potential love triangle has its own surprising twists and turns along the way. Can Liberty help her neighbours? Can she cope with her increasingly sick Granny? Can she forgive her mother? (un-affectionately called MFM - my former mother - by Liberty.

I loved this book and I think it is going to spark a lot of wonderful conversations and debates amongst its readers! A real page turner!

[Sarah Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this book. From the well-drawn characters, gripping plot and a hard-hitting insight into mountaintop removal mining, this story had me entranced from the first page.

Allgeyer skilfully portrays complex characters dealing with all sorts of difficult situations, including terminal illness and addiction, poverty and fear. I found the relationships in the book real, honest, and heartbreaking at times. Liberty, the main character, has had her world turned upside down but the reality is that life must continue. Even when facing terrible news, Liberty is still under pressure to do well at school and build a relationship with the one person she can’t forgive. As she struggles to make sense of her new world, she also questions her own identity – and this is at the core of the narrative throughout.

This is a book that makes you really think about morals, hardship, loyalties and above all the courage it takes to stand up for what you believe in. I loved the ending and felt so proud of Liberty. DIG TOO DEEP is a harrowing but beautifully told story, and one that will stay with me for a long time.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I HIGHLY recommend this book.

[Kathy MacMillan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is the story of Liberty, a teenage girl sent off to live with her grandmother in rural Kentucky while her activist mother faces criminal charges for a protest gone wrong. Two idioms come to mind when I think about Liberty's story:
Fish out of water: That's what this girl, far from her Washington DC prep school, is. Liberty doesn’t look down on her new home; on the contrary, she loves the mountain and her grandmother and just wants to find a place, as far away from her neglectful mother as she can. But finding acceptance is complicated by the fact that…
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree: Much as she rails against her mother's focus on causes instead of her daughter, Liberty shares that stubborn resistance to injustice and willingness to stand up for what she believes in. So when it becomes clear that her grandmother and many other residents are being poisoned by runoff from the local Mountaintop Removal Mining facility, Liberty is determined to do something. With the whole town scared to go up against the wealthy mine owner for fear of losing their jobs or even their lives, Liberty faces an uphill battle.
This book will stay with me for a long time. Liberty is such a believable, passionate character, and the descriptions of her experiences in Appalachia are absolutely visceral. The forces she was up against were so great, I wasn't sure a satisfying ending was going to be possible. How could she hold to her nonviolent principles when she was literally going up against a murderer? But she cleverly finds a way, and, like most struggles against injustice, it is not complete, but it's a step in the right direction.

[Ashley Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Heartbreaking and redemptive, I've never read a YA about this particular subject before--MTR mining. It was eye-opening and sobering. I think Amy did such a wonderful job painting the realities of teens struggling through poverty as well. Liberty's hardships were very visceral and moving and I just wanted to hug her all the time. This is a definite read for 2016!

[Katie Gallagher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book to read to get me out of a reading slump--short, fast, likable characters, and an interesting premise and setting. I do think that some parts were a bit ham-handed, especially many of the details about the MC's monetary hardships. One example that springs to mind is when the MC is lamenting how she has to buy tampons, leaving her less money for groceries. These things do happen, of course, but the tone of it felt very much like the author had just read a Vox article about period poverty. The constant comparisons of the MC to her mother also felt very forced, as if the author were yanking readers down a path labeled THIS REALLY MATTERS, instead of laying out the path and guiding us down it gently. Allgeyer should perhaps learn to have a bit more trust in her readers' abilities to connect the thematic dots.

Overall, though, I did tear through this book. I particularly liked the banter between MC and Granny, as well as MC's romances with Love Interest 1 and 2. As some other reviewers have mentioned, I had also never heard of mountaintop removal mining--fascinating! I'd like to read more books by this author in the future.

[Adriana Mather · Rating 5 out of 5]

The characters...oh the characters. And the dialogue! So very good. Plus a whole heaping of tension to keep you flipping the pages late into night.

Liberty is a hoot, strong willed and great believer in fairness (like all the women in her family). It was an absolute delight to follow her around. If she believed something was right and just she didn't shy from a fight, whether it was with her boyfriend or the businessman that owned the town. And Granny (the cranky old bat!) made me full-belly laugh. I would read this book again simply to hear their humorous exchanges.

