The Definition of Family

Members of a family are not always related by blood. The novel is set in the future when society has completely collapsed and the government is struggling to maintain control. Families have been torn apart and many Native Americans are traveling northward in the hope of finding a place they can live without fear. While there is safety in numbers, there is also a greater danger of being discovered, and French is part of a group that consists of fewer than a dozen members, and only two of these are adults. The small group has become a surrogate family to its members, including a teenager named French.

The group is led by an adult Native American named Miig who has taken on the responsibility of making the decisions for the group. Miig knew French's father before the collapse, and he has become something...