A story of family and community pitted against the greed and corruption of the coal industry in the harsh social and economic conditions of early twentieth century Appalachia. We highly recommend this book to people in our community, several have borrowed it and enjoyed it. Coal River Mountain Watch, Naomi, West Virginia. Fenton Wells and his family live a comfortable enough life on a small mountain farm just outside the fictional town of Coalville, West Virginia. First tragedy strikes, and then coal company lawyers come visiting, intent on claiming the land on which the Wells's farm sits in order to mine for coal. Profit is their only motive, regardless of the impact on families and communities, as well as the cost to the mountains, rivers and wildlife in Wells Hollow and the surrounding mountains. Chris really does write beautifully...I found this book a real page turner. Clare Rourke, Oxford, UK. Will the loyalty and support of neighbours and community members such as Mother Baker, the mountain midwife, and the Taylors, who run the general store in Coalville, suffice to save the Wells children from sliding into poverty? Will King Coal succeed in crushing the spirit of Fenton and his children as they struggle against the violence and corruption of Halpin's Coal, the biggest employer in the county? Chris Jarrell is a retired social work lecturer and counsellor with his family roots in Boone County, West Virginia - the heart of coal country in the Appalchian Mountains. The Ballad of Fenton Wells is a historical biographical novel based on the experiences of Chris's grandparents and family in the early 1900s in Southern West Virginia.