The Trail by Meika Hashimoto

 

On New Year's Day, Bailey and I were hiking on Rumford's Whitecap Mountain with long-time friends Kathy and Jim Bennett. On the descent, I crossed paths with Meika Hashimoto, a student in my last class at Mountain Valley High School back in 1998-1999. 

A gifted and serious student, Meika grew up on her father's mushroom farm just outside of Rumford in the shadow of Mt. Zircon. When Meika was in my class, she always wrote impeccably and her book projects immediately captured our attention, as you'll see in her Lady Macbeth scene in her black robe with bloody hands.

This morning I finished her book, The Trail, and wrote reviews for Amazon, a hiking website I'm on, and Facebook... 

ANOTHER RIVER VALLEY WRITER! Bailey and I were hiking Whitecap recently when we crossed paths with Mountain Valley HS graduate Meika Hashimoto. A book editor and author, Meika has written "The Trail," a Scholastic book for 7- to 12-year-olds. The good news? This 229-page story about a boy, a dog, and an Appalachian Trail adventure will hook readers of any age. I loved every page. Congratulations, Meika!  

I love celebrating local authors, especially friends or former students. I know well, and from experience, the struggles they face with writing and publishing.