Hannah Johnson is pretty happy as a missionary kid in Papua New Guinea. But when she visits her cousin Vanessa for a summer in America, everything changes.
Vanessa and her friends try to catch Hannah up on all the latest fashions, but in the end, Hannah feels hopeless. She doesn't think she'll ever be able to keep up with the rich girls--but that doesn't stop her from trying.
In the process, Hannah is forced to come to grips with what she values most: beauty on the inside or beauty on the outside.
The sixth book in the teen fiction series TrueColors , Fool's Gold deals with identity, materialism, values, and money. Includes discussion questions. |
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 Engaging story with a terrific message |
| Review Date: August 5, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Michelle Sutton, Arizona |
| Though meant for young adults, Fool's Gold is a pleasurable read even for people over twenty. I liked the way the author contrasted the world of a missionary kid who was raised on donations and taught to be thrifty, with the world of the rich and vain relatives she spent the summer with. I like how she showed the innocent being sucked into the mindset of her peers and how her present lack of communication with God allowed for her judgment to be poor (since she didn't pray about anything and had left her Bible back home.) If you have a young person in your life who struggles with always having to have the latest fashion and going into heavy credit card debt over ridiculously high priced clothing, this book is a must read. I highly recommend it. |
Glamourous Lifestyle
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| Review Date: December 18, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Deborah, Fairfax, VA |
This is a topic that almost any high school girl can totally relate to. Clothes are almost the biggest factor of what makes you part of the in crowd and what leave you on the outskirts. These days especially, labels are the ticket to popularity. Having lots of money almost guarantees being in the in crowd. Why are we so fascinated with having lots of money? Melody Carlson perfectly translates the feelings of a teen girl struggling with not having the money to buy everything and having to face those who do.
I was a bit worried at first that Hannah would be a total goody two shoe because of her background. She is a bit naive about somethings because she hasn't been in the country that long and isn't up to the pop culture. However she acts pretty normal which is good because it's more relatable to reader. Ikept getting really annoyed with Vanessa throughout the book. The same with her mother as well. I cannot stand being around those type of people and it just made me want to scream throughout the entire book. I can accept this type of behavior if you earned the money you were spending. However, teens who spend credit cards using their parents money "just cause" really annoys me. I wish all parents realized that giving your kids everything they want does not make them love you more or make you a better parent. That being said, I rather enjoyed the ending and what happened to Vanessa and her mom. Almost like justice was finally served.
Something I found a bit weird and annoying after awhile was the continued calling of Ross Dress for Less. Let me say, I love the store. I get stuff there all the time. They have great deals and a really good selection. I just have never heard anyone keep calling it by it's full name. I could understand the first time it was mentioned but repeatedly calling it that way? At that point, it seemed like an ad for them, and that Ross Dress for Less had paid for product placement.
Other than this, I really enjoyed this book. The subject matter is one that many teen girls will be able to relate to and even women in their 20s and 30s can get advice out of this book. Sadly we live in a material world and when you don't share that lifestyle it can be incredibly hard. Again another great YA book from Melody Carlson.
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KCS Fool's Gold
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| Review Date: May 13, 2008 |
| Reviewer: , |
Fool's Gold Color Me Consumed is an excellent novel by Melody Carlson and the sixth book in her TrueColors series.
She created the life of a Hannah Johnson, a MK (missionary kid) who spends her first summer since she was eleven here in the States with her rich relatives. She soon has to pick between a rich, easy life or a hard working, but rewarding life.
Being a MK she grew up on donations and good morals, but once she begins to tag along with her cousin, Vanessa, everything changes. Having a cousin who keeps up with the latest fashion trends and would pay $200.00 for a shirt didn't bother Hannah at first, but she soon found herself getting caught up too. She had started as a God fearing, Christian girl, and as soon as she started getting wrapped up in earthly things she completely forgot about Him.
It seemed as if her life was going perfect-her amazing clothes, perfect boy friend, and really cool friends. Then one night at a party she over hears some of the richer girls saying some mean things about her and her cousin, that brings her back down to earth. She realizes that by worrying about her outward appearance, she let her heart grow ugly, not to mention the debts she racked up. To see if she straightens out her life or keeps living extravagantly you have to read the book for yourself.
I think this was an amazing book, probably because Melody Carlson is an amazing Christian author, but that's besides my point. Even though other reviews say other wise I think this was a really helpful book. When I was reading the book I was personally having the same problem, I was getting caught up in earthly things and to read a book about the issue I was going through helped me. I realized that the same thing probably happened to a lot of other girls and I didn't feel so bad going back to the Lord.
I won't say anymore so that you can read the book and draw your own conclusion. I'm not sure it may not effect you the way it effected me, but that's for you to find out.
I think this is a good book for girls who are getting lost in their own spiritual life or if you just enjoy reading in general. Of course you don't have to read this book, but I highly recommend it.
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Fool's Gold
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| Review Date: December 22, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Lori H. Poppinga, |
In Fool's Gold, Hannah Johnson was perfectly content as a missionary kid until she spent the summer with her rich relatives. High style and a skimpy budget didn't mix very well, and Hannah finds out how fast money can slip through her fingers when she tries to keep up with Cousin Vanessa and her rich friends. Through her misadventures, Hannah learns a valuable lesson about who brings true peace and happiness into her life.
Melody Carlson speaks to girls in their language. Her books communicate truth through situations real girls face everyday. I have appreciated her edgy style and look forward to reading more of Carlson's books as well as adding them to our church library. As an added bonus, Melody Carlson's books are AR books (if you have school children, you know what this means). So my kids can read her books for credit at school. I love the fact that my children can read good Christian fiction for school.
I am a Blogger Reviewer for NavPress.
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consumed
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| Review Date: January 14, 2010 |
| Reviewer: readaholic, Canada |
I like Melody's style in this book. She dug deep to make the story compelling and brought out the real issue of materialism. At first I really wasn't sure what to expect but as Melody took you in deeper to the story you couldn't help but wonder how far was it going to go. I loved Hannah's lingo-- I couldn't help but say "reckon" after a lot.. but perhaps it's not far off from my Canadian idioms lol. I don't think you can read this book and walk away without getting the point. Even though the setting is in LA and talks about extreme money issues, I think it is easy to relate to because at some point or another most of us have had to make the decision of how to deal with money.
Thanks to Navpress for the review copy! |
A Must-Read for Teen Girls
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| Review Date: January 19, 2010 |
| Reviewer: Mocha with Linda, Texas, United States |
| This book does a great job of portraying the temptations and situations common to many teenage girls. The lure of popularity. The enticement of credit cards, checking accounts, and sales. The attitude of the "haves" toward the "have nots" and the insecurity and lack of self-worth that often results - on both sides. And the spiritual numbness that results when one "takes a vacation" from Bible-reading and prayer. The reader is privy to Hannah's struggles and thoughts each step along the way, and her eventual disillusionment, while predictable, was still painful. This should be required reading of every teen girl who lives within driving distance of a mall! |
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