Rusty Sledge is the smallest and poorest child in his school. He is also the brightest. For these reasons his classmates tease him, make fun of him, and bully him to the brink of suicide. With the help of three mentors, a school teacher, an old coal mine operator, and a West Virginia State Trooper, he finishes high school, stops answering violence with violence, and turns his sock full of pennies into an international coal mining entity that he uses to crush a ruthless coal cartel and their illegitimate union. This story will grab your attention and hold it throughout, as the characters come to life in the coal fields of West Virginia.