These characters and this plot not only jump of the page, but completely grip you in this important and fascinating story about mining in small-town Kentucky.

[M]

This book continues a tradition of books I've read so far this year that don't feel very YA to me. Elements of it do, but at times I felt like this book was more like an adult novel about a teenager. There's a level of insight, a level of communication and relating to the world around her, that the main character has which didn't necessarily feel like it came from a position of youth, but of maturity and looking back?

That aside, this is timely. Mining towns aren't a setting I'm used to (is... anyone?), but I loved the use of the setting as a character here. It's informational without being info-dumpy or preachy, and it touches on a very real, up-to-date subject that a lot of people might have on their minds: clean water.

We know about the issue across the nation, in Native American reservations, in Flint, Michigan, and we're familiar with how they can light fires inside of us. To the level I mentioned before, about the adult appeal to this, I think that if put into the right hands, this might spark some political activism interest in teens who're open to it. Because you can't read about stuff like this and not feel utterly frustrated.

What readers might connect with most, however, is the way the daughter slowly becomes the mom -- or becomes more like her, at least. My dad's always said "Every day, more and more like your mother," and it's meant to be annoying or frustrating (but tbh my mom's okay), and this is one of those things young women are supposed to be afraid of.

And come on, some of us are.

But the way that comes into play here is the most memorable aspect of this book for me, and why I would totally pass it off to a friend -- probably an older teenager?

[Everly Frost · Rating 5 out of 5]

*I had the chance to read an ARC of Dig Too Deep in exchange for an honest review*

There is a constant and undeniable sense of intrigue and secrets in Dig Too Deep that drives this book from page to page. There are moments of darkness, with real and honest reactions from the characters – characters you can believe could be out there in the world somewhere - balanced by moments of light and humor.

Liberty’s Granny was incredibly well portrayed and wrenched my heart around like anything. I loved how strong Liberty was while she also had a fragile, vulnerable side. I felt the impact of the poverty that surrounded her and the struggle to survive in less than ideal conditions, but her will to make a difference to the community, despite her situation, was powerful. I read this in an afternoon and couldn’t put it down. Totally recommended.

[Shannon Miz · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
At the start of this book, I wasn't completely sold. I wasn't a fan of Liberty's life choices. She was kind of being a snob, and her boyfriend was basically the worst.  She was judgmental and frankly, I didn't care for her.  And she called her mom "Former Mother" which was irritating. And the Kentucky backdrop seemed a bit stereotypical for my liking.

But then. Then things got pretty great. Luckily, Liberty finally starts to get her act together. She teams up with her boyfriend's friend Dobber (who she's been told is a "bad guy") who understands the severity of the situation with the water firsthand. Liberty starts to understand the world and the people around her- and she realizes that she was probably wrong about a great many things. And can we please talk about how much I love Granny? Granny and Liberty's relationship is everything. Granny is my actual Grandma. Like if you met her, you'd be like "holy crap, that is the actual Granny from Dig too Deep!", but only if you had read the book.

Anyway, even though the book is obviously fiction, the importance of these environmental issues is not. This kind of tainted water and such leading to cancer and other illnesses? Yeah, that's a thing. Birth defects, things of that nature, they happen from environmental triggers, and it is heartbreaking to read about all the suffering. And the concern about only money from the "higher ups"? Yeah, that is our reality, and the reality of these characters, and it is the worst. Especially when most of the people in the town were barely, barely making ends meet.

This book made me think a lot. It brings to light the injustice, the inequality of how people are treated, the lack of value placed on human life, and the control and power that the few have over the many. If you pick up this book for no other reason (though you really should, for the great characters and fabulous story), do it for that. 

"We humans are awfully quick to decide what everybody else deserves. We just reach into our well of judgment and pull out a verdict. Actually handing out the desserts though, that's a different story"

*As a side note, there was something in this book that I have to mention, and I don't mean this as a criticism, but an opportunity to shed some light on something. When talking about birth defects, Liberty uses the term harelip to mention children in the region being born with cleft lips (and presumably palates).  While I am completely positive that no offense of any kind intended, it is a rather derogatory term, and generally perceived as an insult or mockery toward someone with a cleft lip.

