From the author of Elizaâs Freedom Road and Calico Girl (a Kirkus Best Book of the Year) comes a dramatic historical middle grade novel that is âa unique lens through which to examine the 1849 Gold Rushâ (School Library Journal) following an enslaved girl taking the chance to find freedom on the Overland Trail to California.
In Alexandria, Virginia, in the mid-19th century, a slave-owning family is facing financial trouble. The eldest son, Jason, thinks going to California to mine for gold might be the best way to protect his fatherâs legacy. Heâll need a cook, a laundress, and a hostler for the journey, and one of them is twelve-year-old Clementine, whose mother calls her Hope.
From Independence, Missouriâthe âGateway to the Westââshe and the others join a wagon train on the Emigrant Overland Trail. But what Jason didnât consider is taking the three enslaved people west will give them an opportunity to free themselvesâmanifesting their destiny.