Cadnum, Michael. Blood gold.CADNUM, Michael. Blood gold. Penguin Putnam, Viking. 224p. c2004. 0-670-05884-X. $16.99. JS The gold rush is on, and Will, age 18, sets out from Philadelphia to California via the dangerous jungle route through the Isthmus of Panama Noun 1. Isthmus of Panama - the isthmus that connects Central America and South America; was formerly called the Isthmus of Darien; "Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Darien" Isthmus of Darien , braving heat and cholera cholera (kŏl`ərə) or Asiatic cholera, acute infectious disease caused by strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae that have been infected by bacteriophages. . He's seeking a young man named Ezra, who loved and then abandoned a good friend of Will's, but soon this purpose fades in importance as Will and his friend Ben get caught up in their own adventures. Ben meets a comely come·ly adj. come·li·er, come·li·est 1. Pleasing and wholesome in appearance; attractive. See Synonyms at beautiful. 2. Suitable; seemly: comely behavior. actress in San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden , while Will finds work driving a team of horses up to the gold fields Gold Fields Limited is one of the world’s largest unhedged producers of gold, providing investors with maximum leverage to the gold price. The company was formed in 1998 with the amalgamation of the gold assets of Gold Fields of South Africa Limited and Gencor Limited. , and meets Florence, a spirited and appealing girl. Will isn't the only one searching for Ezra, it turns out; several menacing men are hunting him down too, and Will finds himself in danger in the wilds of the Wild West. Cadnum, author of many other YA novels (e.g., Ship of Fire and The Book of the Lion), does his usual excellent job integrating historical research into an exciting story, and this would make an interesting supplement to a study of the gold rush era. We never get to know Ezra or Elizabeth, however, and I'm not quite sure why Cadnum needed these characters to kick off the plot--the danger of the trip and Will's adventures would have sufficed. The novel ends a bit abruptly, too, but readers will enjoy the ride. Paula Rohrlick, KLIATT |
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