Tree
Britta Teckentrup and Patricia Hegarty
Little Tiger Press
This glorious celebration of nature and the seasonal changes it brings is presented through the focus of a single apple tree standing in a forest.
I’m a huge fan of Britta Teckentrup’s work and in this instance she makes ingenious use of die-cuts that increase in number as we move towards midsummer and then decrease to the single owl’s look-out as midwinter comes around once more, disappearing completely in the final two spreads.
The story begins as the forest is gripped by the icy chill of midwinter; no animals are visible save the single owl peeping from its hole in the tree trunk and watching …

As winter gradually gives way to spring, shoots begin to peep through, leaves unfurl and bear cubs frolic. Then slowly more animals appear, nesting birds and more can be seen in the tree’s branches:

birdsong fills the air showing summer’s on its way with its bees, butterflies and ripening fruit.

Then come the glowing colours of autumn and the animals start to prepare for the coming of another winter when once again it’s time to take shelter.
Not only do we follow scenes of the changing seasons but also the changes as day turns to night

in this superbly crafted book.
Patricia Hegarty’s lyrical text takes the form of rhyming couplets that are a real pleasure to read aloud and have the effect of making the reader slow down to allow for listeners to savour not only the gorgeous scenes as they subtly change, but the words themselves.
One thing is certain, no matter what the season, this is a book to treasure.
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