THE STRANGE WONDERS OF ROOTS

While fighting to conserve a grove of trees, a young girl discovers she’s put down roots in the community surrounding her.

When 12-year-old Holly arrives in a tiny Vermont town to stay with her uncle, she’s certain her itinerant actor father will tire of his current role (understudy for Woodland Sprite #4 in A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and will soon uproot her yet again, so she vows to remain an uninvolved stranger. But it’s hard for tree-loving Holly to stay detached after she learns about a grove of endemic Arden trees that are threatened by the expansion of the town’s job-creating plastics factory. As Holly joins the fight for the grove, she realizes that trees aren’t the only ones that depend on the support of others, and that sometimes, found family can be just as important as biological relatives. Holly’s journey has a leisurely pace, and Holly is an introspective, quiet, and reflective protagonist. Her character is richly imagined, and she thrives with the support of a diverse, if rather one-dimensional, set of townsfolk. Holly and her uncle, who’s gay, read white. Adults may find more nostalgic delight in the whimsical town than young readers will, filled as it is with quaint shops and local artists. Readers seeking a title that touches on the environment, pollution, and the interconnectedness of life will find many educational moments woven into this gentle tale.

A quiet story to spark conversation about conservation and community.