Muiriel was born into the foster system when she was abandoned at birth. The nurses in the John Muir named her after the John Muir Medical Center where she was taken as a foundling. And this was the beginning of her strength.
The story opens as she leaves another foster placement. Her social worker, Joellen, is taking her to an island outside of Seattle where she will live with a foster mom who decided to take one last foster placement - a teen (though prior to this she has only fostered little ones). Muir takes pride in "packing lightly" and depending on no one but herself. But this island and the community there challenges her beliefs about herself and about her world.
Jennifer Longo wrote this book (as stated in the Author's Note at the end of the story) because her daughter, who was born into the foster system, noted that she often doesn't find herself represented in books. Longo listened to a number of kids who live or lived in the foster system and this story came out of those voices.
Longo states: "Voices of adults, well intended or not, overwhelmingly drive the myopic, adult-centric false narrative of foster care and adoption in America, talking over those of the kids in foster care who are screaming and no one is listening."
At the end of this story there are several resources listed for more information. One of these resources is Aging Out Institute. There are others listed in the book.
You can find a copy of this book on the Nashua South shelves (as soon as I donate this copy!)
Thanks for the recommendation from Valerie a guidance counselor from Londonderry.
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