California in the 1960s and 70s forms the background to a saga of one family’s passions, past and present, played out against the explosive era of the Vietnam War. It follows the young part-Chinese heiress, May Reade, as she searches through her illustrious heritage for the roots of her own identity and her struggle to reconcile her Asian self with the American. Her journey of self-discovery takes her from the anti-war barricades of Berkeley to a remote village in China where she at last meets the mother who had deserted her at birth. There, in the country of her ancestors, she will not only begin to understand her confusion, but will find her future happiness and, in the final, savage climax of the fall of Saigon, decide her own destiny. Gift of the Golden Mountain continues the story of the pioneering Reade family, first encountered in the author’s earlier novel Hers the Kingdom. Seen through the eyes of faith, lifelong family friends and archivist, it describes with telling effect the pain one generation inflicts on the next, and the healing power of love and compassion, forgiveness and commitment.

California in the 1960s and 70s forms the background to a saga of one family’s passions, past and present, played out against the explosive era of the Vietnam War. It follows the young part-Chinese heiress, May Reade, as she searches through her illustrious heritage for the roots of her own identity and her struggle to reconcile her Asian self with the American. Her journey of self-discovery takes her from the anti-war barricades of Berkeley to a remote village in China where she at last meets the mother who had deserted her at birth. There, in the country of her ancestors, she will not only begin to understand her confusion, but will find her future happiness and, in the final, savage climax of the fall of Saigon, decide her own destiny. Gift of the Golden Mountain continues the story of the pioneering Reade family, first encountered in the author’s earlier novel Hers the Kingdom. Seen through the eyes of faith, lifelong family friends and archivist, it describes with telling effect the pain one generation inflicts on the next, and the healing power of love and compassion, forgiveness and commitment.

May Reade, a Berkeley graduate student, acknowledges her Chinese heritage as she confronts the mother who abandoned her to return to Red China

Jack and Pete sell their small farm and head west in search of adventure and gold.

Working on the Transcontinental Railroad promises a fortune—for those who survive. Growing up in 1860s China, Tam Ling Fan has lived a life of comfort. Her father is wealthy enough to provide for his family but unconventional enough to spare Ling Fan from the debilitating foot-binding required of most well-off girls. But Ling Fan’s life is upended when her brother dies of influenza and their father is imprisoned under false accusations. Hoping to earn the money that will secure her father’s release, Ling Fan disguises herself as a boy and takes her brother’s contract to work for the Central Pacific Railroad Company in America. Life on “the Gold Mountain” is grueling and dangerous. To build the railroad that will connect the west coast to the east, Ling Fan and other Chinese laborers lay track and blast tunnels through the treacherous peaks of the Sierra Nevada, facing cave-ins, avalanches, and blizzards—along with hostility from white Americans. When someone threatens to expose Ling Fan’s secret, she must take an even greater risk to save what’s left of her family . . . and to escape the Gold Mountain alive.

Guangdong -- Gold Mountain -- Central Pacific -- Foothills -- The High Sierra -- The Summit -- The Strike -- Truckee -- The Golden Spike -- Beyond Promontory.

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