First published 2016
Rich Devlin works as a prison guard in Bakerton, Pennsylvania, a town that withered after the coal mines shut down forty years ago. When energy companies discover the Marcellus Shale beneath his property, Rich sees his chance. He leases his mineral rights to fund his farming dream. The drilling begins, bringing truck traffic and constant noise. His wife Shelby grows paranoid about contaminated water poisoning their sick daughter. His brother questions the decision. Down the road, organic farmers Mack and Rena resist the gas companies until an environmental activist enters their world and complicates everything. The town splits between those who need the money and those who fear the consequences. Rich watches his community transform as corporate interests clash with family survival. Jennifer Haigh follows multiple residents whose lives intersect around this central question of whether to drill or preserve their land.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: community-conflict, family-drama
Setting: Bakerton, Pennsylvania
Period: 21st-century
430 pages · Hardcover · Ecco