Winner of the Golden Kite Award for Nonfiction The remarkable tale of two young men during the Klondike Gold Rush, told through first-hand diaries, letters, and more—“excellent reading” for middle grade fans of The Call of the Wild and adventure stories ( School Library Journal )   As thousands head north in search of gold, Marshall Bond and Stanley Pearce join them, booking passage on a steamship bound for the Klondike goldfields. The journey is life threatening, but the two friends make it to Dawson City, in Canada, build a cabin, and meet Jack London—all the while searching for the ultimate reward: gold!   A riveting, true, action-packed adventure, with their telegrams, diaries, and letters, as well as newspaper articles and photographs. An author’s note, timeline, bibliography, and further resources encourage readers to dig deeper into the Gold Rush era. Gr 8 Up–Stanley Pearce and Marshall Bond were adventurous young men in the summer of 1897 when they watched prospectors coming into Seattle from Canada's Northwest Territories. Loaded down with gold dust, the prospectors told of the incredible riches to be found in the Klondike. Pearce and Bond both came from mining families and felt certain that their fortunes would be made if they could convince their parents to advance them money to venture north. With the funding forthcoming, the two mounted a well-planned, swiftly mobilized expedition that would see them working at superhuman levels for nearly a year–and returning with little to show for their efforts. Coauthor Richardson is a descendant of Pearce. Using the men's letters, along with newpaper accounts, excerpts from Bond's diary, and period photographs and reproductions, the book brings immediacy to the experience of young men in extreme conditions. The writing style is engaging, the inclusion of primary-source documents seamless, and the story thoroughly engrossing. Despite the high-interest nature of the text, the syntax and spelling could prove challenging for many students because much of it was written by late-Victorians. However, with some guidance, the book will find a readership. More focused on the experience of a few specific individuals than Charlotte Foltz Jones's Yukon Gold (Holiday House, 1999), this is excellent reading not only for interest, but also for support of the Common Core Standards as it is an excellent example of text complexity. The bibliography rounds out this volume nicely. Solid fare.–Ann Welton, Grant Elementary School, Tacoma, WAα(c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Hearing the cry of “Gold!” Marshall Bond and Stanley Pearce readied themselves for prospecting for gold in the Klondike. The friends, in their late twenties, had mining backgrounds and college degrees, and well-to-do families to fund their trip. From September 1897 to July 1898, they survived exposure to a harsh winter (negative-60 degrees), endless summer days, hardship, and near-death. They never struck it rich, but they learned a great deal about themselves. An authors note describes how the book was born when Richardson, the great-great-nephew of Pearce, told his friend, Meissner, about a bag of letters that had been handed down in his family. Intertwining these letters, telegrams, and newspaper reports with historical research, archival photographs, and a personal hike over the Chilkoot Trail, Meissner then collaborated to compose this eye-opening work, which is a natural companion for Jack London’s Call of the Wild and other historical-fiction works about the Klondike gold rush. Grades 7-10. --J. B. Petty ". . . An eye-opening work, which is a natural companion for Jack London's Call of the Wild and other historical-fiction works about the Klondike gold rush." — Booklist ★ "A remarkable collection of documents paints a picture of the Klondike gold rush in vivid detail. . . Adding only transitional paragraphs, the authors skillfully arrange these letters plus diary entries, telegrams and Pearce's articles for the Denver Republican to convey the men's story in compelling, first-person voices. The attractive design incorporates intriguing pull-out quotes, maps, posters, documents and many well-chosen, captioned photographs, including one of Jack London, who camped near Pearce and Bond's cabin . . . an excellent companion to The Call of the Wild. A memorable adventure, told with great immediacy."— Kirkus Reviews, starred review "This is excellent reading... "— School Library Journal David Meissner has travelled to more than thirty countries and is obviously no stranger to adventure. While researching this book, he hiked the Chilkoot Trail from Alaska into Canada. David is a teacher who has written more than twenty children's books. Kim Richardson is the great-great nephew of Stanley Pearce, whose Klondike adventures inspired this book. He has travelled to five continents and otherregions of the earth. Kim