About the Book: Germinal
A dramatic testament to the birth pangs of political consciousness Hungry and
homeless, Étienne Lantier stumbles into the mining community of Montsou and
enters the harsh underground world of the pit-face. When the miners, faced with
cuts to wages already at starvation level, react with dull resignation, Étienne
is appalled. Discovering a strident political voice within himself he organizes
and leads a strike. As the unequal conflict grinds on, bitter rivalries emerge
in love and in political vision. The struggle for dignity and social justice
slips toward anarchy and the forces of repression are inexorable in their
response. A novel of powerful symbolic force,