Caramel reviews Wishtree by Katherine Applegate

Both Caramel and Marshmallow have enjoyed reading many books by Katherine Applegate through the years. And they have reviewed them for the book bunnies blog. (Readers might enjoy Marshmallow’s reviews of The One And Only Ivan, Willodeen and Crenshaw, and Caramel’s reviews of The One and Only Bob, The One and Only Ruby, and The One and Only Family.) Today Caramel is talking to Sprinkles about Wishtree, first published in 2017.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, today we are talking about a new-to-us book by Katherine Applegate. 

Caramel: Yep. It is named Wishtree and it is about a wishtree. A wishtree is a tree that people tie things to its leaves and branches to make a wish. A tree for making wishes. So It’s kind of like the name of the book.

S: Yes, I suppose it is very descriptive. So this is a book about a tree. How does that work? Wouldn’t that be kind of boring? 

C: No, it is a tree that can talk, so it is interesting. And it is the tree telling its own story so you learn that the inside story of trees is really not boring at all. 

S: Wait, the book is narrated by a tree? I have to read this book; it sounds fascinating!

C: Yes, it really is.

S: Okay, so please tell me more. 

C: Okay, so, in this town there is this oak tree that has been there for two hundred years, and at some point the people who live there have started to think that if they write a wish on a piece of paper and tie it to the branch of the tree, it will grant their wishes. 

S: Does it actually work? 

C: Yes, but not because of magic or anything. The tree is not magical, but it can still help sometimes, because it has animal friends that help it to grant wishes. 

S: So the tree has friends? That is cool. And they are not all other trees. 

C: Oh no. It has many animal friends. There is a crow named Bongo, for example, that is the tree’s best friend.

S: Cool. So is the whole book about the tree and its friends then?

C: Yep, but this person whose garden the tree is in wants to cut it down, and its friends try to save it. 

S: The tree’s animal friends? 

C: Yes. And they do manage to save it in the end. 

S: That’s good.

C: Yes. Then there is a child named Samar in town who is bullied because she is different from the others, because her family is Muslim and some of the other children do not treat her very kindly. So Samar is very lonely and she wishes for a friend. And then things get really tense but the tree and its animal friends find a really kind way to solve all the problems. Samar gets a friend and the person who wanted to cut the tree down remembers her great-great-grandmother’s first wish which came true and made the wishtree become a wishtree. 

S: So all ends well then?

C: Yes, and you know I always like happy stories.

S: I do. Did you know that the author wrote this book after The One and Only Ivan, thinking that after writing through the eyes of a gorilla, writing through the eyes of a tree could also be fun? 

C: No, but that is really cool!

S: I agree. Did you also know that some people tried to ban this book? Apparently because the tree says that it is both female and male so it has both genders, so people thought this was inappropriate for young readers. Here is an interview with the author about one such event. 

C: Oh, well, that is interesting, but I disagree. It is a scientific fact that oak trees have both male and female flowers on them. 

S: Apparently it is called monoecious. Even Wikipedia has an article on monoecy. 

C: Hmm, I did not know the word, but I knew the concept. Some trees can reproduce just by themselves. 

S: Of course Caramel, you and your facts! I am just happy I at least found a word that you did not know. 

C: No I knew the word monoecious, the tree calls itself that in the book. I just did not know the word “monoecy”. 

S: You continue to amaze me Caramel. 

C: Yep, I am amazing, aren’t I?

S: Yes, but I would not call you very modest. Anyways, do you think this is a good place to end our review?

C: Yep, I think that would be a good idea. 

S: Would you recommend Wishtree to other little bunnies? 

C: Yes. It is a really nice story about friendship and kindness and also trees and how cool they are. And it has a happy ending. What is not to like? So yes, every little bunny should read it!

S: Okay, that is great Caramel. So let us wrap things up. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!