Fascinating and compelling…
Wilcox offers a compelling story of three children whose intelligence and knowledge is put to test after getting separated from adults on the historic Chilkook Trail. It was supposed to be a fun hiking trip to Alaska for the sibling pair, Pearl and Frances, but the news of their grandparents’ foster kid CJ accompanying the family has dampened the kids’ spirits. However, hiking along the historic Chilkoot Trail, the kids are taken astray by a gruegle, one of the keepers of the forest. They must work together with CJ and use their wit and knowledge to help the gruegles escape the tyrannical Grand Gruegle and find their way back to the civilization. Wilcox offers a riveting, meticulously plotted mystery with plenty of tension alongside an exploration of the historic Chilkoot Trail and Klondike Gold Rush. The scientific facts about bark beetles, checkered beetles, the process of photosynthesis, and mycelium and fungal network of trees add to both insights and intrigue. The plight of Yonni and other gruegles offer lesson in power of unity. Woodles’s story echoes CJ’s feeling of loneliness and abandonment. Educators as well as elementary and middle-grade readers will find this one endearing.
The Secrets of Chilkoot Trail
By Suse Wilcox
Joie Press LLC
Pub date August 22, 2020
ASIN B08GJ12QJH
Price $2.99 (USD) Kindle edition
Categories: Children's Fiction, Middle Grade, Short Reviews
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