Call Me Kate

Oct 29, 2010 Dianne Ascroft rated it 4 of 5 stars

Call Me Kate: Meeting The Molly Maguires is a young adult novel set in the coal mining region of northeastern Pennsylvania during the early 1860s. An accident at the local mine, which injures the main character’s father, opens the novel and pulls the reader into the story. With her father unable to work, 14 year old Katie McCafferty and her family face economic disaster. So Katie, the eldest child, is forced to leave school and enter domestic service. Meanwhile her friends, twins Con and Dinny G...more Call Me Kate: Meeting The Molly Maguires is a young adult novel set in the coal mining region of northeastern Pennsylvania during the early 1860s. An accident at the local mine, which injures the main character’s father, opens the novel and pulls the reader into the story. With her father unable to work, 14 year old Katie McCafferty and her family face economic disaster. So Katie, the eldest child, is forced to leave school and enter domestic service. Meanwhile her friends, twins Con and Dinny Gallagher, who work at the same mine where her father was injured, also experience the hardships of mine work and the indifference of the mine owners. A subsequent mine accident seriously injures her friend, Dinny, and pushes Con into association with the militant Mollie Maguires who often use violence in their fight against the discrimination and unsafe conditions that the Irish experience in the mines. The plot follows Katie’s efforts to dissuade Con from involvement with these violent activists and to stop their plan to stage a violent act at a peaceful draft protest.

Roe’s vivid depiction of the era, especially the children’s experiences, brings the mining community and the local estate house to life for the reader. She uses a skilful blend of action and explanation of historical events to set the story in its American Civil War context. The story’s climax draws together a group of anti-draft protesters staging a peaceful demonstration with the agitating Molly Maguires who plan to turn the protest violent. I would have liked a bit more information about both groups of activists as the connection between the two groups is not always clear. A young reader, unfamiliar with this period, might not understand who is driving events and why. Nevertheless, the entertaining story progresses with steadily increasing tension that will hold the reader’s interest to the end of the book.

The main character, Katie, is well drawn with attitudes and goals that fit her class and era. She’s feisty and brave but not implausibly heroic. Her strong sense of duty to her family makes her responsible and hardworking. Her role in the plot is credible; she doesn’t single-handedly save the day but her actions are important to the outcome. I like the fact that loyalty not love motivates Katie to help her friend, Con, and steer him away from danger. It’s refreshing to see a heroine motivated by something besides romantic love.

We get a good sense of both the Irish and American characters in the story. Except for words like ‘begorra’ tossed into Irish characters’ conversation, Roe captures the Irish phrases and manner of speaking convincingly. She also makes young readers aware of the different viewpoints of immigrant and native born characters. At times the dialogue is somewhat stilted as she uses conversations to convey information but this isn’t a major problem. The bigotry and vengefulness of one historical character, newspaper editor Benjamin Bannan, is particularly well depicted.

My only criticisms are minor ones. The book’s subtitle, Meeting The Molly Maguires, is a bit insipid. I would prefer something more dynamic to indicate that Katie not only meets them but opposes their actions. Also, if I saw the book on a bookshop shelf, the front cover would not inspire me to pick it up and examine it. The picture is rather dull and does not convey action or excitement. It does not do justice to the content.

But, overall I found this novel immensely readable. It is well researched and Roe has a good grasp of the problems and events in nineteenth century Pennsylvania. This novel will bring history alive for young readers and entertain them at the same time. That’s the perfect combination for an historical fiction.

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Oct 18, 2010 Nancy rated it 4 of 5 stars

This novel is a concisely written account of the little known events in the Irish coal mining community during the Civil War. When I say "little known," I really mean, I didn't know. The basic tenets of the Civil War are little disputed (except by the state of Texas, still in denial) with the southern states wanting to be separated from the Union, disagreeing on political points. Aside from Rhett Butler and Ashley Wilkes, who willingly joined the fight because they gave a d***, I was unaware tha...more This novel is a concisely written account of the little known events in the Irish coal mining community during the Civil War. When I say "little known," I really mean, I didn't know. The basic tenets of the Civil War are little disputed (except by the state of Texas, still in denial) with the southern states wanting to be separated from the Union, disagreeing on political points. Aside from Rhett Butler and Ashley Wilkes, who willingly joined the fight because they gave a d***, I was unaware that the Civil War was truly forced upon the indigent Irish members of the communities.

