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Back The Year the Maps Changed Save as PDF
Chapters (75)
  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. Map
  6. Prologue
  7. 1
  8. 2
  9. 3
  10. 4
  11. 5
  12. 6
  13. 7
  14. 8
  15. 9
  16. 10
  17. 11
  18. 12
  19. 13
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. 18
  25. 19
  26. 20
  27. 21
  28. 22
  29. 23
  30. 24
  31. 25
  32. 26
  33. 27
  34. 28
  35. 29
  36. 30
  37. 31
  38. 32
  39. 33
  40. 34
  41. 35
  42. 36
  43. 37
  44. 38
  45. 39
  46. 40
  47. 41
  48. 42
  49. 43
  50. 44
  51. 45
  52. 46
  53. 47
  54. 48
  55. 49
  56. 50
  57. 51
  58. 52
  59. 53
  60. 54
  61. 55
  62. 56
  63. 57
  64. 58
  65. 59
  66. 60
  67. 61
  68. 62
  69. 63
  70. 64
  71. 65
  72. 66
  73. Acknowledgments
  74. About the Author
  75. About the Publisher

I took a deep breath. “Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Sam,” I said. “Happy birthday.”

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46

Hair Like Hers

Not much had changed by September, except that Anika had started coming out of her room. Her stomach wasn’t a round reminder either, but that might have been because she only ever picked at her food.

The strangest thing was that nobody said Drumlin’s name anymore. Not Pop or Luca, and Anika didn’t say much of anything anymore. It was only when Sam and I were talking in private that we mentioned the Littlest Ridge. His brother.

It reminded me of being Winnie—Mom’s name for me that nobody else used, and how I’d started missing that part of myself. Until recently, when I’d given it to Nora.

“You have hair just like your mother’s,” Vi said one day in late September when I went to her shop for a haircut.

She gathered my hair and twirled it atop my head, the way Mom had worn it on her wedding day.

“Really?” I said, a little shyly.

I saw her nod her head in the mirror. She’d told me a couple of days ago to stop by after school because I needed to get my bangs out of my eyes.

She bent down and rested her chin on my shoulder, looking at me in the mirror. “Just like Maria,” she said. “More and more each day.”

I loved when Vi cut my hair. She’d been doing it all my life and my favorite part was at the end when it was straight and brushed and she’d run her hands through it like it was water.

“What do you think, boys?” she asked, and spun me around in the chair to face Sam and Jed, who were waiting on the couch for their turn.

Sam barely looked up from his Game Boy Pocket. But Jed’s cheeks went red and he mumbled that it looked all right. Vi signaled at him, so Jed jumped up to sweep my hair away, ducking his head until his cheeks went back to normal.

Then Sam got his hair trimmed so we could see his eyes again, and Vi kept scrunching his curls until they bounced. “I love this hair, Sam the man!” she said.

Jed came back and sat next to me on the couch. He nudged my shoulder and offered me a turn on the Game Boy Pocket, but I shook my head.

“I wish more of the haven kids would let me play with their hair,” Vi said. “So many of them have hair just like yours, Sam, so lovely and curly. . . .” And then she snipped one or two on Sam’s head, pulled them straight, and let them bounce back up.

“Mẹ is volunteering at the haven,” Jed said. “She’s been going there with another hairdresser to give free cuts.”

I sat up a little straighter. “Since when?”