Bendigo Gold is an adventure story experienced through the lens of a curious, perceptive twelve-year-old called Emily, who lives with her grandmother in Ireland. One day Emily finds an old envelope behind the cupboard. The contents of the envelope not only reveal that her Granny has inherited a property in Bendigo, a mining town north west of Melbourne, and that Emily has inherited a nugget of gold but it also uncovers family secrets concerning Granny’s father.
Inspired, by the realization that their financial worries can be resolved, Emily and Granny travel to Australia to claim the property “Rainbow End”, and to discover the whereabouts of the gold. Legal challenges, however, arise in relation to the property when two crooks are discovered in the process of registering their claim on the land, and the nugget of gold has disappeared. In the quest for their inheritance, Emily meets fascinating characters: Bates, a lad with Asperser Syndrome who becomes her chief advisor, Alkira the Aborigine and her grandfather Matt Henson the Irish fiddler, Mei Ling, a Chinese friend whose father is a manager in the mining company, and Mr Wu the retired lawyer who helps Emily and her Granny uncover the property fraud.
http://edition.cnn.com/
It is on the flight to Australia that Emily first meets Bates who has a phenomenal interest and knowledge about gold, but his abrupt manner is difficult for Emily to handle. Later, he gets lost down a gold mine with Emily where they meet the ghost of Lady Deborah, an apparition that always precedes the discovery of gold. During this episode, Emily begins to understand Bates’ “condition”, and to appreciate his attributes. When Emily encounters difficulties concerning Rainbow End, she contacts Bates to clarify and explain legalities in the Australian system.
www.walkingmelbourne.com
At the hotel “Shamrock” Emily and her Granny meet Alkira, the receptionist who joins in the search for the nugget and shares gems about her background. Alkira’s Irish grandfather Matt Henson helps Granny to discover the truth about her father, and his story about the leprechauns hiding their gold at the end of the Rainbow encourages Emily to hunt for her nugget in “Rainbow End.
on-walkabout.com
Mei Ling and her family are also staying at the hotel, and when the two girls become friends, Emily discovers that Mei Ling’s dad has been in the process of buying “Rainbow End” for some time, on behalf of the mining company. Emily’s suspicions are aroused and ultimately lead her to discover, with the help of Mr Wu and her pal Bates that the lawyer Mr Bowman and his accomplice the estate agent Mr Kent are trying to swindle Granny out of her inheritance.
Throughout the story, Emily is searching for her nugget of gold. She is encouraged in this venture by the sighting of the ghost and by the discovery of a journal and a map found in “Rainbow End”. The journal, which is over 150 years old, is written by a girl called Tessie, one of the early pioneers. She tells about the journey from Melbourne to Bendigo and the purchase of Rainbow End. She mentions a sideboard, made by her father, with secret compartments. The nugget is not found in the compartment, but instead a map is discovered. This map reveals the whereabouts of the deeds of title for “Rainbow End”, and with the help of Mr Wu and Bates, Granny is able to recover the property.
stalkingcat.com.au
Emily, however, has to return to Ireland minus the nugget. She is disappointed but resigned to her loss. Then Granny trips over a bit of carpet beside the cupboard where the envelope had been found, and when they attempt to tuck in the carpet under the cupboard, Emily discovers the nugget.
ANSWERS TO HISTORIC SNAPSHOTS IN TIME PAGE Aborigine time: 1, 12 1859: 2,3,5,9,14 1945: 4,6,13 2012: 7,8,10,11