Young Adult Fiction
Date Published: January 31st, 2023
Publisher: Acorn Publishing
North Carolina Simon hates her name. As a fourteen-year-old girl growing up in the 1970s, she has a lot of challenges. People not only make fun of her name, but also scoff at her eccentric family. Dad’s a hoarder, Mom’s an unpredictable artist, and her older sister lives with an autism diagnosis. After a humiliating middle school event shatters her confidence as a singer, North determines to break free from the stigma surrounding her family.
As she starts high school, North tells people to call her Carol. Armed with a new name, she updates her appearance, befriends a popular boy in hopes of joining his band, distances herself from her two longtime friends, and avoids being seen with her adoring and dependent sister. Everything seems to be going according to plan until her sister suddenly disappears. Carol is forced to face reality. Should she continue to focus all her time and energy on fitting in or should she surrender to God’s calling on her life?
Finding True North is a prequel to Sticks and Stones, but each can be read as stand-alone novels.
North Carolina Simon – May 1974
Chapter 1
After the three-mile
trek home from Sage Hill Middle School in the near ninety-degree heat, I stood
at the edge of our walkway and wished I felt relieved to be home. The house
looked like nearly every other one in the west valley suburbs of Los Angeles.
The mowed lawn, a couple rose bushes, and a white picket fence with a creaky
gate made it appear so nice and normal, but I knew the inside told a very
different story.
I took a deep breath before I opened the
front door, hoping the scent of the roses would stick with me when I entered. I
could hear the television blasting, and above that my older sister Aria cawing.
Yes, cawing, like a crow, one of her new favorite birds. When a baby crow recently
fell from its nest into our yard, she was amazed by the tender care its mother
gave it. On the day that baby crow flew away, she stared out the window and
said, “I used to think crows were sort of noisy and annoying, but they’re so
special. That mama crow never gave up on her baby.”
I hoped she’d find a new bird to mimic soon, one with a sweeter sound,
but once she had a favorite, it usually stayed in her rotation of sounds for a
while.
The door stopped short, blocked by
a stack of newspapers, magazines and books in the way. I waited to see how long
it might take my mother, Belinda Simon, to notice me. Surrounded by bottles of
oil paint, she was deeply focused on a large canvas, a paintbrush in her hand.
Aria
noticed me first. “North!
You’re home!” She ran over to me, her arms outstretched, flapping them like
wings. “Caw!” She cried one last time as she jumped in front of me and closed
her arms around me in a tight hug. “How was your day?” she said without
loosening her hold.
No matter how bad my day was, this
welcome from my big sister always made me smile. As I hugged her, I heard the
television blast another unpleasant headline. “A shootout at a home in south
Los Angeles. We’ll take you live to the scene after the commercial break.” I thought
about how much happier people would be with an Aria in their life. All their
anger might melt away long enough to stop all their useless violence.
“My day was okay, Aria,” I lied. “How
about you?” I pulled away to look at her since eye contact was something we
were working on. Her bangs hadn’t been trimmed in months and with her head down
they hung over her eyes like little orange curtains in front of two beautiful
bright blue windows. I brushed them aside with my fingers.
“Mmmm,” she mumbled as she glanced at
me, then looked down again. “Hard,” she said.
I
could usually count on her to be honest, even if I didn’t always get a lot of
clear details. “Oh, I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it?”
She kept her gaze downward and shook her
head.
“Okay, well maybe later you will.” I
looked at Mom, still fixed on her painting. “Hello Mother,” I said, “I’m home.”
She snapped out of her focus, her eyes
wide open as if I startled her. “Oh, yes honey, I saw you. I was letting you
talk to Aria first. Everything okay? How’d you get home early?”
How did she not know what time it was? I
was home nearly an hour after school let out, long past when she was supposed
to pick me up. Every Wednesday Aria’s high school had a shortened day so
teachers could have meetings, and almost every time, Mom somehow missed getting
me when my school day was done. With only three days left of the school
year, it didn’t seem unreasonable to have this figured out.
“Mom, it’s almost four o’clock. I’m not
home early. I walked because you never showed up.” Her expression of surprise
changed to shock. She dropped her paintbrush as she put her hand over her
mouth. “Oh no, North. I’m so sorry. I can’t believe I did it again.” She
stepped forward and hugged me, careful to keep a bit of distance between me and
her paint splashed shirt. Her bleached blonde hair smelled slightly of paint
thinner on top of her familiar coconut scented shampoo. I could tell she was
genuinely sorry for screwing up, but I was really tired of this.
About the Author
Dianne Beck has spent most of her career teaching students ranging from kindergarten through adult and currently works as a high school youth director at her church. In each of these roles, she hopes to encourage students to be their own unique selves, to have confidence in who they are, and to follow their passions. Dianne’s debut young adult novel Sticks and Stones, winner of multiple awards, was inspired by her years of teaching, where she saw how an understanding ear and relevant literature could make a significant impact on students’ lives. She hopes young people and adults can find faith and strength in her stories.
Visit her author website at http://www.diannebeck.com.
Contact Links
Instagram: @beck_dianne
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