Snow Treasure Book Review

Snow Treasure

By Marie McSwigan

I have a child that loves to learn about World War 2, so I picked this book as a read aloud and I am so glad I did.  What an excellent read.  When the Nazi's occupied Norway, the people were afraid that the troops would steal all of their gold from the banks.  The men and women of this small village came up with a risky and daring plan, they would send the gold to America.  There was one major problem, they needed to get the gold from its hiding place to the waiting boat. In order to do so, they had to go past the Nazi's who had set up camp on the beach.   A risky plan was developed and put into action, 38 school-aged children would move the gold. In the book, these 38 children moved the gold 12 miles a day, but the historical notes in the book say it was actually closer to 32 miles a day. 

Day after day these children risked their lives as they encountered the Nazi soldiers.  How terrifying that must have been. But did they succeed?  I will leave those details for you to find out as I would hate to spoil the ending.  Snow Treasures is a great read about ingenuity and bravery. It is also a great read for real-life situations and can open up questions about what are we willing to do for what we believe in.  

This was one of those books that my children didn't want me to just end at reading one chapter a day.  It was an engaging and thought-provoking read.  I wanted to know more about what actually happened, unfortunately, there is not a lot of information about it. Please leave a comment below if you happen to know where I can learn more about these children and their bravery.

Book Summary: 

  "In the bleak winter of 1940, Nazi troops parachuted into Peter Lundstrom's tiny Norwegian village and held it captive. Nobody thought the Nazis could be defeated—until Uncle Victor told Peter how the children could fool the enemy. It was a dangerous plan. They had to slip past Nazi guards with nine million dollars in gold hidden on their sleds. It meant risking their country's treasure—and their lives. This classic story of how a group of children outwitted the Nazis and sent the treasure to America has captivated generations of readers."

It is said that the events described in the book are based on historical facts, making this a historical fiction.  There is some speculation as to if the event really happened.  Whether it happened or not, the courage of these young children is well worth the read.