Pennsylvania was the home to a number of newly arrived Irish settlers who lacked any skill other than surviving great famines and speaking lyrically. Many found themselves in the clutches of poorly maintained and unregulated coal mines where accidents and death became the norm. Paid nominally, the miners barely survived starvation. When mines collapsed (which occurred often), heads of household were maimed and killed, often forcing their wives and children into further poverty or starvation.

With the Civil War needing soldiers on both sides, the ruling came down that men were to serve their country either by fighting against the south or paying for a substitute. The Irish immigrants had no voice as the press and community practiced bigotry against them. Thus the Molly Maguire group was born to protest the unfair treatment of the Irish. Kind of like draft dodging only Canada was not an option, there was no veteran pay, and, by golly, Miss Molly, he most certainly did inhale.

Katie discovers the organization and dresses as a man in order to infiltrate. She discovers one or two men who suffer severely from impulse control and narcissism and many Irish immigrants frustrated with the state of the country. All she wants to do is save her friend, Con, from certain death or blacklisting (the opposite of Black Lung, in this case).

The story is easy to follow and possesses the appropriate amount of intrigue to engage the young reader. Blood and gore are present but only in appropriate doses to illustrate the plight of the poor Irish workers in this time period. This is war, after all.

Clean reading and educationally minded, the story will hold the interest of a latter elementary school child as evidenced by this juvenile middle aged reviewer.

Highly recommend.

Thanks to Nichole at Tribute Books for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. (less)

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Oct 16, 2010 Kelsey rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Call Me Kate was an intriguing and unique read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I hate to say this, but I probably would never have picked this up if I hadn't been contacted to review it. I'm so glad I excepted the query because this was a fascinating novel.

I've read a lot about the Civil War, but this is the first time I've ever read about how it impacted the Irish immigrants and other people living in the North. Katie's life was difficult from the start. Her family was already struggling to make end...more Call Me Kate was an intriguing and unique read that I thoroughly enjoyed. I hate to say this, but I probably would never have picked this up if I hadn't been contacted to review it. I'm so glad I excepted the query because this was a fascinating novel.

I've read a lot about the Civil War, but this is the first time I've ever read about how it impacted the Irish immigrants and other people living in the North. Katie's life was difficult from the start. Her family was already struggling to make ends meet and when her father gets into a near fatal mining accident, Katie must leave home to find work. Reading about the coal mining industry was especially interesting. I've never really heard much about it, and it was especially interesting to read about the opinions of the miners and their family on the War. The Irish played a big part in the Civil War and one of my favorite aspects of the story was the Molly Maguires and Katie's involvement with them. The Molly Maguires, or Mollies, were another aspect of the Civil War I'd never heard of. Katie was a supremely brave character and for some reason I love novels where the main female character disguises herself as boy (think Bloody Jack). It proved how strong and independent Katie was and how much she wanted to make a difference. Females didn't have a lot of rights during the Civil War era, so Katie did what she could to help out her friends and family.

I really grew attached to Katie by the end of the story. Even though the novel was short, under 200 pages, I got to know Katie quite well. Although some of the other characters weren't as well developed, I did like them. Especially Patrick, Wynnie, and Con. There are a variety of characters introduced and mentioned in this novel (both fictional and not). The plot was very fast paced and even though at some points I felt it got a little too text bookey, Call Me Kate was very well written and I had a hard time putting it down. I just had to find out what was going to happen in the end.

