Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
5th out of 43 books
—
130 voters
A Coal Miner's Bride: The Diary of Anetka Kaminska, Lattimer, Pennsylvania, 1896 (Dear America)
A diary account of thirteen-year-old Anetka's life in Poland in 1896, immigration to America, marriage to a coal miner, widowhood, and happiness in finally finding her true love.
219 pages
Published
2000
by Scholastic
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
2,261)
Aug 12, 2010
Jennifer Marie
added it
A Coal Miner’s Bride: The Diary of Anetka Kaminska
Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Historical
Grade 6 and up
214 pages
Dear America books tend to be hit or miss with me. I either love them or just don’t care for them. A Coal Miner’s Bride: The Diary of Anetka Kaminska was one that I absolutely adored. It’s a heart wrenching story about a thirteen year old Russian immigrant girl whose family has come to Lattimer, Pennsylvania to work in the coal mines. Her father arranges for her to marry a recent widow twi...more
Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Historical
Grade 6 and up
214 pages
Dear America books tend to be hit or miss with me. I either love them or just don’t care for them. A Coal Miner’s Bride: The Diary of Anetka Kaminska was one that I absolutely adored. It’s a heart wrenching story about a thirteen year old Russian immigrant girl whose family has come to Lattimer, Pennsylvania to work in the coal mines. Her father arranges for her to marry a recent widow twi...more
*Oops, sorry, I put Leo instead of Leon; I didn't realize that*
This is the best book I've ever read! Since I'm Polish, I really loved the history behind it, and I understood the words that Anetka was talking about. It is aout Anetka, who has to leave her Polish town with her brother and a former Russian soldier, Leo, to escape to America. When she finally arrives to America, she will have to marry a man that her father promised a wife to, and this is how Anetka and her brother were able to get t...more
This is the best book I've ever read! Since I'm Polish, I really loved the history behind it, and I understood the words that Anetka was talking about. It is aout Anetka, who has to leave her Polish town with her brother and a former Russian soldier, Leo, to escape to America. When she finally arrives to America, she will have to marry a man that her father promised a wife to, and this is how Anetka and her brother were able to get t...more
1 like · like · see review
A beautifully written story about a young girl coming over to the United States to be with her father. When she arrives, she realizes that her father has betrothed her to a fellow coal miner that works in the small town of Lattimer, Pennsylvania. Not the typical "girly girl" Anetka has a hard time accepting the marriage but knows that it is her duty to her father and her family to follow through with it. Along with a new husband Anetka also gains three daughters. Just a child herself, Anetka has...more
Based in Lattimer, Pennsylvania a girl from Russia is required to go to America and marry a man she does not know or love. She is 13 years old and her father has decreed that she will marry this man. On the way she meets another man who accompanies them safely to America. The rest of the stories are entries in her diary discussing the struggles she now faces. Struggles that include being married to someone she does not love, caring for children that are not her own, and keeping house. She learns...more
(Intermediate Historical Fiction)
The book is written in dairy form and begins with Anetka buying a little black book with blank pages, this becomes her diary. Anetka is coming upon her 13th birthday and awaits her dowry and a suitable suitor. Unlike her mother and all those before her, she does not want an arranged marriage she wants to fall in love first.
Anetka does fall to the tradition of arranged marriage and instantly becomes a mother to three young girls. Her husband drinks too much, con...more
The book is written in dairy form and begins with Anetka buying a little black book with blank pages, this becomes her diary. Anetka is coming upon her 13th birthday and awaits her dowry and a suitable suitor. Unlike her mother and all those before her, she does not want an arranged marriage she wants to fall in love first.
Anetka does fall to the tradition of arranged marriage and instantly becomes a mother to three young girls. Her husband drinks too much, con...more
May 20, 2011
evelyn
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Everyone
Shelves:
read-over-and-over-again
This amazing book is about a young 13-year old girl named,Anetka Kaminska.Her grandmother and 7-year old brother,Jozef,live with Anetka.She meets a cute 18-year old soldier named,Leon Nasevich.She starts to talk to and be more social with him and comes for dinner.Sadly,her father arranged a marriage for her. She did not want to marry by arrangment. She wants to marry for love.She travels from Sadowka,Poland to Lattimer,Pennsylvannia in a steamship with Leon,Jozef,and herself.Her Husband, Stanley...more
This book. This book.
