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The Tree and the River
In an alternate past—or possible future—a mighty tree stands on the banks of a winding river, bearing silent witness to the flow of time and change. A family farms the fertile valley. Soon, a village sprouts, and not long after, a town. Residents learn to harness the water, the wind, and the animals in order to survive and thrive. The growing population becomes ever more industrious and clever, bending nature itself to their will and their ambition: redirecting rivers, harvesting lumber, reshaping the land, even extending daylight itself. . . .
32 pages, Hardcover
Published March 14, 2023
About the author
Aaron Becker
17 books389 followersAaron Becker has worked as an artist for such film studios as Lucasfilm, Disney, and Pixar, where he helped define the look and feel of characters, stories, and the movies they become a part of. With Journey, he has created characters and worlds of his very own, using traditional materials and techniques. Aaron Becker lives in Amherst, Massachusetts, with his wife, daughter, and cat. This is his first book.
"I’ve made several memorable journeys in my lifetime. I’ve lived in rural Japan and East Africa and backpacked through the South Pacific and Sweden. But to this day, my favorite destination remains my imagination, where you can often find me drawing secret doorways and magic lanterns." — Aaron Becker
"I’ve made several memorable journeys in my lifetime. I’ve lived in rural Japan and East Africa and backpacked through the South Pacific and Sweden. But to this day, my favorite destination remains my imagination, where you can often find me drawing secret doorways and magic lanterns." — Aaron Becker
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 215 reviews
December 27, 2023
Would not be surprised if this ending up getting a Cadelcott or a nominee.
I’m not sure I knew what to expect going into this. This is one of those books that allows the reader to come up with their own interpretations. It’s wordless and shows the rise and fall of human civilization as well as the environment around them as it happens. I’m not sure if this is Beckers commentary on human impact on the environment, the ability of nature to heal itself, or an illustration of how nature witnesses the triumph and destruction of mankind. Either way, this book is POWERFUL and contains not a single word. Goodness. I haven’t been this blown away by a picture book in a while. Definitely one of my top picture book reads of 2023.
I’m not sure I knew what to expect going into this. This is one of those books that allows the reader to come up with their own interpretations. It’s wordless and shows the rise and fall of human civilization as well as the environment around them as it happens. I’m not sure if this is Beckers commentary on human impact on the environment, the ability of nature to heal itself, or an illustration of how nature witnesses the triumph and destruction of mankind. Either way, this book is POWERFUL and contains not a single word. Goodness. I haven’t been this blown away by a picture book in a while. Definitely one of my top picture book reads of 2023.
July 28, 2023
A young sapling grows by the river when a family builds their home nearby. Soon there are two villages, one on each side of the river. The villages grow into cities which prosper until war and flooding changes the landscape of the valley. The tree silently watches through ages of time as civilizations come and go and technologies develop and fade.
There is something so peaceful about the continuity of life beyond all the ages of time. The tree sees generations of humans pass by, but remains steadfast through all the changes of each era. You can really feel time passing as the tree grows bigger and stretches its branches.
There are no words to this story, but each little detail in the artwork tells a special story. People get married. Their children grow up. They build houses and tear down what those before them had built. Cultural traditions fade as different traditions spring up. It's the never-ending change that creates a sense of unity.
The artwork is absolutely gorgeous! I love the brushstroke style, and the way light and shadows play across the page. The layout for each scene is so clever. It really gets you immersed in the story, looking for what has changed and what has stayed the same in the different scenes.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.
There is something so peaceful about the continuity of life beyond all the ages of time. The tree sees generations of humans pass by, but remains steadfast through all the changes of each era. You can really feel time passing as the tree grows bigger and stretches its branches.
There are no words to this story, but each little detail in the artwork tells a special story. People get married. Their children grow up. They build houses and tear down what those before them had built. Cultural traditions fade as different traditions spring up. It's the never-ending change that creates a sense of unity.
The artwork is absolutely gorgeous! I love the brushstroke style, and the way light and shadows play across the page. The layout for each scene is so clever. It really gets you immersed in the story, looking for what has changed and what has stayed the same in the different scenes.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.
April 22, 2023
Who would’ve guessed you could make a dystopian/post apocalyptic wordless picture book that manages to hold a mirror up to our own society and still manage to be inspiring and beautiful?