Historical fiction has always been one of my favorite genres. I love reading about my favorite time periods and historical figures, but I always get excited to read about a time in history I don't know much about. Molly Roe wrote a fabulous novel that opened my eyes to some of the things that occurred during the Civil War not mentioned in history classes.

Overall, Call Me Kate was an exciting and original debut that I definitely recommend picking up.

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars(less)

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Oct 12, 2010 Val rated it 4 of 5 stars

Call Me Kate is a great way to introduce middle grade students to history through fiction. This novel grabs at you from the beginning and keeps you very interested. The entire book is only 110 pages keeping this short but sweet.

Call Me Kate is staged in the Civil War Era. Everything written in this novel is written according to historical records. Even if you read this book only for entertainment value, you will still learn a bit about history. Even the dialogue makes the characters more believ...more

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Sep 13, 2010 Kelly Hager rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is historical fiction, set immediately before and during the Civil War. Katie is a 14-year-old girl living in a small town. She has to help her family make ends meet after her dad is injured in a mine accident. She is sent away to work as a servant. During this time, Irish men are being drafted into the war if they don’t have $300 to pay or can’t send someone else to fight for them. A secret Irish organization, The Molly Maguires, are planning something big to fight this. Katie finds out af...more

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Mar 29, 2010 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars

I found Call Me Kate a very interesting book, not only because it is based on the author’s ancestors, but it opened my eyes to the upheaval over “Lincoln’s War” by the northern states. I had no idea that the North was so adamant towards the war. This was a great way to learn about the Civil War era without reading a dull history book!

The deplorable conditions of the mines in Northeast Pennsylvania, where this story opens, creates a dramatic background to the plight of the people and the lengths...more

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Jan 29, 2010 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: trt-posted-reviews

Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Catharine "Katie" McCafferty has grown up in the midst of the Pennsylvania coal mining community. The owners of the coal mines can pretty much run the lives of those that rely on the mines for their livelihood. If the head of the household becomes injured due to safety issues in the mines, the remaining family members must come together to pay the rent or they will lose their home.

Many of the miners are paid in scrip, which is only good at the company-owned...more Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Catharine "Katie" McCafferty has grown up in the midst of the Pennsylvania coal mining community. The owners of the coal mines can pretty much run the lives of those that rely on the mines for their livelihood. If the head of the household becomes injured due to safety issues in the mines, the remaining family members must come together to pay the rent or they will lose their home.

Many of the miners are paid in scrip, which is only good at the company-owned store. Struggling is a way of life. But Katie's family and neighbors have always gotten by and relied on each other.

When Katie's father is injured at work and loses the use of his legs, Katie takes it upon herself to help her family stay afloat. Her mother secures her a temporary domestic help job for a local bachelor. When that job ends, she finds herself traveling to a large estate to become live-in help. It's while Katie works for the Pardee family that she becomes entangled in the intrigue and secret Irish societies determined to help those drafted into the Army by backhanded means.

The Molly Maguires are just one of these organizations that fight for the rights of the second-class miners. The members are willing to destroy rail lines and scarify lives for the good of the larger whole. Katie becomes scared for her long-time friend, Con, who has taken up with the group and fears for his life. She befriends the stable boy at Pardee's estate and the two try to sidetrack the horrible plot to blow up the tracks.

CALL ME KATE was a fascinating look at the time period of the early drafts for the Civil War. It focuses on a specific area of the country and the conflict that arose among the different classes and ethnicities. Being from Pennsylvania, I could picture many of the places that were referenced and got a brief history lesson on a time period that I wasn't very familiar with. For anyone interested in getting some history with their fiction, CALL ME KATE is a good book to add to your choices.(less)

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Oct 07, 2010 Liz (Consumed by Books) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 3-star, for-review, historical-fiction

If you’re a woman around my age, or have a sister, then you probably owned or knew someone who owned an American Girl doll. Call Me Kate: Meeting the Molly Maguires by Molly Roe felt very reminiscent of an American Girl book to me. While I’m not the target audience for this book, I think young girls who read middle grade books would thoroughly enjoy this story.

