'All that could be heard in the stillness of that frosty morning was the hum of the machinery and the slap of ropes, drawing the men to the pithead as if a spider was spinning its web and they were insects caught in its threads . . .'
It's the 1840s in a Victorian mining town and disaster is about to strike. For young John Elliot and his family, life in the shadow of the grinding colliery wheel has always been hard, but there is no alternative for folk like them. The risks are huge and the rewards are few. The Elliots are about to discover the real cost of daring to dig deeper than any worms will ever go . . .
'Survivors' is a unique collection of fictional stories about young people caught up in some of the great conflicts and disasters. Through their eyes we experience the day-to-day hardships and dangers of living through troubled times.