I read it in fifth grade, absolutely adored it, and finally got my mom to order me a copy.
I've read it once a year since then....and it's eight years later.
From the heroine's courage and compassion to her wonderful, charming hero, this book hits the nail on the head for kids, adults, and anyone in between.
The turmoil of the setting only adds to the magnificance that is this book. I'd reccommend it to anyone, anyone at all.
I also credit it as one of the reasons I still p...more
I read it in fifth grade, absolutely adored it, and finally got my mom to order me a copy.
I've read it once a year since then....and it's eight years later.
From the heroine's courage and compassion to her wonderful, charming hero, this book hits the nail on the head for kids, adults, and anyone in between.
The turmoil of the setting only adds to the magnificance that is this book. I'd reccommend it to anyone, anyone at all.
I also credit it as one of the reasons I still p...more
This is one of the "Dear America" series, an excellent group of books for intermediate readers. I've appreciated that good historical fiction is availa ble for younger readers. This is a good one in the series, esp. the relationship of Anetka and Leon. My only disagreement with the author is that, although written well, I don't believe it's realistic; Anetka packs her diary with an unusual amount of detail about the social and political world around her that an overworked young girl struggling i...more
In a Nutshell: A young girl from Poland begins a new life in a Pennsylvania coal-mining town and must grow up quickly in the face of multiple challenges personally and politically.
SPOILERS:
I really liked Leon. Like a LOT. Where are the Leons nowadays? Interesting that this is the first Dear America I've ever read that tackled marriage & sex (sort-of. Skated over most of it, understandably considering the audience). Ick. Arranged marriages. This poor girl. 13-year-olds should not have to deal...more
SPOILERS:
I really liked Leon. Like a LOT. Where are the Leons nowadays? Interesting that this is the first Dear America I've ever read that tackled marriage & sex (sort-of. Skated over most of it, understandably considering the audience). Ick. Arranged marriages. This poor girl. 13-year-olds should not have to deal...more
This is a wonderful series of books that showcase a certain period in time (historical novel). They are diaries and read to captivate. You feel what they are going through and in this case a young girl,(13) travels from Poland to the United States to become a bride for one of her father's friends whom we find out later has lost his wife, mother to his three young children to death. Her father made the voyage the previous year to become a coal miner. The story is a good one. It gave a good look a...more
Feb 06, 2011
Ash E.
rated it
1 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
young (girl) readers
Recommended to Ash by:
Cori Johnson
Shelves:
young-historical-fiction,
review-complete
REVIEW COMPLETE
The Dear America books are easily-accessible historical fiction for young readers, especially girls (the My Name is America books, I've been told, are very similar, only for boys).
A Coal Miner's Bride tells the depressing story of Anetka Kaminska. She leaves her homeland and gets trapped in a marriage she's essentially forced into, all because of terrible circumstances she's been thrown into. What's more, her new husband isn't very kind to her and already has two children from his...more
The Dear America books are easily-accessible historical fiction for young readers, especially girls (the My Name is America books, I've been told, are very similar, only for boys).
A Coal Miner's Bride tells the depressing story of Anetka Kaminska. She leaves her homeland and gets trapped in a marriage she's essentially forced into, all because of terrible circumstances she's been thrown into. What's more, her new husband isn't very kind to her and already has two children from his...more
J Bartoletti
no rating
This is the ficticious diary of a 13 yr old Polish girl who escapes war torn Poland of 1896 by immigrating to America as a bride. Her new life in America is very difficult as she deals with emotions like love, and encouters discrimmination and hate for the first time. The author caregully details the typical day for a Polish immigrant. Historical notes in the back of the book make this especially educational. One is left with compassion for the immigrants. Fairly well writte...more
no rating
This is the ficticious diary of a 13 yr old Polish girl who escapes war torn Poland of 1896 by immigrating to America as a bride. Her new life in America is very difficult as she deals with emotions like love, and encouters discrimmination and hate for the first time. The author caregully details the typical day for a Polish immigrant. Historical notes in the back of the book make this especially educational. One is left with compassion for the immigrants. Fairly well writte...more
This book is about a fictional family and their friends, but the coal mining community and events are based on historical facts. It goes into the cultures of the Polish people, their beliefs, etc. Anetka's father has arranged a marriage for her, and she comes to America to marry the man she has never met. She is a young girl that is thrust into a life that would normally be lived by a woman of her mother's age.
