SKY OF STONE

Ex-rocket boy Hickam spends the summer after his freshman year of college working in the Coalwood mine where his father was superintendent. Speaking as the now-mature Hickam, Dick Hill paints a vibrant vocal picture of the town, its denizens, the mine, and union workers. He adjusts his voice when he needs to be the 18-year-old Homer; the female junior engineer with whom he becomes infatuated; the landlady, Floretta; or tough mine supervisor Johnny Basso. The mystery of a foreman's death hangs over the town like the ever-present haze of coal dust. This memoir full of youthful optimism, curiosity, and determination could have been routine, but in Hill's capable hands it's a great deal more. J.B.G. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 02]