North Manitou Island lies in Lake Michigan west of the Leelanau Peninsula between sunrise and sunset. It is twelve and one-half miles from the port of Leeland. The island is seven miles long and four and one-half miles wide, with approximately 25 miles of shoreline. It is comprised of approximately 15,000 acres or twenty-two square miles of land area. The island is blessed with a varied terrain of hills, dunes, forests, lakes, meadows and beaches. Lake Manitou is a treasure nestled in the center of the island. Visitors who yearn to return have been claimed by the spirit of the Manitou.

Rita Hadra Rusco, a North Manitou Islander for nearly fifty years, is the "Manitou Island Lady". She's turned her love for the island into a warm story reflecting not only the island's history but the character, romance and determination of the people. Her writing is rich, frank and full of life as she relates the island history from wilderness to thriving community and its return to wilderness. Her own adventures are intertwined with historical fact. Her charming book bears the unmistakable stamp of a perceptive observer with a tale to tell.