Ed Ochester
“Just as Thomas Bell's Out of This Furnace is the classic story of the growth of industrial Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania, Paul Hertneky's Rust Belt Boy is the story of what happened as the mills shut down. A compelling personal account, it emphasizes the strong affection that many of us have for this place and its heritage.”
Howard Mansfield
“Hertneky's hometown, Ambridge, contained multitudes: big steel works with Bessemer furnaces firing right on main street, immigrant workers, labor strife, and a forgotten past that includes George Washington and a wildly successful utopia. In this affectionate memoir, Hertneky delivers Ambridge's heart and soul, and proves that the discovery of America is never ending.”
Jim Russell
“Like Paul Hertneky, I, too, am a Rust Belt boy, but grew up a generation later. Rust Belt Boy closes a book on 300 years of history as a geography of aspiration. Newcomers defined the towns and cities. Despite having grown up in the same place, these people and their stories seem foreign and exotic to me. All I have known is leaving. Rust Belt Boy is a gift, a heritage I never knew I had.”