Reviews

Snow Treasure by Mary Reardon, Marie McSwigan

eggjen's review against another edition

4.0

Quite the adventure! I thought this was a very clever perspective on WW2. Looking forward to hearing what my 6th grader thinks of it.

sallyavena's review against another edition

5.0

A very quick and easy read that tells the story of how a handful of brave Norwegian children saved a large fortune of Norway's gold bullion. Not sure of the history behind it and how true it all is as there were no notes of any kind, but it made for a great story.

parentijulia5's review

5.0

Snow Treasure was very exciting. It made me jump at some points. We read this in school and I don't usually like the books we read, but this book was great!

mrsmisko's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

crafalsk264's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This book is noted as Middle Grade/Juvenile historical fiction,placed in WWII and it was published in 1942, winning the 1995 Pacific Northwst Library Association Young Readers’ Choice award. In searching for another book named “Snow” I came across this one and it jumped on my TBR. WWII was indeed a world enveloping conflict that touched more people than anyone could imagine and presented opportunities and demands for ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. This also resulted in so many true incidents that they could all never be chronicled. But luckily this one was.

Between 1940-45, Hitler’s Nazi forces occupied Norway and began an ambitious program of construction with the ultimate goal of creating a model Aryan society. Usually as soon as the Nazis moved in to occupy a country, they raided and took any resources of the country and its citizens.  When Nazis moved into Norway, the Norwegian Treasury held ~60 tons of gold bullion which the Nazis intended to confiscate to fund their expansion of the Aryan nation. The Norwegian government first secreted the gold in remote, difficult-to-reach locations around Norway, planning eventually for the gold  to make its way to the U.K. with the final destination of the U.S. where partners will safeguard the treasure.

In this story, the gold is hidden in caves around the Norwegian coastline. For the final step of the journey, ships were waiting to make their way to the Nazi effort to locate and retrieve the gold. The Norwegians needed a secret way to move the gold that would not arouse the attention of the Nazi military. A solution was found to move the gold in small loads on sleds with children as the drivers in an elaborate game. Our main character is 10 year old Peter who leads the children in this adventure. Peter’s Uncle Viktor is a member of the Resistance who finds a solid partner in Peter. Peter’s closest friends worked on the planning and executing this caper is another boy and two girls. The success of the sled race was in large part due to the planning by the girls. This book is a fast paced action story with smart, talented characters who are surprisingly well developed in a short book in a rich setting that fosters a feeling of cold and snow. This book is said to be based on true events in 1940. Although some questions have been raised regarding the facts, there is enough verifiable history that I am tempted to believe the majority of it. Given the plot action, likable characters, a rich setting and eloquent writing, it really isn’t material as the book is so well done. Recommend to readers of historical fiction, children’s/Middle Grade literature, WWII, adventure, and Norway.

justicepirate's review against another edition

3.0

This story is based off of a tale that has not been proven true or false, but is really interesting despite it being an "urban legend" of sorts.

Peter lives in Norway with his family and loves to go sledding. His family and neighbors are pretty closely knit. When Nazi soldiers come to invade their homeland, the Norwegians want to hide their gold from being taken but don't really know how to transport it to a safer area. That is where the children come into play.

My sons were riveted by me telling this story. They are 12 and 10 and loved the adventure behind it.

3.25 stars

michellehenriereads's review against another edition

5.0

I cannot believe I had never heard of Snow Treasure until last week! This novel is a gem. It is fully appropriate for a very young audience; I think even 8 year olds would enjoy it. Snow Treasure is also full of adventure and danger that will enthrall older children. It is appropriate for both boys and girls.

The main character, Peter Lindstrom, is brave, obedient and resourceful. As a leader of the young Norwegian children’s club he has to make hard choices that even endanger his own life. Helga Thomsen proves herself to be equal to the boys and is known for being clever.

To read the full review and find more books appropriate for children go to http://talesuntangled.wordpress.com

gimpyknee's review against another edition

4.0

A childhood favorite first read nearly 60 years ago, still an enjoyment.

barbaraskalberg's review against another edition

3.0

Read this one with my youngest b/c it's required summer reading for incoming 5th graders. Great adventure/hero story based on true events during WWII with kids helping save their country's gold from the Nazis. Interesting to me that it was published in the US in 1942, so unlike most of the WWII stories I've read, the author didn't know the outcome of the war when it was written.

shoff714's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful informative inspiring tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25