Last Man Out

Rating:
Summary: A Moving , Human Drama
Review: This book was a terrific read. It is a story of 19 men who are trapped in a coal mine in Springhill, Novia Scotia, when a "bump" occurs: a huge force of gas from deep in the earth which pushes the floor of the mine tunnels to the ceiling timbers, crushing equipment like toys and killing over a hundred miners. It is also the story of the families of the miners, segregation in the state of Georgia, the choices made by politicians and their advisors, post-traumatic stress of survivors, and how individual lives are affected by having the spotlight of fame shone of them for a brief period of time. At its heart, "Last Man Out" is a human tale of courage, honor and decency in the face of natural and manmade adversity. I finished the book in two sittings, needing to know if these men would be liberated from their dark prison of coal and how their wives and children would survive.

Rating:
Summary: Needs editing!
Review: This is really two stories, the Springhill mine disaster and the political exploitation of the survivors. Oddly, the latter is more absorbing. The account of the mine disaster could have used a stronger editorial hand. There are a great many characters introduced at the beginning of the book, but the discriptions tended to be repetitive so that they were not well delineated. There were a few copy errors that should have been caught (a spring night in October; the maple leaf flag being raised several years before it was created....) Worst was the purple prose. The author seems addicted to similies, often using at least one in each paragraph, and many were so strained that they broke the flow of the narrative. If you remember the old comic strip "Our Boarding House," you will understand what I mean. Fortunately the writing improves as the book goes on, but this 280 page book would have been better if it had been boiled down to 200 pages.

Rating:
Summary: An incredible book that must be read by everyone ever!
Review: This is the third book I've read by Ms Greene. The others have been prize winners, and I suspect this will be as well. She is an exceptional writer whose prose is vivid, evocative and direct. The reader from Denver who gives her such a negative review must have been terribly constipated when he read this book. I talked to Ms Greene a few years ago after reading Praying for Sheetrock, one of my all time favorite books of non-fiction and she told me that she was about to write this book. I wondered what had peaked her interest in an event so far removed from her Georgia both in time and space. She gives us the reason in her portrayal of the racist rabble rouser, Marvin Griffin, the former Gov of Ga (who thoughtfully placed the remnent of the Confederate battle flag on Ga's current day falg so that modern day Georgians might have a gentle reminder of their glorious past in the forefront of the "old guard.") Greene reminds us, as if those of us who lived in those times needed reminding, that even heroes were not immune to the hatred and poisons spewed out of the mouths of the likes of Griffin. But this book is much more than a spotlight on racism. It is a portryal courage, of real family values lived under the most trying of conditions; of official, personal and corporate betrayal; of petty jealousies, disappointment and despair; but mostly it is a tale of human beings caught, trapped in what must be one of the most terrifying conditions that exist. A mile deep in the bowels of the earth, dozens of men are killed instantly, and others die slow agonizing deaths. The 19 miners emerge from this horrendous ordeal, their families, lives and freinds, are described in vivid detail. Greene has done a wonderful job putting the reader right beside the trapped miners and letting us share their fears, their awesome courage, courage which was neccessary just to enter the mine day after day after day. She admits us to their homes, introduces their wives and children and recounts, often in their own words, the story of their despair and courage just as graphically as she does that of the trapped and dead miners. Melissa Greene is a writer of awe inspiring talent and industry. She is a national treasure. Her books will be read so long as stories of courage and decency inspire us. wfh

