In Erin Soderberg Downing's Northeastern Minnesota Book Award Winning YA novel Just Keep Walking, Jo and her father had made a plan to hike 100 miles on the Superior Hiking Trail. However, when her father leaves her family for another, it's Jo's non-adventurous mother who steps in to accompany Jo on the journey.
What could go wrong?
As preparation for writing, Soderberg took an identical trip to the fictional one in the book, with her then 13-year-old son as a companion. "We hiked the hundred miles in this book so that we would know what it smelled like, what it felt like, what parts of us hurt each day."
Even for the most experienced hikers, the unforeseen can throw well-laid plans off course. For inexperienced hikers, like Jo and her mother, a journey of 100 miles on rugged trail can become a nightmare when peppered with the unexpected. But the story is less about the obstacles, and more about how Jo reacts. "Getting through when you just want to quit... you realize how much you're capable of handling," says Soderberg.
Just Keep Walking is available at Fitger's, Zenith Bookstore, and just about anywhere books are sold. As a way of supporting the trail, Soderberg is dedicating 10% of all sales of the book to the Superior Hiking Trail. More information about Erin Soderberg Downing and her writing can be found on her website.
Minnesota Reads is produced at The North 103.3 with funding provided in part by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