December 17, 2023
A wordless picture book about a tree and the civilization that emerges around it.
If you like auhor Aaron Becker's Journey trilogy or David Wiesner's wordless picture books like Flotsam or Sector 7, give this a try.
If you like auhor Aaron Becker's Journey trilogy or David Wiesner's wordless picture books like Flotsam or Sector 7, give this a try.
June 10, 2024
A wordless picture book of time-lapse images copies Robert Crumb's classic "A Short History of America" cartoon to give the history of a bend in the river and the tree that sits next to it on a fantasy world with some advances and setbacks similar to the ones in our world.
Some of the time jumps were easier to follow than others, but I suppose the reader can make up any story they want to fill in the gaps left by the author. I just didn't find myself engaged enough to want to bother.
Some of the time jumps were easier to follow than others, but I suppose the reader can make up any story they want to fill in the gaps left by the author. I just didn't find myself engaged enough to want to bother.
April 23, 2023
This wordless picture book follows the evolution, death, and rebirth of a tree and the river that supports it. Civilization blossoms, then overtakes nature, ultimately annihilating it. But nature regenerates itself in the end. The message is both cautionary and hopeful, not to mention quite timely and relevant.
The illustrations are truly captivating. The color palette adapts on each page spread to reflect the unfolding story. Even the art style evolves with the time-lapsed changes. This is really a book that can be appreciated by all ages, but young children will enjoy locating the morphing tree on each page spread as well as identifying all the other differences from one page spread to the next.
The illustrations are truly captivating. The color palette adapts on each page spread to reflect the unfolding story. Even the art style evolves with the time-lapsed changes. This is really a book that can be appreciated by all ages, but young children will enjoy locating the morphing tree on each page spread as well as identifying all the other differences from one page spread to the next.
May 10, 2023
Admittedly, this is going to be a little existential for some of the younger end of readers. But as someone who LOVES wordless picture books, I LOVED seeing the evolution of civilization, from young trees to growth and takeover to new life.
I need to use this one with my Kindergarten audiences!
I need to use this one with my Kindergarten audiences!
March 31, 2023
Here is how I read the book:
1) Looked through it once with no frame of reference just to take it in.
2) Immediately after finishing, I started it over, to gain a better understanding since I normally rely too much on words to tell the story.
3) Then I read the jacket description, and put all the pieces together.
The work of Aaron Becker is both recognizable and intricate. You can’t help but think of the time, skill, and effort it takes to create his work.
1) Looked through it once with no frame of reference just to take it in.
2) Immediately after finishing, I started it over, to gain a better understanding since I normally rely too much on words to tell the story.
3) Then I read the jacket description, and put all the pieces together.
The work of Aaron Becker is both recognizable and intricate. You can’t help but think of the time, skill, and effort it takes to create his work.
April 11, 2023
Wordless.
April 8, 2023
Aaron Becker has another masterpiece of visual storytelling focused on the story of a tree growing beside a river. As their longer-lived story is shared, the life-cycles of humans and their built communities continue to blip by with each turn of the page. Once again, Aaron Becker created a book to return to time and again to discover more and more.
FYI - If you are an older reader and you enjoyed this book, you may also like the location-bound graphic novel Here by Richard McGuire.
FYI - If you are an older reader and you enjoyed this book, you may also like the location-bound graphic novel Here by Richard McGuire.
March 17, 2023
Becker's art is the shining star in this wordless book - which is good since it carries the whole story. You wonder if you are going forward or backward in time. Are you looking at the past? Or the future? Through it all you focus on the titular tree and river and get sucked into this detailed, thought provoking world.
June 28, 2023
This is à brilliant book for generating creative writing with a class of children. The epic tragedy of a river in nature that became a city. With all the positives and negatives that story brings to life. Wonderful.
June 30, 2023
Fabulous wordless text on the theme on environment and the power of nature to regenerate. Great use of colour
March 29, 2023
The rise and fall of multiple fantastical human civilizations, from the vantage point of a single tree at a bend in a river, are viewed in this wordless and unique book.
November 20, 2023
This book has no words and neither do I.