At first, I really didn’t think I’d like Katie because initially, she was a bit of a goody two shoes, and that doesn’t make for a particu...more

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Oct 06, 2010 Crystal rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc, ebook-kindle, for-review, read-oct-2010

Why I read this: I was emailed by the publisher about the blog tour for this book, I thought the blurb sounded interesting and I agreed to be a part of the tour.

How is the novel driven: Character - the action is in the background and the book revolves around how Katie, her family and her friends react to the things going on around them.

My thoughts: I know very little about the north during the civil war, especially the about the people in the coal mining towns that really didn't want to be invol...more Why I read this: I was emailed by the publisher about the blog tour for this book, I thought the blurb sounded interesting and I agreed to be a part of the tour.

How is the novel driven: Character - the action is in the background and the book revolves around how Katie, her family and her friends react to the things going on around them.

My thoughts: I know very little about the north during the civil war, especially the about the people in the coal mining towns that really didn't want to be involved. I found this look at this time in history to be fascinating. Seeing it distantly through Katie's eyes was interesting. Also seeing the everyday life for those not involved in the war, just involved in this time in history was fascinating.

I also knew little of the immigrants and the Irish famine and how the Irish were treated over here once they arrived. NC History classes really don't cover these things. Most of our ancestry here is English, Welsh and Scottish so little is known about the Irish, at least to me.

I loved getting to know Katie and those around her. The book is well-written and as things happen around Katie we get her feelings and thoughts about them and her desire to try and make things right in the world and become so much more than just a female who longs to get married. The intrigue also adds another dimension in the book. What will happen next and how far will Katie go to try and make things change around her? This keeps the plot moving at a fast pace and it kept me turning the pages to see what Katie would do next.

Ms. Roe writes an interesting book with Katie as the highlight and the events plaguing the coal country at the beginning of the civil war at the forefront as well. I feel I learned a lot during this book and look forward to reading more on the subject.

Very clean for a young adult novel, only references to cursing are used and that is refreshing as well. I realize it was a slightly gentler time as far as the women were concerned so it holds with the time period well.

If you enjoy young adult historical fiction, anything having to do with the 1860s or just a strong heroine who is finding her place in society then this is a book for you. Whether you are younger or older, this book has something for everyone.(less)

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Jul 23, 2010 Kathleen Kelly rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a story that takes place during the Civil War and is about the coal workers in Pennsylvania, majority of them Irish. The life of a coal miner is dirty, hard and dangerous work. The families of coal miners dread to hear the alarms going as this means that their husbands, fathers,and brothers could be injured or dead. The mines are very dangerous to work in and the owners refuse to make things safer for the workers.
Since there is a war going on, there is also draft going on. A lot of these...more This is a story that takes place during the Civil War and is about the coal workers in Pennsylvania, majority of them Irish. The life of a coal miner is dirty, hard and dangerous work. The families of coal miners dread to hear the alarms going as this means that their husbands, fathers,and brothers could be injured or dead. The mines are very dangerous to work in and the owners refuse to make things safer for the workers.
Since there is a war going on, there is also draft going on. A lot of these men do not want ot fight in this war and there is an organization called the Molly Maguires, a secret Irish society that is determined to help those drafted into the Army by unsavory methods. The main character of the story is Catharine "Katie" McCafferty, a 14 year old girl who faces tragedies, along with her family and neighbors when some miners are injured and killed in a mine explosion. Among those injured is Katie's father. After he dies Katie gets a job to help the family make ends meet. This job is temporary and when the job is over Katie obtains another position in the household of a mine owner, Pardee, as live in help. The mine owners are involved in sending their Irish workers to be drafted willing or not. A man could send a substitute for $300 but most of these families can not afford to do this.The Molly Maguires are involved in a plot to blow up the tracks that will carry the train that has the draftees on it. Katie, along with the Pardee's stable boy, Patrick, want to try and stop this plot. She disguises herself as 'Dominic" so she and Patrick infiltrate this organization and go to meetings in order to learn details of the plot. Katie is worried about a friend who has gotten himself involved with this plot and wants to make sure he is safe.
This is an interesting story about a period of American history that includes the Irish immigrants. As I am of Irish descent I found this story informative as I did not know a lot about that era, the mines and the Irish families who struggled to survive in this period of strife. (less)

