Last night I finished Trapped! by Julia Lawrinson. It’s a book for younger readers around the ages of 9+. It’s an Australian story inspired by an event in a town called Bonnievale in Western Australia. Bonnievale is a mining town, near Coolgardie. In March 1907 there was a huge storm and water gushed into the mine. Apparently, 160 miners were down the mine at the time that the storm hit. They all got out bar one. Italian immigrant Modesto ’Charlie’ Varischetti was trapped in an air pocket. The rescue of Modesto is the stuff of legends and rivals that of the young boys from the cave in Thailand.

They thought Modesto was dead. It was two days after that a tapping sound could be heard and they realised Modesto was alive. Remember this is 1907. There wasn’t any technology to help here. They used a steam pump to bring up water from the mine but the water level was barely shifting.

The idea was aired that they could use divers to bring Modesto out. Unlike today’s divers, these men wore bulky suits and big round helmets screwed to their suits. The helmets had faceplates to look through. You can only imagine how unwieldy this was moving in the murky tunnels of a mine back in 1907. There was no air hose long enough to reach Charlie. The closest one was in Fremantle.

The divers, Hughes and Hearn, and the equipment were put on a special fast train from Fremantle, which steamed at full power, getting there two hours faster than the standard trip. Horses were made at the ready to whisk them from the train station to Bonnievale.

Another man was called to the site, the mining engineer Herbert Hoover. This is the same Herbert Hoover who would become President of the United States of America.

These were brave men. And determined. It was four very long days before Hearn managed to get down the mine to explore the tunnels.

Above ground there was a swell of interest as people followed the story in the newspapers, all praying for Modesto. The pumps were working relentlessly but the progress of the water levels decreasing was painfully slow.

On the sixth day the divers reached Modesto. What must have the Italian been thinking in those dark days? Hopelessness must have set in. Hunger gnawing at his stomach.

It was too risky to bring Modesto out in a diving suit. The divers returned again and again, delivering Modesto food and water and a lamp. How that light must have lifted his spirits. They also brought letters from his brother, which again must have instilled great hope and love.

On the ninth day a crowd of people had swelled around the campsite. They were going to attempt a rescue. The water had gone down enough. The divers went in and reached Modesto. They tied a rope around his waist and assisted him out. Although it is said that he was so weak he was mostly carried.

Julia Lawrinson’s Trapped! tells a fictional tale, based on this event. The book is told in verse and is beautifully written, propelling you along page by page.

We view the event through the eyes of Modesto’s son, Joe. We begin with his life in Italy and then travel to Australia to the outback mining town to join his dad. Joe struggles as a new immigrant in the outback town. He has poor English and is bullied and struggles to fit in. But he is calm and determined. We stand with Joe at the top of the mine, waiting through those long days while his father is trapped. We see how he copes, feels and tries to help as the brave men around him work relentlessly to save his father.

Trapped! is a gripping read, and Lawrinson writes with skill. As it’s written in verse there are not as many words on a page so the pace is relentless – you barely have time to catch your breath as the pages fly by. Telling the story in verse gives it a sense of urgency that mirrors the race to rescue Modesto. Although occasionally using bygone language, it is accessible, drawing young readers into a fascinating chapter of history that feels as vivid and thrilling today as it was then. At its heart, this is a story of courage, compassion and the power of people coming together in a time of crisis.

I love it when authors take a moment from history and shape it into a novel that’s both thrilling and deeply educational. It’s such a powerful way for young readers to absorb the past – bringing history to life in a way textbooks rarely can. But more than that, stories like this remind us of the good in people, and how, as humans, we’re all sharing this spinning ball in space together.

Rowena