Lovely coming of age story set in Kentucky. Zinny is just one of the passel of "Taylors" that no one can tell apart. At the beginning of the summer, she comes across an old trail and when she finds out that it was paved with shale at one time, she decides that she will repair all 20 miles of the Bybank-Chocton trail by herself. During all the time that this takes to do, she discovers a lot about her family, and herself. Redbird is the nickname of her aunt, recently deceased and she & her uncle catch glimpses of red in the forest, convinced that redbird is visiting them....or was it a cardinal? ( )

This book always kinda scared me when I was younger. The setting is often the protagonist alone in the woods with her memories and guilt and grief, and it freaked me out. But also I think thats one of the reasons I like this book. The story has the reader thinking about death but also family and personal journeys and ghosts (both literal and metaphorical). Its a good book.

I like this book and its important to me, but I want to make a note that the love interest subplot bugged the crap out of me because of the age gap. I dont think I saw it as a big deal when I read this book when I was younger but now Im old and cranky and a 16 year old being interested in a girl 3 years younger than him is NOT COOL and also this book did not promote good ideas about boundaries or consent. ( )

I read "Walk Two Moons" by Creech a couple of years ago but wasn't aware she had written others, or that some of her characters and locations crossed novels, an interesting concept in itself. I enjoyed this book just as much as the first one and would argue that while this book is targeted to young adults it has much to say to less than young adults as well. Zinny is on a journey to repair an old pioneer trail that runs from her town to the next one, a journey of several miles physically. But she is really on a much longer journey and it is both a journey of self-discovery and of life. Repairing the trail and re-opening it helps her deal with loss, with love, with family, and with her own doubts and struggles. Through the work itself, and a few adventures along the way, she comes to an understanding that "there's a very fine line between people in your head and 'real' people out ther." A very enjoyable and readable book with a lot of food for thought even as you savor the wondrous story of a young woman on a search for life and meaning. ( )

Another utterly unique and wonderful book by this author.

Zinnie Taylor is a girl who wonders if her life will ever be simple. Her beloved and spirited aunt, nicknamed Redbird, has passed away, leaving her family subdued. She lives among her five other siblings, always lumped together as “one of those Taylors”. She wants more than anything to be unique, to find something she can call her own. She never expected that something to be in her own backyard.

One day, Zinnie unearths a single stepping stone by the creek in her yard, and it doesn’t take her long to realize that this is just the beginning of a trail; a trail covered by the undergrowth of years. And so Zinnie begins to clear the path with a zealous determination, and in doing so, begins to answer the questions of her own life.

What really happened to the baby cousin who was like a sister to her and died when she was small? How can she prove her uniqueness to her parents and siblings? What is she going to do about Jake, who brings her presents and confuses her more than anyone? And will she ever finish the immense task she has set herself, to clear the trail and untangle the mysteries of growing up?

Another quirky tale from Sharon Creech about the pains, triumphs, and realizations of love, loss, youth, and family. ( )

13-year-old Zinny has a slew of brothers and sisters and feels like she is never noticed. When she is in town, people invariably ask her, "Which one are you?" She carries guilt for giving her cousin the whooping cough she died from, though both girls were only four years old at the time. She also suspects that she played a role in her aunt's death.
When she discovers a century-old trail that begins at the back of the family property and learns that it once led to a neighboring town miles and miles away, she decides that she must clear the whole trail, and she becomes obsessed with that mission.
She is also trying to cope with 16-year-old neighbor boy who either has a crush on Zinny, or is trying to use her to get to her sister. Zinny can't figure out which, and that frustrates her immensely.
This is a fine coming of age story about a less than perfect girl who the reader will care about and root for even when she is making her worst decisions. ( )