Diamond Fever!: A True Crime Story in the Wild West by Steve Sheinkin

What worked:

This narrative is based on factual information, as it retells one of the greatest hoaxes in the 1870s. The first part of the book sounds like a rags-to-riches tale, as two men bring a bag of raw diamonds to a potential investor. The investor determines the diamonds are real and convinces others to put up more money. The whole story sounds like a fantastic opportunity to make millions until the narrator informs readers that the diamond mine never existed! The next section reveals what was happening behind the scenes, as the devious scheme of two small-time miners unfolds. Philip Arnold and John Slack cheat investors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars (about 15 million today), and the book shows what really happened as they contacted investors. The pair set up a scenario about an untapped diamond mine, and the initial investor, George Roberts, spreads the story. The lie grows a life of its own!

The book includes black-and-white drawings and short comic strips to support the tale and break up the text. The author inserts interesting anecdotes about other events happening during this same time in history. A comic and pages of text describe Clarence King’s six-year mission to study hundreds of miles of land around the fortieth parallel. His efforts are instrumental in uncovering the fraud. Other parts talk about President Grant being arrested for racing his horse-drawn carriage down a city street, and Susan B. Anthony illegally voting in an election. The last section of the book shares the author’s abundant resources and an index to locate specific topics. Readers also learn that the author visited the actual diamond field from the story while he researched the topic.

What didn’t work as well:

The narrative is a recounting of events, so it may sound dry to young readers. There’s little character development, and the story isn’t embellished to make it sound more creative. However, the book’s purpose is to inform readers through a dramatic retelling of the Wild West hoax.

The final verdict:

The story teaches the lesson that if something seems too good to be true, then it probably isn’t. Young readers may be amazed that the diamond conspiracy actually happened! Overall, I recommend you give this book a shot.