Before meeting Huckleberry Finn, Mary Jane faces deadly illness, treacherous landowners, and swindlers as she goes on her own thrilling journey down the Mississippi in pre-Civil War America. "In his classic work Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain briefly introduces "Mary Jane, the red-headed one." In no time Mary Jane becomes the girl Huck thinks about "a many and a many million times." Now author Hope Jahren has created for Mary Jane a life as vivid and compelling as Huck's. These pages will show you the real Mary Jane. A girl on her own dangerous, unpredictable journey down the Mississippi River in pre-Civil War America. Equipped with an uncanny ability for mathematics, a talent for sewing, and a bale of beaver skins, Mary Jane navigates deadly illnesses, angry mobs, treacherous landowners, outright thieves and swindlers, and more than a thousand miles of muddy water. What's more, she thrives in the face of these challenges, thanks to support from strangers who become friends. Traveling solo requires Mary Jane to grow up fast, but it ultimately leads her to a new resilience, a love of adventure, deep and enduring sisterhood, and a blue-eyed, ponytailed boy she can't stop thinking about. Jahren offers a wealth of layered characters and deeply researched, authentic details of changing times in the North and South. Using the language and style of Twain and shifting the point of view to a smart and determined young woman, she explores timeless themes of duty, family, romance, and betrayal, with grit and courage at the core." -- (dust jacket)

Prologue --Chapter I -- The Fire -- Starting Over -- Next-Best Everything -- Chapter II -- Who I Am, Anyway -- Chapter III -- An Old Rascal, and a New One -- A Visit from Father Potatoes -- In Which I Am Not Myself -- Chapter IV -- Back to Work -- On the Red River Trail -- A Family Picnic -- Chapter V -- A Happy Reunion -- Letter from Aunt Evelyn -- Evening Prayer -- A Yellow Dress, a Green One, and a Pink -- A Night at Fort Snelling -- The First Goodbye -- Chapter VI -- Aboard the Minnesota Belle -- Very Different Country -- A Change of Plans -- Chapter VII -- The Strangest-Looking Woman I Ever Saw -- In Which I Purchase a Second Ticket -- Striking a Bargain -- Chapter VIII -- Aboard the Galenian -- Robert Fulton -- At the Helm -- Confidences -- Chapter IX -- On the Mississippi -- Trouble Coming -- Putting into Port -- In Which I Am Very Useful -- Questions and Answers -- Good Luck and Farewell -- Chapter X -- Friends and Relatives -- A Full Basket for an Empty Pantry -- Meeting Uncle George -- Ida's Daughter -- Making Do -- Chapter XI -- Two Queens and a Rabbit -- My Family -- Unbelievers -- On the Mend -- My Me -- Chapter XII -- Standing By -- Queen of the Comb -- A Turn of Fortune -- Chapter XIII -- Monday, Tuesday -- Wednesday, Thursday, Friday -- Rocky Ground -- Chapter XIV -- Keeping Watch -- Words to Live By -- My Witness -- Chapter XV -- Homecoming -- Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Dust -- All Sorted Out -- Chapter XVI -- An Unfriendly Conversation -- The Trial -- The Inheritance -- Another Goodbye -- Chapter XVII -- A Familiar Face -- The Honest Truth -- Finding Our Place -- A New Friend -- A Good, Smart, Strong, Capable Boy -- Listening Good -- Chapter XVIII -- The Teller of Tall Tales -- Lesson on the Riverbank -- Your You -- A Day in Memphis -- All Good Gifts -- Moving On -- Lesson on the Deck -- Chapter XIX -- Goodbye and Hello -- A Short Detour -- La Douce Tannerie d'Wilks -- Peter Wilks's Property -- The Story of a Quick-Sale -- Cold Nose, Warm Heart -- Chapter XX -- A Room of My Own -- Yorksheer Ways -- Off to Bed -- A Taste of Home -- Chapter XXI -- My Part -- Second Thoughts -- A Trip into Town -- In Which My Kind Offer Is Refused -- Murder in the Afternoon -- Chapter XXII -- The Peddler -- A Strange Invention -- Under the Weather -- Chapter XXIII -- In Which the World Falls Apart -- Girls Seeking Safety -- An Urgent Message -- Sheltering in Place -- The Answer -- Chapter XXIV -- An Unexpected Proposal -- My One and Only Chance -- On the Road -- Unafraid -- A New Plan -- The House-Call -- Doing Poorly -- Chapter XXV -- My First Dilemma -- The Cure -- My Second Dilemma -- Chapter XXVI -- The Next Day -- My Answer -- Taking Care of My Own -- Witch-Craft -- Getting Better -- Chapter XXVII -- My Best Plan Yet -- A Second Homecoming -- Introductions -- Th' Oyle Down th' Ginnel -- Friend or Foe? -- The Vigil -- Chapter XXVIII -- A Mitzvah -- The Funeral -- Early Birds -- Chapter XXIX -- Thoughts Before Leaving -- A Surprise Visitor -- The River Calls -- Chapter XXX -- Moving Fast -- Two Good Men -- Taking Our Leave -- Laid to Rest -- Chapter XXXI -- Smooth Sailing -- Just Rewards -- Better-Laid Plans -- A Parting of Ways -- Chapter XXXII -- A Tolerable Poor Boy -- Into the Fog -- Two Travelers -- Chapter XXXIII -- Evangeline -- McDougal's Cave -- The Real Thing -- Easy Climbing -- Chapter The Last -- A Dream Nursed in Darkness.