Trusting True North

“A heartfelt and touching middle-grade book, where map-making serves as a wonderful metaphor for navigating relationships with family, friends, and community during the traumatizing start of the pandemic. Readers will love True and her X-marks-the-spot heart!” ―Lee Edward Födi, author of Spell Sweeper

True North Vincent is struggling after spending months in lockdown because of a virus. With her mom stuck across the border in Canada and her dad working long hours as a nurse at the hospital, True feels responsible for making sure her family stays safe, especially her grandma and her younger brother, Georgie, whose asthma makes him more vulnerable to the virus. She also wishes her older sister, Rose, would be friends with her again instead of texting on her phone.

True finds escape and comfort in working on her maps, a skill she learned from her mother. To keep Georgie entertained, True creates an elaborate treasure map for him to follow that spans the forest beyond her backyard. While exploring, they find a litter of newborn kittens in an old barn. The smallest kitten looks sickly and has been abandoned by the mama cat. True names her Teacup; she knows exactly how it feels to not have a mom around when you need her the most.

True also meets Kyler, who wants to care for the kittens, and True realizes he might not be the bully everyone thinks he is. But when both Teacup and Kyler get sick, True is afraid she won't be able to help everyone all by herself.

Running out of her own fixes and remedies, True reaches out and realizes that her family does care about her and wants to offer support and guidance to help her find her way through the unexpected challenges the virus and life bring.

Gina Linko has a master's degree from DePaul University in creative writing, as well as several published books for young adults and children. She lives in a south suburb of Chicago with her husband, three teenage children, and one ornery cat. By day, she edits college textbooks. At night, she writes to figure things out. She questions what is possible, what is real, and what it is that truly matters.