How Much of These Hills Is Gold

How Much of These Hills are Gold follows two siblings, Lucy and Sam, as they search for a place to bury their dead father. As Lucy and Sam wander the wilds of Northern California, they question the true meaning of "home", as that is where superstition says they must bury their father, or else he will haunt them forever. Lucy is recovering from the effects of her fathers alcoholism and abuse after her mothers death. She is also jealous of Sam, as she was the beautiful, favorite child. Sam is also dealing with a lot, as she wishes she was a boy, going as far as cross-dressing and putting a carrot in her pants. The book is main told through Lucy's point of view, and it is not in chronological order. Although it starts with the story of these two siblings, it also tells the story of their parents. This story tells of the hardships that Chinese Americans faced during the American gold rush in California, including extreme poverty, severe weather events, and anti-Chinese prejudice.

This story taught me many valuable things. It taught me a lot about the nuance of emotions. It illustrates how much you can love someone, yet hate them at the same time. Lucy's father explains about this when describing the relationship between him and her mother. Lucy also feels the same way, as a part of her loves her father and hates him as well. This book also had a powerful message about hope. Those arriving in California, especially the immigrants, had so much hope that they would become rich. Lucy's father never gave up hope that he would find gold and be able to buy a piece of land for his family. However, when a law was past that prevented immigrants from owning land, he gave up hope, and it was a major turning point.