Interesting book, learned about New Zealand in a fiction setting
Even though the book club questions want you to discuss how the story is about class divide, in my opinion it is about pride and shame. Although it was very slow to start it may have been intentional to show how dire the characters lives were. They had no connection to each other and I had very little connection to them. It was not until Joseph left Harriet in the hopes of finding gold did the story get interesting for me. Rose Termain is a brilliant author, her way with words made me think the title was about the scenery of New Zealand. (I did not read the back cover or even notice the gold pan on the front cover, I was really busy and just needed to get the book read before I lead the discussion at book club). I could really see what she as so eloquently describing. My favorite quote in the book, was a saying from Pao Yi's father "We may avoid shame if we choose, for shame seldom takes us unawares, but has it's warning cry and we can hear that cry clearly. If you read this for a book club, please discuss pride and shame. Even though I didn't like the book until the middle, after a certain point, I really did enjoy it.
