Wishtree by Katherine Applegate

The easiest way to get me to pick up a book is to tell me it is about nature and animals. The school year is over, and I have more time to dedicate to reading, thinking, and recommending. My first out-of-school book was Wishtree by Katherine Applegate.

Wishtree is written from the point of view of a Red Oak named Red who is 216 rings old. Red is proud of its heritage. Proud to be a home to so many animals. Red has a friend, a crow named Bongo. The tree looks out at two homes. Two families. One new family. One girl who has a wish to find a friend. It's not so easy. Not everyone wants this new family in town. Red has been the wishtree in the neighborhood for many human generations. Throughout, Red remained quiet, but now. . . .

After finishing this book, my first thought was that this would be a great book for teachers to read to their classes at the beginning of the school year. Then, I thought kids shouldn't wait. Parents should read this book with their kids and they should talk about it, and in the fall the kids should read it to their teachers and they should all take action.

While I was writing this review, an article shared among my writing groups about discussing the need for books to have lessons for a child to absorb and learn from. This really got me thinking about what I was writing about this book. It was sounding like a lesson plan for teachers and parents. Yikes!

One of the main reasons I became a librarian was to make reading fun, not lesson-filled and curriculum based. In this past year as a school librarian, I enjoyed sharing small lessons, but mostly, they were lessons encouraging curiosity and imagination  I tried not to even talk about that unless it came up in conversation with the kids.

Wishtree is a book filled with lesson opportunities:
Caring for Nature
Caring for others (Empathy)
Strength in numbers
Tolerance
Kindness
Friendship
and religious freedom all come to mind.

The thing is that when we try to push our agenda and lessons on kids, I believe that they are more likely to push back and test out the opposite. We can also ruin a perfectly lovely story because it is no longer about the story, it's about the lesson.

I watched 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders play tag football all school year. On occasion, a disagreement that was leading toward a fight would break out. I had to step in. We talked and I allowed them to find resolution to the problem. They had the skills. I didn't have to teach them anything except at the moment calming down enough to begin thinking again. There were also times one of those same kids would get hurt during the game. The other kids stopped playing and wanted to take care of their friend. They know empathy. I believe they learned this through their life experiences more than through the lessons that have been imparted upon them ad nauseam. When they are hurt, they want to be cared for, they can turn that around and know that they need to also care for others.

What I guess I am trying to say is that books may have lessons. I think they help to make these emotions and feelings more concrete, but we don't always need to hit everyone over the head and make them list the lessons they are learning.

I loved the Wishtree. It is a beautifully written story. I wanted to sit under red at night and watch the animals who lived there. I trust that the lessons within the book will shine for kids. It will come out in small ways, like when they stop a game to help someone who is hurt, they see worms in a new light, they take a moment to hug a tree, or befriend a person who is not just like them.

Letting lessons and learning happen organically, is so much more fun for everyone. After reading the book, if a child talks about nature and wants to know more, then offer up the idea of starting a nature journal. If a child wants to understand about a different religion run to the library and get books on the topic and have conversations. Don't be afraid if you don't have all the answers. Use your lack of knowledge as an opportunity to learn something new together. Learning new things because you are interested will take you down rabbit holes, up into the trees, and across the universe while at the same time you will build positive relationships with children.