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zoesnicholson 's review for:
Walk on Earth a Stranger
by Rae Carson
Walk on Earth a Stranger is an entertaining and action-packed story, but I can't say it brings anything especially unique or new to the collection of YA westerns already published.
When Lee Westfall's parents are murdered, she is forced to disguise herself as a boy and travel from her small Alabaman hometown all the way to California - where rumors of gold have sprouted. Except Lee has a secret: she has the power to sense gold, and, with the Gold Rush, it's a power people would kill for.
Lee is a character you can't help but sympathize and root for. She is thrown into such a difficult situation, and yet she still manages to stay strong and hope for the best.
I'm always wary of stories that rely strongly on both historical fiction and fantasy elements. They cause the story to turn into something that's a bit unbelievable and exaggerated. Yet, with Walk on Earth a Stranger, Rae Carson manages to combine the historical fiction and fantasy elements of the story flawlessly. The way she utilizes and combines both genres adds to the impact of the story, and it is done in a way that makes sense.
Rae Carson does an excellent job incorporating the history of the California Gold Rush into the story. She expertly captures the dangerous nature of the traveling westward and the obstacles that come with it. Bandits, burgles, chorea...nothing came easy in this era, and Carson doesn't let us forget that.
Walk on Earth a Stranger might not have brought anything especially new to the glowing collection of YA westerns, but it was an entertaining and gripping read regardless.