November 29, 2023
In this wordless picture book, a tree stands alone on the banks of a river and watches as a civilization grows around it. A family comes, then a village, then a town, then a city. A castle is built and destroyed. Technology comes and challenges the landscape, leaving the tree languishing -- but still there. With an expansive view of humanity and our role as environmental stewards, Becker has created a spectacular picture book that will prompt readers to ruminate on humanity. Both bittersweet and hopeful, this is the kind of book that few authors could pull off but Becker takes it in stride with dramatic and often cinematic illustrations. Truly some of Becker's very best work.
October 9, 2023
Loved the gentle, beautiful illustrations. And they need to be good because this book has no words. Yet it is profound. It highlights the passing of time for a particular part of a river and a tree. Millenia go by and we see how time progresses and how it effects the river and tree. It's fascinating though I don't know how entertaining a book like this would be for a child. But as an adult of 55 years I can appreciate the passage of time.
April 5, 2024
Very thought-provoking. There are no words in this book- pictures only but an extremely powerful message about the relationship between nature and humankind.
April 10, 2024
This one gets me in the feels! I will return, I know, to it occassionally, and turn from page to page to feel lifetimes pass by. riverrun, past Eve and Adam's, from swerve of shore to bend of bay, brings us by a commodious vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs.
April 19, 2024
Beautiful and moving ♥
March 14, 2024
This wordless story follows a small tree next to a river and how it grows and changes over thousands and thousands of years.
The book has beautiful illustrations that convey the mode of the town in each century and the reader can see as the civilizations adapt and prosper and ultimately fall. The pictures almost turn into “Where's Waldo” to find the tree as the civilizations grow bigger and bigger. As the town changes so does the tree and the reader can see how both life cycles grow and eventually die and start new again.
I gave this story 5/5 stars as it is an easy read and will captivate young readers to find the differences in the civilizations and the tree and how they are changing together or are hurting each other. I would use this book with primary grades k-3 and even older grades to show life cycles as well as compare and contrast the tree by the river to the other trees. For older grades, students could compare humans' repeated history to create the next thing and have more, is that what happens and why the civilizations end, or are we meant to be on a constant cycle? Overall a captivating book for any age.
The book has beautiful illustrations that convey the mode of the town in each century and the reader can see as the civilizations adapt and prosper and ultimately fall. The pictures almost turn into “Where's Waldo” to find the tree as the civilizations grow bigger and bigger. As the town changes so does the tree and the reader can see how both life cycles grow and eventually die and start new again.
I gave this story 5/5 stars as it is an easy read and will captivate young readers to find the differences in the civilizations and the tree and how they are changing together or are hurting each other. I would use this book with primary grades k-3 and even older grades to show life cycles as well as compare and contrast the tree by the river to the other trees. For older grades, students could compare humans' repeated history to create the next thing and have more, is that what happens and why the civilizations end, or are we meant to be on a constant cycle? Overall a captivating book for any age.
January 26, 2023
Entropy!
Not a lot of picture books out there on the subject. Not a lot of picture books out there covering the rise and fall of whole civilizations either, but here we are. Or, rather, here Aaron Becker is. In the world of 21st century picture book creators, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd. Never before have more people created more picture books for the American market. The sheer number of them coming out every month just boggles the mind. How do you stand out from the crowd? It’s probably a good idea to have a niche. An area where you excel above and beyond your fellow compatriots. And from the start, Aaron Becker decided that that niche would be to go big or go home. Sweeping vistas. Epic storylines. Quests. Deep dives into ancient history. Proving that picture books are for more than preschoolers, Becker’s challenge his readers. Much like picture books of the past (like those created by Mark Alan Stamaty or, to certain extent, Anno) Becker’s titles invite the readers to take the deepest of deep dives into his books. And while I adore his Journey trilogy, there is still no better example of this than the equally wordless The Tree and the River. It’s going to strike a lot of adult readers as an environmental tale, and that’s not wholly wrong. But on beyond that, the book is a recording of a human history, not unlike our own, where choices, good and bad, lead to irrevocable changes and, ultimately, a bit of hope.
