Oak: The Littlest Leaf Girl
Lucy Fleming
Walker Books

Oak, the tiniest leaf girl of all lives with her parents in a large oak tree in the middle of the woods. She’s full of fun, has soft wings and bunches in her hair and spends her time playing with her family and her friend, Squirrel. One day though, there’s a chill feeling in the air: “Times are changing” Mama Oak says. “Soon, it will be time to leave the tree behind,” Papa Oak announces.

Oak is worried when she goes to bed that night, fearful of what might be waiting in the unknown wild.

Further changes in the weather take place and eventually with the branches of the oak tree almost stripped of leaves, despite Oak’s reluctance, it’s time for the family to leave. “All leaves must nestle into their winter acorn homes,” says her mother reassuring her daughter that they can return in the spring: even Squirrel says that it’s time for a long winter sleep, so what will Oak do. “ I trust you to go at your own pace and find the right moment to leap,” Papa Oak tells her.

Her parents both leave and go to an acorn home on the forest floor nearby; not Oak though. But then she starts to feel lonely and realises what it is that brings her real happiness, not the tree but her family.

So she closes her eyes, takes a slow deep breath and …

I’m sure the way Oak resists change and the unknown will resonate with young children – maybe they’re just starting school – and Lucy’s story with its fairytale woodland setting provides a warm, non-threatening way to demonstrate the importance of courage, accepting the need for change and taking it in your stride. The illustrations with the difference in colour palette for autumn and winter scenes enhance the telling.