Little Audrey is the true story of what happened to Ruth White’s family in 1948, told in the voice of her older sister Audrey.  The family, Audrey, her three little sisters and her mother and father, are living in a mining camp in southwestern Virginia.  Her father works hard in the coal mine for very little pay, most of which he uses to buy alcohol.  As a result, the girls and their mother are often left without enough to eat.  Coupled with her mother’s depression, being bullied by neighborhood kids and chasing after her whiney, wild sisters, Audrey’s life is difficult to say the least.

Little Audrey is a quick read, and is well written.  It offers a look into the life of a disadvantaged family at a turning point in their lives.  The resolution of the story is surprising, and readers will be left with a lot to think about.