Life has never been easy for Morgan. Abandoned by her birth family, she has battled her way through many a foster placement. Her current foster parents mean well, but as white people, they just don’t understand her life as a member of the Cree Nation. Morgan is not going to make it easy for them---she’s had enough of foster placements, and can’t wait to get away from this one.  Until Eli arrives---a younger boy, also Cree, who seems to need looking after.

Morgan reluctantly begins to forge a bond with Eli, which is why, when he disappears into an alternate world through a portal in the unfinished attic, she follows--determined to bring him back. The portal brings them to a frozen land, where a community of talking animals is struggling to survive. The dangers they face, and the friends they make there, will change their lives forever. The Barren Grounds is a story where real life and fantasy intersect in an adventure that will keep you turning the pages until the very end. (New Hampshire Great Stone Face Book Award nominee, 2022)