Life in the Iron Mills

Deb Wolfe’s days at the cotton mill are long and hard, often leaving her with little to eat or time to rest. At home she looks after her uncle and her cousin, Hugh, whom she loves without hope, thinking her hunchback prevents anyone from loving her. Hugh strains daily over flames in an iron mill, a hellish landscape. He has the soul of an artist and an overwhelming urge to create beauty. Together, Deb and Hugh face an impossible choice when an opportunity arises.

This Inwood Commons Modern Edition updates Rebecca Harding Davis’s classic so that it’s as easy to read and as relevant as if she had written it today. The book also includes an essay from a modern scholar and the original unedited version in an appendix.