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Oct 01, 2010 Amy L. Campbell rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: advanced-copy, 2010, blogged, reviewed, ebook

The language and sentence structure in this were very simplistic, which would make it a great early middle school read or possibly even capture the interest of a slightly older child struggling with their reading level/comprehension. The story feel very bare bones with an A to B to C plot line. The subject matter is vaguely interesting with the start of the Civil War, the viewing of the Irish as ethnic, labor unions, etc. unfortunately none of these are really covered much in depth but seem mere...more The language and sentence structure in this were very simplistic, which would make it a great early middle school read or possibly even capture the interest of a slightly older child struggling with their reading level/comprehension. The story feel very bare bones with an A to B to C plot line. The subject matter is vaguely interesting with the start of the Civil War, the viewing of the Irish as ethnic, labor unions, etc. unfortunately none of these are really covered much in depth but seem merely provide details to be thrown in as "local color".

I was also concerned about the potential historical inaccuracies. This is not my particular area of expertise, but a glaring error was Katie learning Latin. Latin was typically reserved for young boys headed for college. Upper-class ladies might have learned French and maybe a particularly enlightened father would have provided his daughter with a private Latin tutor, but there is no way during this time that it would be taught in public school and certainly not to Irish riff-raff.

Despite the fact that this story is told in first person, we don't get to see a lot of Katie's thought processes. As simple as the plot line was, I was actually a little lost about why Katie was getting involved with the Molly Maguires. It seems once she found her friend she easily could have passed him a letter and resolved it the issue through less complicated means. There is a use of character voice in this work, but it seems to come and go, which was another sore point. I couldn't help but track the changes of when it was used and when it wasn't. I'm not sure if I'd prefer Roe to have left it out altogether or just been more uniform about it.

On the other hand, this was a very quick read and I think some people will quite enjoy the pacing. If you want to turn your brain off and just read, this will work quite well.

The reviewer is a 2009 graduate of Kent State University's Master of Library and Information Sciences program, an alumna of Antioch College, and the author of the blog A Librarian's Life in Books.(less)

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Sep 26, 2010 Kari rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed reading Call Me Kate. It's definitely written for the younger of the YA audience with a strong emphasis on a historical event. As a young female reader I think I would have thoroughly enjoyed a strong female protagonist related to what I was learning about in school (Civil War era). It also teaches about an aspect of the Civil War I wasn't as familiar with. Typically when I have read about the Civil war you learn about the disease, the huge death toll, the war tactics, the gene...more I really enjoyed reading Call Me Kate. It's definitely written for the younger of the YA audience with a strong emphasis on a historical event. As a young female reader I think I would have thoroughly enjoyed a strong female protagonist related to what I was learning about in school (Civil War era). It also teaches about an aspect of the Civil War I wasn't as familiar with. Typically when I have read about the Civil war you learn about the disease, the huge death toll, the war tactics, the generals and the reasoning behind the war: abolishment of slavery. This book brought to life what the draftees faced up in the North. I wasn't surprised to learn that immigrants who were not yet citizens were drafted along with citizens, but again this was not something I knew before. It also brought to life the prejudice and bigotry of the times. It's sad and yet so true that even today we haven't gotten past our dislike, even hatred of people who aren't like ourselves.

WARNING: SPOILER:

There is one aspect I'm struggling with. I'm having a bit of a hard time believing a girl of those times would be quite that stubborn and force her opinion upon the men around her. It just seems a bit preposterous. This is fiction and I think there must have been some women who were influential in their husband's or the men in their lives thinking. But, that said, I can't imagine a girl in the 1860's being able to set up her own working environment that would help immigrant women have better working conditions. A girl probably could have dreamed that (or maybe not), but actually believing it could happen? I just can't buy that. Women couldn't vote at that time, therefore it just doesn't ring true. Therefore Katie's declining her marriage opportunity at the end of the book fell flat in my eyes. Not that I want or expect every woman to settle down and marry the man available and offering. It just doesn't fit with those times and what was expected of women.

