Germinal

First published in 1885, this novel follows Etienne Lantier, a young mechanic who takes work in the coal pits of Montsou in northern France and lodges with the Maheu family. He finds a world of underground labour, company shops, and hunger, and he becomes a voice for a strike when wages are cut. The conflict pits the miners against the mine owners and managers, while Etienne's ideas about justice collide with the cost of a long stoppage. Zola treats the pit, the village, and the owners' houses as one system. The book is a naturalist account of a labour war, not a tract with a single spokesman.

Bound in image blocked blue cloth. Black slipcase.