www.ShirleyStewartBurns.com

Edited by Shirley Stewart Burns, Mari-Lynn Evans and Silas House.

Published by Counterpoint Books.

272 pages. Available in hardcover and softcover.

Autographed hardcover: $30; Autographed softcover: $20 (free shipping)

In the long, complex history of coal exploitation in Appalachia, mountaintop-removal (MTR) mining is the most destructive practice yet visited upon the land and its people: Ancient forested mountainsides are blown up to extract the underlying coal, and the resulting debris is dumped into nearby valleys and streams. The politics and economics of mining in the region have long allowed coal companies virtually free rein, but in recent years, opposition to MTR has gained national momentum.

This illustrated volume, like the powerful documentary film on which it is based, gives voice to the growing chorus of protest against MTR mining in Appalachia through a collection of essays, oral history, commentary, and images. It features many of the personalities from the film in their own words, as well as thoughtful essays by such eloquent voices as writers Wendell Berry and Silas House, activist Judy Bonds, journalists Michael Shnayerson and Denise Giardina, and entertainers Kathy Mattea and Ashley Judd. Illustrations include contemporary photography of this still-beautiful region — and of mining devastation and the affected landscapes, communities, and people — by noted photojournalists such as Mark Schmerling, Builder Levy, and Vivian Stockman. Sidebars feature excerpts from contemporary and historical literature, poetry, song lyrics, drawings, cartoons, and ephemera.

Author: Dr. Shirley Stewart Burns

Published by The West Virginia University Press

248 pages.  Available in softcover.

Autographed copy: $28 (free shipping)

The first academic book on mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia, Bringing Down the Mountains is widely considered the most complete look at the topic to date.  This seminal work is held in high regard by academics and activists alike.

Bringing Down the Mountains provides insight into how mountaintop removal (MTR) surface coal mining has affected the people and the land of southern West Virginia. It examines the mechanization of the mining industry and the power relationships between coal interests, politicians, and the average citizen. "Bringing Down the Mountains" reveals how a political system married to natural-resource extraction turns a blind eye to the irrevocable disfigurement of the earth while thousands of West Virginians suffer the consequences. MTR has ruined homes, increased the risk of flooding, endangered the lives of school children, forced friends and family members out of town, and turned West Virginia's hardwood forests into moonscapes.