This novel by Barbara Riefe tells the story of a small family that journeys overland by covered wagon to California. It is 1849 and the husband, Noah , has been bitten by the gold rush bug. The wife, Lucy doesn’t want to leave her friends and family in Baltimore, but she loves her husband and so agrees to pack up her belongings and her small daughter. They are able to travel about a third of the way with a small wagon party that is heading to Oregon, but eventually they must leave and strike out on their own. The journey is hazardous, strenuous and at times heartbreaking. It amazes me what people put themselves through on the barest promise of a better life to come.

I enjoyed this book, but wished there was more to the characters. I never really felt connected to them, they always remained just black and white with no real depth. Of course, the subject matter really interests me, and it was a easy and quick read. Barbara Riefe is a born story-teller and certainly knew what she was writing about, I just wish I was able to get more involved in the story. ( )