The Bonnie Pit Laddie

by Frederick Grice

All his life Dick Ullathorne had expected to follow his father and brother into the mine. Mining seemed the only natural employment for boys in the pit village where he lived, where people could hear dull subterranean sounds below the floors of their houses, and boys explored ancient, deserted shafts as one of their entertainments. Dick had never questioned this way of life until the night Mr. Sleath, the owner of the mine, was taken ill and Dick had to help him home. That set him wondering by what right Mr. Sleath lived so well and held such power over his workers' lives. Other people were wondering that too, but it took the heartbreaking starvation of a bitter strike and a dangerous pit accident to make Dick break loose from the pit for his future.

Genres: Childrens

Hardcover

First published December 1, 1966

Reviews

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am, quite unexpectedly, a fan of books about coal mines. This is the third story of that genre I’ve read in the last twelve months, and it’s the third story I’ve given five stars to.

Dick has grown to love learning but when his father is blacklisted after a strike, he must leave school early and go to work in the mine.

This is a story filled with action and adventure and danger, all deeply rooted in the poverty of a life in the village around a mine.

One of the 1001 Children’s Books You Must Read.

[Meonwanderer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cracking little story about life in the Durham coalfield in the early 20th century. A fiction based on the area where I grew up in the 1950’s it brought back memories of childhood wanderings and outside pursuits all told using the vernacular of the time and place.
My father was a coal face miner and all his brothers and indeed my mother’s brothers earned their pay working in the pit. The book references the hardships and culture of the pitmen and also the trials and hard work endured by the wives of these men. Interestingly the narrator through the character of the son of the miner makes clear that to the young boy living and going to school in this time and environment most of these hardships passed over his head. Indeed some of the hardships in fact produced opportunities for play and adventure for the children not afforded during the normal passing of the days.
It’s a short book which could have been longer but a very easily readable and relatable story which I thoroughly enjoyed.
I obtained the book second hand via Amazon as its long out of print. The book even had that smell I remember from well used school books from my childhood and the old library stamps. Not just a book but a piece of social history!

[Amber Scaife · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dick assumes that living in a mining town means that he'll soon be asked to leave school and start working in the pit like his father and brother before him, but his encounter with the mining boss, encouragement from his teacher and his grandmother, and a near-deadly accident in the mines themselves start him to thinking that his may be a live outside the pit town in which he's grown up.
I enjoyed this one much more than I expected to; it's well-written, the characters are strong and likable, and the story is nicely paced. Recommended.

[Ria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful tale telling the story of a little pit boy called Dick Ullathorne who just like his grandfather, brother and father follow them down into the pit.
Until that is one day a dreadful accident changes the course of his life forever...
Well written with evocative accounts of out life, the people's lives in general at work, at play and the hardships and privations endured amidst the tiny bright spots of happiness in an otherwise harsh existence.
A great read.

[Helenw · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this at school and have loved it ever since. I grew up in the North East so the situation and the language are very familiar and homely to me.

A tale about a young boy destined for the pit and his desire to do what is right and keep the respect of his family.

[Leonie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’d never heard of this author, but I’ll look out for more of his books as this is a vivid window into mining life that is full of heart and family.

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its not all that well told. It drifts and strains its way. I guessed after three pages that it was written by a English teacher. (Why, with the exception of William Golding and Barry Hines - a PE teacher) are English teachers such uninspiring users of language?
It is however a good story on the whole and the book has that which many other writers of historical fiction for children (including Michael Morpurgo) don't have; authenticity. This man knows what a pit village was like, knew the actual day to day of it as well as the big events that would shake it. He knew that it was a deadening place to live. There is no real attempt to romanticise the background. Yes, the pit owner is a black as the devil villain. but the parents are hardly role models. The only real hope is to get out.

[Ruth Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

My twelve year old son has reading this to me on a daily basis. He found it difficult to get into at first partly because he knew nothing of the world it inhabits. As he is not yet a very confident reader there was much stopping and starting as there were many words he did not understand. However, the more he read, the more he came to identify with Dick, the book's central character. This is a beautifully written story.

[Puzzled Cellist · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am probably being unfair here, but being forced to read this at school put me off reading for a VERY long time.

[Danderdonk · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read, and very informative about the lives of miners.