The Clock is an excellent example of historical fiction.

The book, set in early 19th century Connecticut, describes child labor from the view of a young girl, who endured suffering, little pay and terrible working conditions.

Annie Steele is a teen-age girl who yearns to grow up and be a teacher. However, her father, who has gotten into debt, has other plans for Annie. He wants to send her to work in the textile mill where local children and New York orphan boys work tediously, hour after hour.

Mr. Hoggart, the overseer whose heart and nerves are made of steel, whips the children without a second thought. He even breaks one boy's ribs by kicking him. On top of that, Hoggart secretly steals great amounts of wool from the factory.

Annie's friend, Robert the tally boy, has suspected this for some time and eventually gets demoted after catching Mr. Hoggart in the act. This demotion eventually costs Robert his life.

Mr. Hoggart, under pressure to keep the mill running after the water wheel froze on one winter day, sent Robert out to break the ice from the wheel. Robert accomplishes the mission but falls into the frigid river water, where he dies.

Annie is outraged by this; she believes Mr. Hoggart killed Robert to save himself. Now, determined more than ever to prove Mr. Hoggart guilty of stealing wool, she begins a crusade and puts herself in danger countless times.

The following excerpt describes the danger Annie goes through. In this particular scene she is spying on Mr. Hoggart to determine if he is really stealing wool.

"I stood there, wondering how I could get a look in it (the shed behind the mill) to see if there was really wool in it, when I heard a thump and a bang from inside. I jumped, and then froze still, my heart racing. There was another thump and then a curse. I turned to run through the woods by the shortest distance to the road. Just as I put my foot down, I remembered: I'd make a track of footprints (in the snow) as clear as day going out of there. He'd know somebody had been outside while he was there."

The Clock is 161 pages with illustrations by Kelly Maddox. It is an interesting book, with lots of action. However, the suggested reading age level of 10-14 should have been younger. The fictional story was written by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier and published by Bantam Doubleday Dell.