What Did the Tree See?

10p from each sale of this book goes to the National Forest, which is right in the heart of this country, embracing 200 miles of former industrial areas in the Midlands, covering Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Staffordshire, and aiming to link the two ancient forests of Charnwood and Needwood. (www.nationalforest.org). The organization plants trees and enables people to connect with nature, so this book is a good way for young children to start to understand the importance of trees.

In rhyming verse, it tells the story of one oak tree over hundreds of years, growing from an acorn to a sapling in a park in medieval times, seeing a village appear in a clearing, and the gradual expansion of the village, with farms spreading all around, then watching as some trees are cut down in Tudor times to build mighty ships. In Georgian times the village becomes a town, and later a steam train thunders past the factories as, by the time we reach the Industrial Revolution, the tree is the last on the hill. Children still play in its branches while more, taller, buildings appear and a motorway is built. The very old and gnarled oak tree watches an acorn fall from its branches, and wonders what that young tree will see…

We then have a double-page spread showing a timeline from 1000, when the Viking Leif Erikson sailed on a voyage to North America, to 2020, when Covid-19 spread across the world – we are right up to date. Another double-page shows the stages of a tree, from seedling to senescence, (a wonderful word!) and the book finishes with ideas for being a history detective, e.g. looking at old buildings, finding photographs of how your area used to look, and talking to older people; then how to be a friend to trees, looking at what lives in a tree, doing bark rubbings, possibly planting trees, and knowing how important they are.

Charlotte Guillan has written over 100 books, including the excellent non-fiction picture book, The Street Beneath My Feet. Sam Usher is a very experienced and accomplished illustrator, his illustrations show clearly the various clothes worn by people across the ages, and his simple style, slightly reminiscent of Quentin Blake or Tim Archbold, gives each one character. Together they make a good team, and this lovely book will be very useful in the infant classroom.