Overall, it was a fun read, full of interesting information of those times, and I learned quite a bit about the customs and traditions that shape our nation today.(less)

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Feb 22, 2010 Bstein rated it 1 of 5 stars

The history in “Call Me Kate” by Molly Roe shows a historical bias with misstatements of fact and other inaccuracies. Roe recently said in an interview on the blog “Conversations With Writers”, “ A group of Pennsylvania miners became known as the Molly Maguires. There is still controversy about whether the group were labor activists, criminals or even whether they actually existed. One fact is known: Twenty men were hanged for crimes committed by the ‘Molly Maguires.’ ”

Despite what Roe says, wh...more The history in “Call Me Kate” by Molly Roe shows a historical bias with misstatements of fact and other inaccuracies. Roe recently said in an interview on the blog “Conversations With Writers”, “ A group of Pennsylvania miners became known as the Molly Maguires. There is still controversy about whether the group were labor activists, criminals or even whether they actually existed. One fact is known: Twenty men were hanged for crimes committed by the ‘Molly Maguires.’ ”

Despite what Roe says, what happened in Pennsylvania’s anthracite region is not controversial. In 1979, after an official reexamination of the trial and circumstances surrounding it, and acting on the recommendation of the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons, then-governor Milton Shapp posthumously pardoned alleged Molly “kingpin” Jack Kehoe, one of the twenty “Mollies” hanged in 1878. Citing the unfairness of the trial, the conspiracies by mine owners to thwart any attempts at forming a union, and the courage of the miners in standing up for safer working conditions and fair wages the governor added, “We can be proud of the men known as the Molly Maguires.”

The verdict of most modern historians is that an organization operating as the Molly Maguires in Pennsylvania is a myth. Mine owner Franklin B. Gowen is credited with being first to apply that inflammatory term to miners when he hired Pinkerton agents to spy on them. Most labor historians agree that a concerted campaign of words and violence was waged by mine operators against coal miners attempting to unionize in Pennsylvania.

What is also known is that the twenty men hanged were prominent leaders in the Irish-immigrant community; the evidence against them was hearsay evidence orchestrated by the Pinkerton detective agency employed by Gowen; Gowen, president of the area’s largest coal company, was the also the prosecutor at the trial.

Making a story out of a young girl saving others from “villains,” that is, unionizing coal miners, Roe’s book does a disservice to history and to the people she writes about. Unfortunately, “Call Me Kate” is another collection of negative stereotypes of Irish miners and a biased history of the anthracite coal era.
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Nov 11, 2010 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars

Much like the Dear America series, as the synopsis mentions above, this book is a fictional look into our past history. It's gritty, it's realistic, but it is written so perfectly that readers will fall in love. I personally fell in love with Kate's spunky demeanor and was committed to her struggle from the beginning. In fact, I felt for her whole town. Molly Roe is an expert at writing characters that come to life on the page.

I vaguely remember learning about how the Civil War affected Irish im...more

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Feb 19, 2010 Ziaria rated it 4 of 5 stars

I found this to be an interesting story. I'm not a big history buff and it was my worst subject in school but Molly did a wonderful job telling this story. She brought the characters to life for me and even though I didn't understand some of the history parts, I enjoyed it.

The book certainly made me curious to stuff I didn't know and I have since looked stuff about that part in history. The fact that she made me curious enough to go look up stuff says tons about the book. I will say it took me a...more

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Apr 09, 2010 Lillie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, young-adult

Call Me Kate takes place in the tumultuous days at the beginning of the Civil War—a turbulent time of strife between advocates of slavery and abolitionists, management and labor, and long-time citizens against immigrants. Irish mine workers and their families endured many hardships in the coal mining region of Pennsylvania, and the draft was one more problem they didn’t want. Some fought back through secret organizations like the Molly Maguires.

