Courtney Maika was just 17 when she wrote A Forest of Gold, but the talented young author has created a winning character in Emily Pattersen, a 12-year-old schoolgirl living in the Northern Ontario town of Mattawa. The novel opens in 1927, and Emily has just received a copy of Anne of Green Gables, which she adores. Maika crafts a book that, obviously inspired by the L.M. Montgomery classic, is also a great YA read.

The story’s main conflict centres on Emily’s older brother Joe’s decision, during the winter while their father is away, to sneak off to a logging camp (a dangerous but lucrative move) with the intent of proving his independence. Emily may be prim and a little pious at times, but she is also every bit the adolescent, endowed with pride, awkwardness, and touches of rebellion to prove it. She is quickly caught up in Joe’s deception and the thrill of a secret.

This tension, while enjoyable, simmers at a fairly low temperature. Indeed, the stakes are never very high for Emily, but her voice is charming enough that one is compelled to keep reading, just to hear what she has to say.

Readers will enjoy hearing about little-known practices and trivia from 1920s Canada, details that are included not to flaunt research but as casual anecdotes in which Emily shines front and centre.

The book’s greatest strength is the effective use of a journal format; the text is convincing as the diary of a 12-year-old while also deftly incorporating information about small-town life in the early part of the 20th century. A Forest of Gold is filled with compelling characters, and would make a fine springboard for a series.