When this book begins, a young tree is growing on a small peninsula at the side of a river. People populate the banks and with every turn of the page more and more time goes by. Their villages grow. Rival villages sprout up. There are hints that battles occur in the space between the page turns, but soon things become industrial. Technology increases as does the sophistication of the wider world. Even so, change will have its way with these people, and by the time the tree drops its final acorn, the old one will have passed away, and new life will be in the making. A smartly drawn, creative take on our cyclical world.
It shouldn’t have to be notable, but is just the same, that what separates The Tree and the River from a lot of other books for young readers covering broad, sweeping amounts of time is Becker’s disinclination to moralize. American picture books, by their very design, are written to instruct children in how to think, feel, and interpret the world around them. In some alternate universe, a version of The Tree and the River that engages in overt didacticism must exist. Happily this particular book lives by the creed of showing rather than telling. If you want to come to the conclusion that global warming is responsible for the flooding late in this title, you are absolutely able to do so, but Becker’s not going to spell that one out for you. In a way, his ability to step back and let the pictures do the talking, results in a story that is more comforting than one might expect. Yes, civilizations topple over time, but there is life and hope and birth and change. When you get to the end of this book you are free to take the gloomy view that this storyline is cyclical and will happen over and over to the human race, or you can opt for the lighter view that maybe this time they’re gonna get it right.
Now let’s take the fact that the book doesn’t hit you over the head with any clear-cut messaging as one of Becker’s central tenets. He has others, of course. The choice to make his books wordless is tied directly to that avoidance of moral instruction. It is also, in many ways, the key to these images’ success. Without words, children are forced to make sense of the pictures on these pages themselves. One of the great gifts of The Tree and the River, therefore, is this capacity to feed into the brains of children. For example, they might look at that page where the world has been flooded and notice that on some of these boats there are still people wearing those tall top hats made popular by the blue army. But, go a little earlier, and did you notice that in the sequence that takes place during a time period that looks a lot like today, there’s a statue commemorating one of the heroes of the war, and it’s wearing the clothes of the red army. I mean, I haven’t read any interviews with Mr. Becker about the book, but if I were to make an educated guess I’d suspect that he probably also doesn’t necessarily know what went down in this world he created. Imagine tapping into that well of imagination. Where you can literally conjure up worlds so vast that you create them knowing that they will, in turn, lead others to extrapolate far beyond anything you could have dreamed. All the more so if your preferred readership hasn’t even hit puberty yet.
Even as his storytelling grows wider and more vast, the actual human figures in this book are much smaller and sketched out than in Becker’s previous books. I’ve already mentioned the works of Mitsumasa Anno earlier in this review but honestly there is no better, comparable artist. In books like Anno’s Journey the figures were kept small even as the book transported you through fields and towns and even time itself. Another artist Becker reminded me of here is Elisha Cooper. Some of Cooper’s books, like Train create tiny human figures that somehow, through the barest flick of ink here or there, convey humanity’s physical range. Becker’s people, similarly, are simplified but his is a looser style. Facial features are, for the most part, nonexistent (you’re lucky if you get eyes). And yet, I am continually amazed by how people can look at lines that bear even the slightest resemblance to a fellow human being and identify with them. You want to give these tiny people stories. There’s a scene in this book where it’s raining and a single figure in pink is standing by the tree under an umbrella. Are they waiting for someone? Watching? Why are they the only person in pink? Questions without answers.
You know what kills me? Every single time I look through this book, no matter how many times I’ve looked before, I find something new. Look, Becker’s included a kind of lens flare technique on the page where the sun is setting to the left! Look, there’s a rainbow on the page after the baby tree has started to grow! Look, on the page before the flooding has happened, there’s a bit of foreshadowing with the rain! Look (and when I saw this I got ridiculously excited), if you go way way back to the very beginning of the book, you notice that further up the bank is a dead tree that mimics the way that this tree, at the end of the book, looks. Now look beyond that old tree, half hidden in the shadows. What’s that rusting away? Leave it Aaron Becker to hide something on the publication page that, if you spot it, will change your entire perspective of this book.
Becker keeps the book's focus fairly fixed on a single spit of land. That means that no one person ever takes precedence. There is no stand-in for the child reader, excepting the tree. And without an avatar on the page, the child turns detective, sniffing out clues, making up stories. The kids are now holding up a lens to a civilization that cannot speak to them, but begs to be understood. But that’s Becker for you. He’ll make budding anthropologists and archaeologists out of the lot of them. The Tree and the River. A book unafraid to assume that your kids are smart enough to figure out what it all means.