Catherine McCafferty at age 14 disguises herself as...more

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Apr 01, 2011 Kaitlyn rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, review-books

Being from Pennsylvania, this was a fun read! I typically don’t read historical fiction, but I did enjoy this one. I learned things about the Civil War that I didn’t know already. This was an original book and I would recommend picking it up, especially if you enjoy historical fiction. If you don’t like historical fiction, I would still give it a shot.
Reading about the conditions the coal miners worked in is always a sad circumstance and I really became aware of the day to day struggles they fa...more

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Oct 07, 2010 Julie Smith (Knitting and Sundries) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: galley, reviewed

This review first appeared on my blog: http://jewelknits.blogspot.com/2010/1...

I'm a big fan of historical fiction. I especially enjoy reading about American history that isn't covered in regular school curriculum.

In this story, Kate, a young Irish citizen raised among the coal fields, finds herself helping to provide for her family after a tragic accident in the coal fields. She quits school to become a domestic, and finds herself caught up in the labor unrest of the time. Mine owners gave up t...more This review first appeared on my blog: http://jewelknits.blogspot.com/2010/1...

I'm a big fan of historical fiction. I especially enjoy reading about American history that isn't covered in regular school curriculum.

In this story, Kate, a young Irish citizen raised among the coal fields, finds herself helping to provide for her family after a tragic accident in the coal fields. She quits school to become a domestic, and finds herself caught up in the labor unrest of the time. Mine owners gave up their employee lists for the Civil War draft, and Irish workers, whether citizens or not, were conscripted into the Civil War unless they could come up with a $300 fee to avoid the draft.

Coal miners worked in dangerous, unsanitary, conditions, and if one lost his life or limb due to an accident, or was otherwise unable to work in the mines, their families had no way to earn their own keep. In these days, one had to rely on the charity of one's neighbors and friends, and when EVERYone around you isn't making enough to live on, charity could only stretch so far.

When Kate finds that her friend Con has become allied with a group labelled "The Molly Maguires", a band of men resistant to the draft, to the labor conditions, and to the greed of the mine owners, she sets out to warn him of the danger he is in because the owners know of his involvement and have targeted him and his grandmother. She dresses as a boy and infiltrates the group. Along the way, she learns of their plans to stop a train full of conscripted men and 'free' them from their conscription.

I enjoyed this book because it gave me a better understanding of some events that I previously had vague knowledge of. It is a quick read, and quite aptly illustrates the day-to-day struggles of the time among the Irish.

At places, however, I was reminded that I was reading a book. Although this is told from the viewpoint of a poor, under-educated, young Irish girl, there were sentences and sometimes passages that let me know that this was a story being told by someone else. For example, "I embroiled poor Patrick in this again his will, and I'd be devastated if something happened to him...". That's quite a few big words, and it jarred a little and pulled me out of the story. I realize that this is the first in a series, but the ending for me just wasn't great ... it felt as though the writer simply said, "OK; I'm done for now", and as I turned the page expecting more story, there wasn't any more.

This would be a good book for a teen or even an adult who wants to know a bit more about Irish-American history and the history of labor unrest during the Civil War.

QUOTES:

"The Mistress is like all her kind, unwilling to bother remembering a servant's name. All the parlor maids are Bridget. It keeps us in our lowly places to deny us even our given names. After all, your name, Catharine, and my real name, Margaret, are both royal names. High falutin' names are too good for the likes of us, Katie, my dear!" said Daisy.

Maybe if I had started working sooner we would have had the medicine Father needed. The money I sent home was never sufficient! Even if I were a lady's maid I could not have made enough to support the family. Only men's jobs paid adequately, and not all of those did. My grief changed to anger. The unfair cost of being poor and female infuriated me.

