What Made California the Golden State?: Life During the Gold Rush book cover
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  • US History

What Made California the Golden State?: Life During the Gold Rush

Discover what life was really like during the California Gold Rush in this powerful graphic novel written by National Book Award finalist and Eisner Award-winning creator Shing Yin Khor and illustrated by Kass Gray.

Presenting Who HQ Graphic Novels: an exciting addition to the #1 New York Times best-selling Who Was? series!

Explore the Gold Rush from the perspectives of William Miller and Henry Garrison, two miners in the Sierra Nevada region, and uncover the often unrelenting conditions of the California gold mines. A story of community, determination, and the search for the American Dream, this graphic novel invites readers to immerse themselves into what life was really like during this pivotal period in American history—brought to life by gripping narrative and vivid full-color illustrations that jump off the page.

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