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jwmcoaching's review against another edition
5.0
The fact that I live in Colorado might make me a little biased here, but nonetheless, Mason's verse novel is amazing. The tricky part about verse novels is the fact that they seem so short and simple, but there's oh so much more to them.
Peopled with characters fictional and real, Ludlow tells the story of the disastrous mining strike in southern Colorado in 1914, where the National Guard shot and killed strikers and their families as well, including several who were burned alive and smothered in a tent fire. It's not the happiest of tales by any means, but Mason makes his poetic vision of it straightforward, humane and completely indicative of what it means to be an immigrant to this country in 1914 or 2017. A dream is a dream, no matter what year it is.
Mason also pulls off a little stroke of genius by inserting himself into the plot at various times because his family has lived in the Ludlow area for four to five generations and so his claim to the land lends a special credence to his telling of the story.
Peopled with characters fictional and real, Ludlow tells the story of the disastrous mining strike in southern Colorado in 1914, where the National Guard shot and killed strikers and their families as well, including several who were burned alive and smothered in a tent fire. It's not the happiest of tales by any means, but Mason makes his poetic vision of it straightforward, humane and completely indicative of what it means to be an immigrant to this country in 1914 or 2017. A dream is a dream, no matter what year it is.
Mason also pulls off a little stroke of genius by inserting himself into the plot at various times because his family has lived in the Ludlow area for four to five generations and so his claim to the land lends a special credence to his telling of the story.
emilywiseman10's review
4.0
Required reading for a history class but I really enjoyed it, especially the novel-in-prose style.
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