China Grade

A novel about the Transcontinental Railroad

Sixteen years after the gold rush, California underwent a social and cultural transformation with the influx of Chinese workers to build the transcontinental railroad. They filled the ranks of the Anglo-Americans. Together they risked everything battling the elements in the high Sierra while laying track. China Grade is the story of two Chinese brothers and a Cornish family searching for a better tomorrow. Their lives, hopes, and dreams cross paths in unexpected ways. This novel is an insightful historical account wrapped around a love story. It breathes life into the people who built the Overland Route as it delves into the motivations and challenges they faced — physical and cultural — working for the Central Pacific Railroad. First in a trilogy. Book two is Wrights. Book three is Powder Works, available now. A Kindle ebook with all three novels is available, called Broken Tools. Also available in print. An extensive edit of the manuscript is included with this edition, March 6, 2023.