✨Snow Treasure (1942)

By Marie McSwigan

4Rbooks                                5/6                 grades         4-7

Amazon                                 4.8/5               grade level   3-7

Goodreads                             4.01/5          

Common Sense Media            Not yet reviewed

196 pages

Synopsis

             The Germans are coming and the people of Norway are worried that the gold in their banks will be stolen and used to support the war, even against themselves. They decide to take the gold to America but must create a plan to get it out of its hiding place and down to a hidden chip in an out of the way fjord.

            Though dangerous, the best option is to use their older children. The gold can be hidden on their sleds and the children can slide it down the hills to the fjord.  There it will be hidden until safe to take on board the ship.

            12-year-old Peter Lundstrom has been recruited to be the leader of the Defense Club.  His sister Lovisa, and friends Helga and Michael are also chosen as squad leaders. They will each take turns with groups of 8-10 children sliding the hidden gold down the hills.  They know if they are caught it could mean imprisonment, or worse.

            Timing is important, both for avoiding the Germans who have built barracks down by the port, and to get all of the gold moved before winter ends and the snow begins to melt.

Parental Guidelines:    low

Norway is invaded by Germany.

A Polish young man is captured by the Germans and forced to work in their army.

The children, and adults, are in constant danger and will be killed if their scheme is discovered.

Many threats if German orders are not obeyed.

Recommendation

            I don’t usually review books this old, but it was recommended by a friend. Based on how much I enjoyed this novel, maybe I will start doing reviews for classic books, too. This was a very good piece of historical fiction based on true events during the beginning of World War II. It must be good to still be in print 83 years later (last published 2006, also available as an audio book). It is available on Amazon and through Barnes and Noble. I’m not sure you will find it in many school libraries. A quick glance at some local libraries found a few copies available.  Worth the time and effort if interested.

            Though I believe any upper elementary student could pick this up to read, some background on WWII and Germany’s attempt to take over Europe would help comprehension. It’s a novel that is accessible for all reading levels. Chapters are fairly short and there are enough illustrations to highlight certain aspects of the story. Children can imagine themselves being the main characters and dream of being heroes for their country, too.

            There is also a movie version of the story available on Amazon Prime.  It was made in 1968 and is rated G.