Smallpox

1875. Economic hardship and volcanic eruptions in Iceland send Kristín Gunnarsdottír and her family on a journey to New Iceland, a colony established by the Canadian government to entice Icelanders to the Northwest Territory. There she meets Noodin, a young Saulteaux man, who helps the Icelanders survive the unforgiving climate. In 1876, a second group of Icelanders arrives at Lake Winnipeg and brings smallpox with them. Can Kristín and these families survive the outbreak? How can they make a home in a place already inhabited by the Saulteaux? This well-researched account of a terrifying epidemic is brought alive by fictional characters set within a story grounded in fact.