She has not married for love, but does have feelings for someone her age, from her pas...more
She has not married for love, but does have feelings for someone her age, from her pas...more
Jul 11, 2012
ϟEvelynϟ
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Everyone
Recommended to ϟEvelynϟ by:
I picked it up at my elementary school library about a year ago. I was 11.
I assure you this review will contain spoilers. Here's what I think about the book...
Yes, this is my all-time favorite book. I loved it so much the first time I read it that I read it three time until I had to return it to my school's library. I was 11 then. I just thought the characters where so credible! They were so likable and interesting! I could relate to all of them! I mean ALL.
Anetka: She was amazing. She could do things that I could NEVER accomplish in my life. She was "headstrong" ju...more
Yes, this is my all-time favorite book. I loved it so much the first time I read it that I read it three time until I had to return it to my school's library. I was 11 then. I just thought the characters where so credible! They were so likable and interesting! I could relate to all of them! I mean ALL.
Anetka: She was amazing. She could do things that I could NEVER accomplish in my life. She was "headstrong" ju...more
A Coal Miner's Bride / 0-439-05386-2
Anetka, a young Polish girl, is infuriated when her father, a coal worker in America, sends her a ticket to America that he has bought by promising her in marriage to a fellow coal worker. She arrives in America with her younger brother and a bothersome, yet very attractive soldier named Leon, only to find that her prospective husband is a boorish brute with three daughters from a previous marriage. Anetka silently accepts her wedding and unhappy marriage, sha...more
Anetka, a young Polish girl, is infuriated when her father, a coal worker in America, sends her a ticket to America that he has bought by promising her in marriage to a fellow coal worker. She arrives in America with her younger brother and a bothersome, yet very attractive soldier named Leon, only to find that her prospective husband is a boorish brute with three daughters from a previous marriage. Anetka silently accepts her wedding and unhappy marriage, sha...more
SUMMER READING 2009
Siti Hajar Mohd. Khairi
A Coal Miner's Bride
by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
219 pages
Scholastic. $10.95
isbn13: 9780439445610
(Ages 12 & up)
What if you find you grew up without a mother, or with a father who is thousands of miles away, or to helplessly watch the cruelty of war while caring for a grandmother and brother? That was the life Anetka Kaminska had been given. A life full of danger, risks, worry. Until the letter arrived. Her father had given three steamship tickets for...more
Siti Hajar Mohd. Khairi
A Coal Miner's Bride
by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
219 pages
Scholastic. $10.95
isbn13: 9780439445610
(Ages 12 & up)
What if you find you grew up without a mother, or with a father who is thousands of miles away, or to helplessly watch the cruelty of war while caring for a grandmother and brother? That was the life Anetka Kaminska had been given. A life full of danger, risks, worry. Until the letter arrived. Her father had given three steamship tickets for...more
One of the benefits of maintaining your library collection is that, when you move books, you find so many that you would not have seen otherwise. Yay shifting! This one popped off the shelf, and I am so glad it did. I had never read this series before. I loved it!!! It made me want to read more of these (it only took me a night). I do want to read more of Bartoletti's work as well. Great read!
A Coal Miner's Bride is an absolutely beautiful, yet dark glimpse into the life of a late 19th century "mail-order bride." This book touches down on many subjects that would later come under heavy fire by both the leftist and the right-wingers: harsh mining and factory conditions, immigration, socialism, unionism, child-labor, arranged marriage, and the right to protest. Bartoletti is a true artist in her descriptions of not only Anetka's village life in Poland, but also her life as a young (VER...more
It’s Poland and times are bad
Anetka’s father leaves her in the care of her grandmother sails to America to make new life and promises to send for Anetka When her father sends a ticket for her passage, he got the money by selling her to a coal miner who wanted a wife. If that isn’t bad enough, marrying a man she has never met, when Anetka arrives she finds yet one more surprise.
