THE GOLD CRUSADES: A SOCIAL HISTORY OF COLD RUSHES. Fetherling, Douglas. 1849-1929. Toronto, Macmillan, 1988. 272pp. cloth. $35.00, ISBN 0-7715-9287-6. CIP Grades 12 and up/Ages 17 and up Reviewed by Joan VanSickle Heaton Volume 17 Number 3 1989 May From California to Hemlo, Fetherling tracks the progress of gold fever across 150 years and many continents. His account of the gold-rush phenomenon examines the economic, legal and political implications of greed. He identifies the heroes and villains and describes the circumstances that produced one type or the other. The book fully develops each separate gold rush, from the first discovery of the mineral to its boom-town or bust conclusion. Some of the differences between the gold rushes grow out of the politics of the regions and the mistakes of the past, but the combination of greed and geography provides the greatest drama. Accounts of the hardships endured crossing the Chilkoot Pass or surviving in the Transvaal heat reveal a rawness of spirit common among "the men who moll for gold." Of less obvious but equal importance are the roles of the entrepreneurs and opportunists who accompanied the prospectors or "argonauts," bringing a parody of urbanization to the remotest location. Attention is also given to the many Chinese diggers, who, despite cruel racist restrictions, persevered to profit, as well as to the African tribesmen, who did not. Photographs highlight the historic material. Fetherling's style is detached and slightly ironic. He spreads the facts out in an analytical and amusing way and supplies a thorough and annotated bibliography. Recommended support material for senior secondary students. Joan VanSickle Heaton, LaSalle Secondary School, Kingston, Ont.