The Thousand Dollar Fish

Sugar Creek Gang #15

by Paul Hutchens

An incredible discovery in an icehouse leads to an encounter with a criminal. Will the police come quickly enough to catch the man the Gang trapped? Will the Gang be able to deliver an important letter from Little Tom Till's mom before it's too late? In this tale from northern Minnesota, the Gang learns about several kinds of fishing, the most important one being fishing for men.

The Sugar Creek Gang series chronicles the faith-building adventures of a group of fun-loving, courageous Christian boys. These classic stories have been inspiring children to grow in their faith for more than five decades. More than three million copies later, children continue to grow up relating to members of the gang as they struggle with the application of their Christian faith to the adventure of life.

Now that these stories have been updated for a new generation, you and your child can join in the Sugar Creek excitement.

Genres: Fiction, Christian, Childrens, Christian Fiction, Mystery

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1948

Reviews

[Katja Labonté · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. This is a fun, interesting read—probably pretty exciting the first time you read it but since I’ve read it several times before, it’s not that exciting any more. ;) It has some pretty water descriptions and a good “fishers of men” theme.

*I read the Moody Press abridged version, but I have read some of the original copies of this series and I much prefer those, as being more vintage.*

A Favourite Quote: “I couldn't help but wonder if maybe nearly every criminal in the world had some relative ... who felt as Tom was feeling right then. He looked awfully sad. For some reason it seemed that maybe it was also a big crime to hurt people's hearts the way Tom's was being hurt right that second."
A Favourite Beautiful Quote: “...away we went toward the lake, where the waves were sighing and lapping against the shore and dock posts and making the boast rock a little."
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “I ... shifted myself to another uncomfortable position on the hot boat seat. Any position is uncomfortable when the fish don't bite and the deerflies are swarming around your legs and hands and and biting fiercely just the way you wish the fish would."

[Ms. James · Rating 3 out of 5]

The biggest complaint I have about this book is simply the fact that it continually references other books in the past and potential future books in the series. I get that it is a series, and I understand that they are all intertwined, but I do not think that it needs to be overly stated.

I am not a pre-teen boy nor am I a fisherman so there were a few aspects of the story that went over my head. I do enjoy how the Sugar Creak Gang always looks to Jesus for help, because they know that they cannot do it on their own. Little Jim's goal of sharing the gospel through tracts in the water was very noble of him.

My final comment is simply that the conclusion of the story felt so incomplete. They took Big Jim's words as validity, when his words could have been a well concocted lie. It felt incomplete, especially because not all of the gang was there by the end.

[Debra Hahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a awesome adventure! With a strange letter, and other dangerous twist
and turns, that just leads to more questions and dander. The Gang has to be on
their "A" game, with a lot of prayers for courage, because a life is at stake. Will
they be able save it? You will have to pick up the book and read this crazy
Mystery for yourself to find out. Then get yourself a score card to keep track
of who's who in this bizarre Mystery.
Debra H.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

There was a lot of money mentioned in this book. However, even much more valuable was the soul that was lost and then was found by the Lord. Very well done!!!

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as fun as previous ones.

[Joelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read aloud Sep.-6–Oct. 7th 2024 to W, N, MS, & A