**Quote taken from uncorrected proof, subject to change.

*Copy provided by publisher for review

[Aline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dig Too Deep by Amy Allgeyer *4 Stars*

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Review

Liberty is smart, fearless and determined. After her mother lands herself in jail, Liberty is forced to move from D.C to Kentucky to live with her Granny. There Liberty discovers that the local mine is polluting the town’s water, making it unhealthy and diseased prone. Liberty finds a cause and a passion in her hands—she wants to shut down the mines causing pollution in the water.
Granny and Liberty share a very strong connection, and it's beautiful to see her love for her grandmother. As a reader I could feel that love come out of the pages, palpable and genuine. I went through a lot of emotions reading this novel.
The characters are well developed, so it is the majority of the storyline. Liberty kind of remind me a little of a young Erin Brockovich. However, she is too young to pull all the strings that she did at the end of the story, and it made it less realistic. The pace was slow and seemed to be running in circles throughout the book, and the end seemed unrealistic and rushed, having the solution for all problems solved too easily and quickly.
The romance is weak, so if you are looking for a good romance, this is not it. The main focus of this novel is the water problem and Liberty’s fight to get the problem solved. I also felt a lack of development regarding the closure between the main character and her mother. But besides these small problems, I found this book very entertaining, and I didn't want to stop reading it. I had a good connection with the characters, which I find to be very important, as it is what engages me in a story. In general I definitely enjoyed reading this ARC. I recommend this book to anyone who likes strong female characters and character driven stories.
I give it 4 out of 5 Stars.

I received a digital copy of Dig Too Deep from Albert Whitman & Company in exchange of a honest review and this does not affect my opinion on this review.

[S.E. Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liberty returns to rural Kentucky to live with her grandmother, pushing thoughts of her absent mother out of her mind. But it's not too long until she realizes that something is amiss with the town of her childhood: her grandmother is sick, though she won't admit it, and half of the mountain is just missing, replaced by trucks and drills and a large pool of weird looking water. That same water which seems to be running through the pipes in her home: is is possible that the water has something to do with her grandmother's illness?

Our protagonist is smart, and she's determined: her grandmother's life is on the line, for goodness sake! Interestingly enough, it's Granny who quickly became my favorite character: plucky and vivacious, she won't let anything get her down. She's a force of nature: albeit a small, frail one. I loved granny so much, with her wit, with her determination, she reminded me so much of some of my own relatives.

The characters had depth and a real personality. Admittedly, I didn't like Cole from the start, but I quickly came around to Dobber, a young man you wouldn't expect to be so smart and compelling. It was interesting how Liberty's first impressions were both spot on and completely off, though I won't spoil any of that for you.

While some events a found a little unrealistic, I was deeply engrossed with the main plot. It reminded me at times of a teenage Erin Brockovich, though admittedly Liberty has much less power and credibility. That's why I wasn't so taken in by the ending: It didn't seem all that plausible to me, even if it was a great fit. In any case, i enjoyed the book from start to finish.

If you want a book with spunk, and a determined teenager trying to fight for justice in a place where her voice is ignored, then this is just the book for you.

[Paula Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

At first I wasn't sure I would enjoy this book as judging from the cover it doesn't look that exciting and when I read the blurb , I was a little bit more intrigued but then again I'm not really into the whole environmental side of things . However I loved Dig Too Deep as it turned out to be fast-paced and a mystery of sorts with nasty villians with their hands too deep into the pockets of others and a whole town slowly dying due to the water. Dig too Deep tells the story of a seventeen year old girl who had to lose her scholarship and move in with her Nana in a small mountain town when her mother - an activist ended up in prison after a bomb went off at one of her protests. Liberty has always resented her mother for not being there for her when she needs her and putting her causes first, but Liberty will soon realise that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree when she arrives in town and discovers her Nana's water is bright orange and her Nana has stage 4 cancer. After a bit more research, Liberty notices a pattern that a few of the elderly have been dying and more are sick and she knows it has to do with the new mine operating. The thing is though that when Liberty tries to stop it , bad things happen from burning sheds to hurt loved ones . Can Liberty with the help of a few locals stop the Mine once and for all and do the town the favour the need or will it be too late to do anything about it ?

