In this post, I will cover the last two Eve Sutton books to be read and reviewed.
Green Gold: From the inside dust cover: "Adam Sterling and his father had set off with such high hopes on that long voyage to New Zealand. And now, guarding fiercely a dozen small parcels his dying father had entrusted to him, he found himself totally alone in a strange land. What did the parcels contain, Adam wondered? Was it gold? And how would he find his one relative in this rough, tough new country where you could trust no-one? But he did find friends who could help him at last, and set him on the path to find his uncle."
Valley of Heavenly Gold: From the back cover: "When Matthew Hamilton's father comes home from the goldfields desperately ill, Matthew sets out to retrieve the small fortune his father has had to leave behind on the diggings. But life on the goldfields is violent and Matthew and his Chinese friend, Ah Chong, are in great danger."
Green Gold is Eve Sutton's first chapter book and Valley of Heavenly Gold is her last. Both have young male protagonists and are set in early New Zealand. Green Gold is probably set 50 years later.
Green Gold is not actually about the gold rush, rather young Adam is looking for his uncle and when he finds him, the precious packets he is protecting contain seeds. The ending implies they set up a successful seed-harvesting business. The book is short (under 100 pages) easy-to-read and a page-turner. It is also beautifully illustrated. It is a good story with a heartwarming moment when he finds his uncle.
Valley of Heavenly Gold is about the 1860s gold rush, and is set in Gabriel's Gully. It is similar to Ruth Dallas', Shining Rivers.
In this story Matthew is not on his own, he is part of a family. He lives with his mother and sisters and his father is at the gold fields. His father is then brought home terribly sick. Matthew is sent to the fields to retrieve his father's belongings and find his father's secret stash of gold. Eve has researched well and accurately described the town and gold field life. She has also referenced the tragic flash flood that killed miners and flooded the valley during the boom.
Homeschool families will appreciate the positive family themes in this story. Also when Matthew is searching for the stash of gold, he finds his father's Bible. He values this as much as the bag of gold. Eve Sutton threads Christian faith into her stories without preaching in true living book fashion. Matthew also has a friendship with a Chinese miner called, Ah Chong, which draws attention to the attitudes towards Chinese in New Zealand during colonial times.
I have no content considerations for either of these books and I highly recommend them for 8 years and over.
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