Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0460872575, Paperback)

Transplanted from the "civilized" south of England, Margaret Hale enters a grim new world in industrial Milton-Northern. Appalled by the smoke and noise of the mills, and shocked by the workers' independence, Margaret still finds no common ground with the blunt Northern manufacturers. It takes a friendship with Bessy Higgins, daughter of a union leader, to rouse Margaret's compassion and encourage her crusade for understanding between management and their workers.