Find out in Dig Too Deep which was a fast-paced Teen Fiction Environmental Mystery and one of those books where it doesn't pay to judge by the cover as it turned out to be an interesting and amazing insight to environmental cover-ups and actually gets you thinking that this is a common occurence and how many thousands of incidents like this have happened over years in different parts of the world.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book deals with a lot of issues related to mountaintop removal mining in rural Kentucky. When Liberty Briscoe arrives in Ebbotsville, she immediately has concerns as to how the mine is affecting the town's water, and therefore their health. Her grandmother isn't well, and she's not the only one. Other residents see Liberty as an outsider, because she has spent most of her childhood in Washington, DC, and is only in town temporarily. No one takes her seriously, and she is told to stay out of their business. Liberty's persistence to help people who don't seem to care about their own town makes her a strong and likable character.

One thing I think Ms. Allgeyer did well was present multiple sides of the problem. Several characters had solid reasons for not wanting the mine to be shut down in spite of the possible risks involved in keeping it open. Characters were multilayered, and often very different from Liberty's first impressions of them.

Woven throughout the book is also a family story, which explores the complex feelings of a teenager who is trying to assert her independence from her mother. She's also struggling to keep up her grades while caring for an ailing grandmother and battling for a cause she's only just learning about. The whole book had a range of emotions, and I felt for Liberty as she experienced them.

Due to the complex ethical issues and some sexual content in this story, I would recommend it to older teens.

This review is based on an advance reader's copy obtained through NetGalley.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allgeyer, Amy Dig Too Deep, 280 pages. Albert Whitman and Company, 2016. $16.99. Language: R (65 swears, 8 “f”); Mature Content: PG-13; Violence: PG-13.

When her mother is arrested for protesting, Liberty Briscoe, 16, is forced to return to her hometown of Ebbottsville, Kentucky after living 8 years in D.C. Ebbottsville has changed a lot – the top of Tanner peak has been blasted for mining, and the well water is disturbingly colored. A lot of people are sick, including Liberty’s grandmother. Liberty begins asking questions about a possible environmental hazard being the root of all the illnesses, which earns her many enemies: this town relies on the mine for good jobs. But isn’t it in the best interest of the mine to keep the workers from getting sick?

This book paints a hopeful picture for community activism to preserve the health and safety of the general public, and carries an important message for teens. While the cause and solution of the central problem are overly simplified, some of the steps Liberty undertakes to figure things out seem realistic. Liberty’s struggle to contend with school and daily life while nursing her sick grandmother is compelling and garners much sympathy on the part of the reader. Her banter with her grandmother is wonderfully irreverent and, I think, would be refreshing for many young readers.

HS – ESSENTIAL. Reviewed by: JA, High School Librarian
http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2016/...

[Brynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for class (climate lit) - Didn’t end how I expected it to, so there’s lots to potentially discuss there with students.

[Kristyn - Reading to Unwind · Rating 5 out of 5]

After I finished reading this book all I thought was I could never live near a mine and all I wanted to do was find a cause close to my heart and become an advocate. I feel like this book is a very inspirational read and one that would be great for young adults.

I loved Liberty from the beginning you could tell she was really upset with her mother and her current situation. Liberty took to finding out what was wrong with her grandmother and began to focus on the issues the mine is causing to the town. Liberty was a strong individual who took a large amount of responsibility at a young age. It seems since her mother was absent she was able to basically fend for herself and budget. Liberty definitely became even stronger in my eyes towards the end of the book for the way she handled not only the mine situation, but how she handled her mother’s situation as well.

The story was very fast paced and an easy read. The author does a great job with filling in the background information on the dangerous of mines. Also, the author does an excellent job with the descriptions of the mine now versus back in the day. All I kept thinking while reading was that people where accepting orange water to be ok and in my mind it was neon orange color. One thing I absolutely love about books is falling in love with a character and that is what happened to me and Liberty. I was 100% cheering on Liberty to shut down the mine during the entire book. She had to succeed since she was putting so much effort in to trying to make things better.

