Welcome to the circulating blog tour and giveaway for The Searchers series of middle grade historical fiction by Bertha Schwartz, hosted by JustRead tours!
ABOUT THE BOOK
Title: Sarah’s Search for Treasure (Searchers #3)
Author: Bertha Schwartz
Publisher: Ambassador International
Release Date: December 1, 2018
Genre: Middle Grade Historical Fiction
It’s 1849, and when Sarah’s papa and brother strike out for gold, she is stuck at home to help take care of the family and farm. This task quickly turns dangerous as the Gold Rush rises in frenzy around them. Neighbors abandon their livestock and the family must fend off half-started miners ready to steal everything they have. Sarah decides to turn her circumstances into a business—feeding the miners in exchange for gold and labor.
Sarah’s ingenuity and leadership are tested as she faces thieves, mysteries, and violent miners. Trouble closes in on all sides, and Sarah must make tough decisions on her own.
Soon Sarah learns that true treasure is not always gold, and that the greatest adventures can happen without even leaving home.
PURCHASE: Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | Ambassador
BOOKS IN THIS SERIES
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bertha Schwartz is a Swiss Amish transplant to the beautiful farmland of Nappanee, Indiana. She loves spending time with family and friends, including fifty-two nieces and nephews. Her hobbies include scrapbooking, sewing, and reading. Raised near the lovely Swiss city of Berne, Indiana, Swiss is her mother-language. Languages and different dialects are a special interest of hers.
Review
I’ve become attached to this series. It took me a minute in the beginning to get to the middle grade mindset. It’s been too many minutes since I had minions to sit down and review with. It shows in my show grind to switch gears. I also found the enigma of the author to be it’s own little intrigue. As an avid reader of Amish fiction I was taken in by the idea of an Amish author. To engage in something so very public-minded and the balance that must entail for her. I’m so happy she has taken this path however, as her words have so much to offer to our children as they mature and learn. I’ve also picked up somewhere in my researching that there is plans for more books. I’m seriously in favor of that coming to fruition.
I adored Sarah and her family. Girl has got gumption and a good head on her shoulders. She is not afraid to go after what she envisions for herself and is heartfelt in her logic. Mind you, the Searchers Series, is not without it’s own moments that need a boost and Sarah is no different. She’s just a bit too much. She’s too perfectly quick with her ideas and her wit. You don’t really see her struggle and have to work through those things she just instinctively knows how to move forward. She even puts her mother in a lesser light to some degree in that Ma just seems to follow whatever Sarah plots. I’m not sure that that is the overall message we want to send to our kids. Especially when they are making decisions, or could make decisions, that might not be the safest course of action – like inviting in all the strangers (all of them!). I think when we give our children unrealistic heroes we are setting them up to struggle when they can’t being to mirror that. Timing, specifically the passage of time, is a frustration with this book as well. There doesn’t seem to be a clear definition of time throughout the pages until the very end. I feel like the marking of time with seasons, or even holidays, would have helped to delineate this out better so that it didn’t feel so abrupt.
Back to unrealistic heroes for a moment however. Yes, Sarah isn’t necessarily the hero I want to give to Moo Moo, only because she is too quick and too perfect and truly lacks struggle; but she’s not all wrong either. Sarah is also a young lady that trusts her instincts, uses what she knows to better life for everyone who crosses her path, and is willing to take whatever task comes across her path. Those are all characteristics I want for Moo to emulate. Bells, through in Munch and Goobie and even Squirt when she’s old enough. It’s a trait that even the boys can advantage from as well. With a little more balance and a realistic expression of the struggle that being that person I think the better example we can provide for our children. I don’t want to ever discourage any of the Minions from really reaching for everything they can. The flip side is I don’t ever want to set the expectation that what we do reach for takes work. And setbacks. And redos. And that it’s always worth it for the right goals. Sarah found what she never really went looking for, right in her own backyard. I want that for my Minions. I want that for all the children around me. Here’s to hoping that there will be more Searchers. More role models. More opportunities for our children to learn and grow with knowledge and faith.
TOUR GIVEAWAY
One (1) winner will receive:
- a set of all 3 books in The Searchers series (US only)
Enter via the Rafflecopter giveaway below. Giveaway will begin at midnight January 9, 2019 and lasts through 11:59pm February 4, 2019. Void where prohibited by law. Winners will be notified within a week of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen.
Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.
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