Zinny sometimes mentions her friend Sal, which is a reference to Salamanca Hiddle, the protagonist of the 1995 Newbery Medal-winning Walk Two Moons.

Zinnia "Zinny" Taylor, an initially quiet, yet sometimes outrageous thirteen-year-old girl.

In her grief, the trail becomes an obsession, as she decides to clear and travel the entire length of it.

At the same time Zinny learns to cope with her grief, her guilt, and a boy named Jake Boone, who she starts to have feelings for.

Throughout the story Creech uses flashbacks as a literary device, showing snippets of what Zinny's life was like before her aunt's death, and how her life changed after her dear aunt Jessie died.