Christmas is coming, and Danny's father is away digging for gold... Danny wishes his dad would come home from Nevada for Christmas and writes him a letter to tell him so. When snow cuts off the mail until spring, only postman John Thompson can get through the Sierra Nevada Mountains to deliver his letter. This tale is based on the true story of a Scandinavian immigrant in the 1850s who braved the long and treacherous journey over the mountains on skis to deliver bags of mail that often weighed over 100 pounds. Snowshoe Thompson managed to become a legend of the gold rush days. "This is lively historical fiction with a nice sense of character and adventure, and the illustrations are packed with feeling and action." --Booklist Snowshoe Thompson is a Level Three I Can Read book. Level 3 includes many fun subjects kids love to read about on their own. Themes include friendship, adventure, historical fiction, and science. Level Three books are written for early independent readers. They include some challenging words and more complex themes and stories