Other topics I think the book did a great job touching on where the idea of corruption on the local level. Liberty witnessed firsthand what can happen in a small town. The town was depending on the jobs in the mine and that influenced the local town committee. The author did a great job showing what can happen at the local level in politics and also on a bigger level with people influencing others with money and jobs.

Another great topic covered in the book was relationships. Liberty had all different types of relationships with the other characters in the books. These relationships also changed after time. In the beginning of the book Liberty and Cole were dating and he seemed to be the one taking care of her. We later learn that he ended up cheating on her and she dumped him. A relationship can easily change after one event. At the end of the book Liberty and Cole’s relationship takes another turn.

I would suggest this as more of a weekend read. I felt like I got completely sucked in and needed to know what was going to happen with the mine.

I received a copy of this book from The Fantastic Flying Book Club for the reason of providing an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book.

[Kelly Hager]

This is such an interesting book and something that I generally don't know much about. Basically as far as I know, most of the time big corporations wreck the environment but I had no idea the depth of the damage they could do.

Liberty is living in her grandmother's tiny town since her mom is in prison, and it'd be horrible enough except that things are really weird: the water is orange. Not a little rusty, actually orange. Bright orange. And the government is like, "Nope, TOTALLY FINE to drink."

Except a lot of people have cancer...including, now, Liberty's grandmother.

And so Liberty decides that she's going to get to the bottom of it, even though everyone is against her. (The mine that may or may not* have polluted the water is the biggest employer in the town, and no one wants to risk losing their jobs. So they view this outsider asking questions and causing trouble as a major threat.)

But Liberty's not giving up; it's the only thing she can do to help her grandmother.

Recommended.

* = Okay, of COURSE they polluted the water.

[Kathleen Glasgow · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, impassioned debut from Amy Allgeyer. This book should be assigned reading in high schools--it will definitely inspire discussion concerning political and environmental corruption and the civic duties of citizens. Liberty Briscoe is escaping her activist mom, but finds herself enmeshed in coal corruption in Kentucky. Everyone is sick and the water is orange and what is a teen filled with angst supposed to do? Fight back, of course. Some people might call this Erin Brokavich, Jr., and I don't see anything wrong with that. We rarely see books in which teens take on the adult world, especially with this subject matter, and I think Allgeyer handles the plot brilliantly. A must-read.

[John Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent ecological mystery/thriller that also involves a girl coming to grips with just how alike she and her estranged mother really are. Teens and adults liking an intelligent story that features a scared, but courageous protagonist will really like it.

[abby smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

I personally found that the narrator was not likable whatsoever and for most of the book was rolling my eyes at things she said/did. I also think the story fell into the cliche teenager “I’m gonna come together with my friends and enemies and we can save the world!1!1!”

[Summer · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars. A strong debut with a fairly unique premise, I haven’t come across many YA contemporaries that deal with social and environmental issues.

With her activist mom in jail, Liberty returns to her Kentucky roots to live with her grandmother. Not only is Liberty an outsider, so friends are scarce, she’s forced to take on some very adult responsibilities as her granny struggles financially and with her health. Things do not get any easier for Liberty once she makes the connection between her grandmother’s health and the mine owner no one else in town is willing to challenge.

I thought this was really well done.

I liked the romance, maybe because it wasn’t romantic, just that it seemed realistic, sometimes people out of loneliness or boredom throw themselves into a relationship that just might be a big mistake, a lack of wanting to see what’s right in front of your eyes just because at the moment it's kind of the only option.

I liked that the other townspeople weren’t portrayed as morons clueless as to what was going on who needed the big city girl to point it out to them, I liked that the author made it clear that as happens in real life, they just understandably felt as though they had no options, this mine is their only source of income. The mine issues did wrap up much easier than it likely would in reality, still, it offers an inspiring message to stand up and be heard.