Rating:
Summary: Melissa Faye Greene's glimpse of blue sky
Review: This is the third book I've read by Ms Greene. The others have been prize winners, and I suspect this will be as well. She is an exceptional writer whose prose is vivid, evocative and direct. The reader from Denver who gives her such a negative review must have been terribly constipated when he read this book. I talked to Ms Greene a few years ago after reading Praying for Sheetrock, one of my all time favorite books of non-fiction and she told me that she was about to write this book. I wondered what had peaked her interest in an event so far removed from her Georgia both in time and space. She gives us the reason in her portrayal of the racist rabble rouser, Marvin Griffin, the former Gov of Ga (who thoughtfully placed the remnent of the Confederate battle flag on Ga's current day falg so that modern day Georgians might have a gentle reminder of their glorious past in the forefront of the "old guard.") Greene reminds us, as if those of us who lived in those times needed reminding, that even heroes were not immune to the hatred and poisons spewed out of the mouths of the likes of Griffin. But this book is much more than a spotlight on racism. It is a portryal courage, of real family values lived under the most trying of conditions; of official, personal and corporate betrayal; of petty jealousies, disappointment and despair; but mostly it is a tale of human beings caught, trapped in what must be one of the most terrifying conditions that exist. A mile deep in the bowels of the earth, dozens of men are killed instantly, and others die slow agonizing deaths. The 19 miners emerge from this horrendous ordeal, their families, lives and freinds, are described in vivid detail. Greene has done a wonderful job putting the reader right beside the trapped miners and letting us share their fears, their awesome courage, courage which was neccessary just to enter the mine day after day after day. She admits us to their homes, introduces their wives and children and recounts, often in their own words, the story of their despair and courage just as graphically as she does that of the trapped and dead miners. Melissa Greene is a writer of awe inspiring talent and industry. She is a national treasure. Her books will be read so long as stories of courage and decency inspire us. wfh

Rating:
Summary: Haunting & Insightful True Story of Tragedy & Survival
Review: This wonderful book tells the story of a Nova Scotia coal mine disaster in 1958 and its rather unique aftermath. Melissa Fay Greene weaves a series of small personal stories into a haunting and evocative narrative: one of the best "disaster" books I have ever read. The resiliency of the survivors, when juxtaposed with the unusual events which followed, including the bizarre intervention of the racist Governor of Georgia, really gives this account a special perspective on history and the human condition.

I found it fascinating that the author, from Georgia, became involved in the saga of the Springhill miners from the back end of the story, as it were. The Georgia connection adds a remarkable coda to the miners' ordeal, but if she had just told that, it would not have resonated as effectively as the book does. She took the time to trace the story to its beginning and to tell it all. For that I am grateful. I learned far more than I had ever known before, and I was drawn in by her skill with narrative and her genuine understanding of/empathy for those involved.

This insightful book is definitely a worthwhile experience.

Rating:
Summary: A Remarkable Story, Remarkably Told...
Review: When reading Melissa Fay Greene's extraordinary new book, 'Last Man Out,' it is easy to see how this writer's earlier two books ' 'Praying for Sheetrock' and 'The Temple Bombing' were both honored as finalists for the National Book Award. This one should go as far. At least.

Since the story line of the survivors of the Springhill mine disaster, their rescue and subsequent notoriety, and the recuperation vacation offered by the state of Georgia as a tourist promotion scheme (one that backfired when it was learned that the hero of Springhill was an African-Canadian) have been described by other reviewers, this note will be limited to two other aspects of the book. First is the process by which it was written, including inventive detective work that enabled the author to tell the story in the actual words of an event that took place nearly half a century ago. Among other things she unearthed a treasure trove of tapes/transcripts recorded by Canadian scientists in the hours and days the rescued miners emerged from more than eight days underground and what to most had seemed certain death. This was the era of Cold War bomb shelters and the academics were investigating the survival strategies of those who are forced underground. Nobody had even seen the tapes or transcripts for 31 years. Needless to say that by using the survivor's own words, she brings a freshness and authenticity to the story.

Second are Ms. Greene's descriptive powers. Best to show this by example: Of an arch segregationist caught in the politically embarrassing situation of having his photo taken with the hero's black family ' "Thus it was that Governor Marvin Griffin of Georgia posed with a black toddler in his arms, two other children clinging to his pant legs, flanked by a beaming Negro couple, and producing a face that was nine-tenths discomfiture and only one-tenth 'cheese' for the camera..." Or of the Governor's young assistant ' 'He showed up for work at the capitol every day in a white shirt and wide tie, the shirt on the verge of yellowing with constant use and boredom.'

When I started 'Last Man Out' I expected it to be a downer. To the contrary, this is one of the most exhilarating books I have come upon in some time. What a read it is. It gets its hooks into you and there is no escape. It is artfully constructed and, as with Ms. Greene's previous two books, presents an original and creative writing form that doesn't fall neatly under the labels of history or journalism or other conventional forms of non-fiction. What is clear, however, is that by the time the reader ' at least this reader -- has finished, you realize that you've been exposed to a remarkable story, remarkably told. And to art.