Anetka’s father leaves her in the care of her grandmother sails to America to make new life and promises to send for Anetka When her father sends a ticket for her passage, he got the money by selling her to a coal miner who wanted a wife. If that isn’t bad enough, marrying a man she has never met, when Anetka arrives she finds yet one more surprise.
I read this book after hearing the author, Susan Campbell Bartoletti, talk about her work. She said it was loosely based on the experiences of her husband's grandmother. I fell in love with Anetka. She's intelligent and hardworking, and she's so strong - physically, emotionally, and spiritually. She can take care of herself and anyone else who comes along.
Set in Poland and the coal mines of Lattimer, Pennsylvania 1896. The story describes Anetka's life in Poland, her voyage to America, and her arranged marriage to a Polish widower who paid for her passage. The husband dies and she eventually marries Leon the man she loves. The book also describes the labor union movement in the Pennsylvania mines.
I stopped at a local used book store and picked this book up in the young adult section. Being from Pennsylvania and growing as a coal miner's daughter I was really excited to read this short book. Written like a journal this was a quick and easy read. After I picked it up I didn't put it down until it was read. It was a very enjoyable read.
I thought this bokk was pretty good. I think the best part is whenever Anetka kisses Leon, and her feat always stick to the floor! The worst part was whenever all the foreigneirs on strike gets wounded and some of them died. The other sad part is whenever Anetka has to leave her grandmother and bestfriend to leave to America.
I really liked reading about a part of history in diary form. This was a great book about a polish immigrant and her change into becoming American. Loved to see that a youth fiction had a main character that embraced faith and trusted God. Also loved the romance! A great book for young girls.
Annetka Kaminska is a thirteen-year-old girl living in Russian-controlled Poland in 1896. She bitterly resents the Russians that have taken over her country and are forcing her people to give up their language and customs. But she is even more angry when her father, living in America, arranges a marriage for her, with a Pennsylvania coal miner twice her age. A widower with three little girls, Stanley mounrs for his wife and does not love Annetka, treating her almost like a servant. Yet when he d...more
I have never read a Dear America book, but I LOVE Susan Campbell Bartoletti's The Boy Who Dared and Newbery Honor book Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler Shadow. Both were fantastically written, thought-provoking true stories. So, since my library had it, I gave this a try.
In short, I LOVED IT!!
The story was interesting, the characters were realistic (with flaws) and believable, and it tells the little known story of the Lattimer Massacre. The ending was sad, and it had an Epilogue which read li...more
In short, I LOVED IT!!
The story was interesting, the characters were realistic (with flaws) and believable, and it tells the little known story of the Lattimer Massacre. The ending was sad, and it had an Epilogue which read li...more
Read this to see if it was appropriate for my third grader. Maybe in a few more years! But it's very well written--I would've been all over these books as a kid. Continuing the search for age-appropriate reading material at her reading level....
This is one of my favorite books...EVER. I read it while I was in middle school and Anetka and Leon broke my heart. (Read the epilogue) I thought to myself that since I am now 24, I wouldn't love it. I was wrong. Great book.
My daughter was so enthralled by this book, absolutely enraptured, so I read it when she finished and it is truly a fantastic, educational, heartwrenching, heartwarming, and romantic tale. I highly recommend it.
I liked Anetka a lot as a character and experiencing her trials and joys with her was a lot of fun. I also learned about the harsh conditions and labor unfairness suffered by coal miners in 19th century America.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| why would someone sell thier daughter? | 2 | 2 | May 16, 2013 08:31am | |
| What did you think? | 12 | 13 | Apr 23, 2013 12:43pm | |
| Dear America Series: A Coal Miner's Bride | 1 | 1 | Jul 02, 2012 08:47am |
Susan Campbell Bartoletti is an American writer of children's literature. She was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, but eventually the family ended up in a small town in northeastern Pennsylvania. Susan started as an English teacher and inspired many students before deciding to pursue writing in earnest. She sold her first short story in 1989. Three years later in 1992 she published her first pict...more
More about Susan Campbell Bartoletti...
Share This Book
1 trivia question
More quizzes & trivia...
Apr 29, 2012 07:54pm