I know this is a Young Adult novel, but I have to say my favorite character was actually Liberty’s granny, what a feisty, heartfelt lady, I just loved her.

I had a couple minor issues with this book. Maybe it was there in the end and I just missed it somehow, but was it ever mentioned what happened to the other dogs? Were they in the car with Liberty and her mom? I read an ARC so maybe this was addressed in the finished copy? Also, Ashleigh, I just never felt like I had a firm grasp on why she hated Liberty with such a passion, did she have lingering feelings for Cole, was she envious that Liberty had grown up elsewhere? Was she just the kind of girl who hates other girls? I wanted more clarity, maybe a scene where she explains her animosity to Liberty.

Anyway, those are really small complaints, overall, this was a page-turner that I’d recommend to any YA readers seeking some serious moments, some teary moments (a couple really tough emotional moments), and the kind of rural place and people that too often don’t make the news or find their way into books even though there is a tragedy happening all around them.

[oluv · Rating 3 out of 5]

I admire the apropos of every allegory—read into anything you think isn’t. You’ll find that it is. I have not yet read a more direct confrontation of corrupt corporate notions regarding environmental conditions in a work of fiction. Unfortunately, it can be considered as far more than fiction to real people who are refusing to, as Allgeyer recites, “look the other way” in favor of economical support provided briefly by the monstrous coal industry. The book is described often as a “page-turner,” and while I find some accuracy in the promoted desire to read this book cover to cover, I also felt it was hard to get into from the first few chapters. What might be obviously mistaken as a lack of realistic development in character to character rapport can be further examined if the reader allows the conflict to escalate—which it does, very quickly. Allgeyer laces her novel frequent and remarkably fluid juxtapositions of language that highlight her talent as an author of imagery (which seems indeed a dying craft). The mother-daughter motif resonates strongly with me, and I am in love with these female characters being shown as grit and fire in a society that conditioned them to be soft. “Though she be but little, she is fierce.” It’s a venn diagram of incalculable passion for justice and of ambiguous concepts of judgement and what justice really means. In order to move a mountain, one must begin with the tiny stone. These notions provide the ambience of Liberty’s story, constructing a fair literary piece on the beauty in making any kind of a difference that changes something for the better.

[Lizzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow
I originally picked up this book after seeing the movie Dark Waters, and dang, what a scary yet empowering story. The fact that this is indeed an issue in many places in the country is terrifying, and I feel as though Ashley Allgeyer perfectly conveys to her audience the severity of the situation. Liberty is such a great character, and it’s so easy to root for her as she takes on the corruption overtaking the town. Along with her, I loved all of the side characters, even the ones that may have ended up evil. Everyone felt so real in this story, and even with the serious topic at hand, I often found myself smiling at Dobber, Liberty, and Liberty’s grandma. I highly recommend giving this book a read! My only issue was that the resolution felt a little rushed compared to the large buildup, yet that can easily be over looked. I truly can’t wait to see what else Amy Allgeyer will write!

[geena · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such an impactful book! Although I was initially drawn in by the description of the fractured mother-daughter relationship, this book offers so much more than a single conflict.
The exploration of coal mining in small-town Kentucky, not shirking away from the environmental impact and the risk to human life, and the full effect when those in charge place profit above everything else. It felt dangerous and realistic, especially in the physical impact on the townspeople. Really enjoyed.

[Martha Schwalbe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I had waited for the current administration to come into office before I read this book. It would be a good point of discussion with teens regarding bullying, threatening behavior by the rich and powerful, and complete destruction of the earth for economic gains.
This book offers an excellent point of entry for classroom discussion that is relevant to everything our country is experiencing.s

[Ryan Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt like parts of this story were very well written, but I had some serious issues with the pacing and the resolution of the main storyline. I'm sure it would traumatize those who like brisk reads, but I felt this book could've used another few chapters just letting the MC and the various parts of her life breathe a little more.

[Kerri Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice little YA read centring on a potential mining disaster. Liberty comes to look after her grandmother but when she realises more residents are dying of cancer and other defects she takes the law into her own hands and goes up against the mining company. Wholly satisfying in an "Erin Brokovitch" kind of way this is a highly readable story.