BOOK RATING 3.5 out of 5 stars(less)

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Jun 08, 2009 Bg rated it 5 of 5 stars

I happened to be at a train museum in Scranton, PA and I saw this book in the gift shop. The lady who worked there said it was a good book. It's a light read and it's meant for young teen readers, but I have to say that it was an excellent book. I was looking for a quick read. I enjoyed it very much. It's about a young girl growing up in the coal mining section of PA. It goes on to tell the hardships of the coal mining families and her part in taking care of her family and getting involved in th...more

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Nov 03, 2010 melissa1lbr rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: review-copy, young-adult, arcs, middle-grade

This book had an interesting and fairly unique aspect of a well-known time period. The immigrant, coal-mining communities in Pennsylvania right at the start of the Civil War was definitely nothing I knew about. Katie was a spunky and fun heroine to follow, though I thought some of her escapades were a little far-fetched. The time period and historical details are the most interesting part of the book for me. But, it didn't really capture my heart or imagination like some other historical fiction...more

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Mar 24, 2012 Mary Jane rated it 4 of 5 stars

Born in the heart of the coal regions, I wa anxious to read this young adult novel about the Irish coal miners during the Civil War times. It did not disappoint. The historical aspect was factually based; the main character grew quite nicely throughout this historical fiction book; the plot was also well-developed.
I'm glad I read this little gem.

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Oct 08, 2010 Rebecca rated it 3 of 5 stars

Call Me Kate was something different for me. I'm not usually one to read historical fiction but I'm glad I read Call Me Kate because it was a pretty good read.

Katie had an unfortunate life but she coped well and that made her a great character. I also liked Con and Wynnie. They just seemed to be strong independent characters and it was refreshing to read a book where the main character didn't have to lean on someone else all the time.

There were some sad parts in Call Me Kate, particularly the en...more

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Oct 12, 2010 Bewitched Bookworms rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: review-posted

I read this in a spirit of the tween/teen it was written for. It wasn't too hard to channel my young self because I have an 11 year old daughter. I thought this book was great!

Read the full review here.

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Feb 02, 2010 Shannon McGee rated it 4 of 5 stars

In 1862, a young Pennsylvania girl named Kate McCafferty stops going to school after her father is injured working in the coal mines. Now she has to be the bread winner and gets a job in another town as a maid. Soon she hears about how awful the coal miners are being treated and begins posing as a boy in the Molly Maguires, an rough underground Irish group who tried to improve the coal miners lot. Will she get caught, or will the coal miners get the benefits?

I was attracted to this book because...more

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Jul 18, 2011 writer... marked it as to-read

another Martha's BookShelf Blogoversary win today!
Many thanks Nicole of Tribute Books, and Congrats to Martha for her steady supply of good reading!!

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Oct 20, 2010 Britt, Book Habitue rated it 4 of 5 stars

Very similar to books from the Dear America series. An interesting look at a part of the Civil War we don't normally think about.

My only complaint was that I wanted more!

Great for girls ages 8 (or so) and up.

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Oct 31, 2010 Reading For Sanity rated it 4 of 5 stars

read this review and others at http://readingforsanity.blogspot.com/...

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Oct 29, 2010 Proud Book Nerd rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: blog-tours, do-not-have, historical-fiction, ya, tribute-books

This is well-written historical fiction. See my full review tomorrow (Oct. 30) on http://proudbooknerd.com.

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Oct 06, 2010 Mystee rated it 4 of 5 stars

http://amomentwithmystee.blogspot.com...

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Mar 24, 2013 Davidnsharon Lunt marked it as to-read

title link	preview: Call Me Kate: Meeting the Molly Maguires
avg rating	preview: Call Me Kate: Meeting the Molly Maguires Goodreads rating: 3.76 (41 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5966712-call-me-kate?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347643809l/5966712.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5966712-call-me-kate?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Call Me Kate: Meeting the Molly Maguires by Molly Roe[/url]

Call Me Kate: Meeting the Molly Maguires

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