The True Cost of Coal is a rhyming storybook from the Beehive Design Collective. Fun and educational for ages 9–99, it also features lessons and activities related to the story’s themes of ecology, colonial history, workers rights, extreme extraction, community organizing, and regenerative futures alongside Beehive Collective graphics designed specifically for coloring on. Alongside intricately detailed art there is a rhyming and simplified narrative, guiding readers through a winding timeline. The story explores important history often left out of classroom curriculum, inspires the reader to question present-day decision-making systems, and encourages us all to envision our own role in moving towards a sustainable and regenerative future. .

Introduction -- Dedications -- Ecological origins of coal -- Original peoples -- Colonization -- Cherokee vs. Georgia -- Trail of tears -- Pioneering & early industry -- Company towns -- Workers resistance & organization -- Battle of Blair Mountain -- Union victory & culture -- Automation & layoffs -- Community alliances -- Mountaintop removal & ecological devastation -- Climate chaos & global capitalism -- Carbon trading & greenwashing -- Grassroots organizing & resistance -- Direct action -- Community resilience & remediation -- Decolonization -- Sustainable futures -- Collaboration & mutual aid -- Individual responsibility & purpose. .