Not a lot of picture books out there on the subject. Not a lot of picture books out there covering the rise and fall of whole civilizations either, but here we are. Or, rather, here Aaron Becker is. In the world of 21st century picture book creators, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd. Never before have more people created more picture books for the American market. The sheer number of them coming out every month just boggles the mind. How do you stand out from the crowd? It’s probably a good idea to have a niche. An area where you excel above and beyond your fellow compatriots. And from the start, Aaron Becker decided that that niche would be to go big or go home. Sweeping vistas. Epic storylines. Quests. Deep dives into ancient history. Proving that picture books are for more than preschoolers, Becker’s challenge his readers. Much like picture books of the past (like those created by Mark Alan Stamaty or, to certain extent, Anno) Becker’s titles invite the readers to take the deepest of deep dives into his books. And while I adore his Journey trilogy, there is still no better example of this than the equally wordless The Tree and the River. It’s going to strike a lot of adult readers as an environmental tale, and that’s not wholly wrong. But on beyond that, the book is a recording of a human history, not unlike our own, where choices, good and bad, lead to irrevocable changes and, ultimately, a bit of hope.
When this book begins, a young tree is growing on a small peninsula at the side of a river. People populate the banks and with every turn of the page more and more time goes by. Their villages grow. Rival villages sprout up. There are hints that battles occur in the space between the page turns, but soon things become industrial. Technology increases as does the sophistication of the wider world. Even so, change will have its way with these people, and by the time the tree drops its final acorn, the old one will have passed away, and new life will be in the making. A smartly drawn, creative take on our cyclical world.
It shouldn’t have to be notable, but is just the same, that what separates The Tree and the River from a lot of other books for young readers covering broad, sweeping amounts of time is Becker’s disinclination to moralize. American picture books, by their very design, are written to instruct children in how to think, feel, and interpret the world around them. In some alternate universe, a version of The Tree and the River that engages in overt didacticism must exist. Happily this particular book lives by the creed of showing rather than telling. If you want to come to the conclusion that global warming is responsible for the flooding late in this title, you are absolutely able to do so, but Becker’s not going to spell that one out for you. In a way, his ability to step back and let the pictures do the talking, results in a story that is more comforting than one might expect. Yes, civilizations topple over time, but there is life and hope and birth and change. When you get to the end of this book you are free to take the gloomy view that this storyline is cyclical and will happen over and over to the human race, or you can opt for the lighter view that maybe this time they’re gonna get it right.
Now let’s take the fact that the book doesn’t hit you over the head with any clear-cut messaging as one of Becker’s central tenets. He has others, of course. The choice to make his books wordless is tied directly to that avoidance of moral instruction. It is also, in many ways, the key to these images’ success. Without words, children are forced to make sense of the pictures on these pages themselves. One of the great gifts of The Tree and the River, therefore, is this capacity to feed into the brains of children. For example, they might look at that page where the world has been flooded and notice that on some of these boats there are still people wearing those tall top hats made popular by the blue army. But, go a little earlier, and did you notice that in the sequence that takes place during a time period that looks a lot like today, there’s a statue commemorating one of the heroes of the war, and it’s wearing the clothes of the red army. I mean, I haven’t read any interviews with Mr. Becker about the book, but if I were to make an educated guess I’d suspect that he probably also doesn’t necessarily know what went down in this world he created. Imagine tapping into that well of imagination. Where you can literally conjure up worlds so vast that you create them knowing that they will, in turn, lead others to extrapolate far beyond anything you could have dreamed. All the more so if your preferred readership hasn’t even hit puberty yet.
Even as his storytelling grows wider and more vast, the actual human figures in this book are much smaller and sketched out than in Becker’s previous books. I’ve already mentioned the works of Mitsumasa Anno earlier in this review but honestly there is no better, comparable artist. In books like Anno’s Journey the figures were kept small even as the book transported you through fields and towns and even time itself. Another artist Becker reminded me of here is Elisha Cooper. Some of Cooper’s books, like Train create tiny human figures that somehow, through the barest flick of ink here or there, convey humanity’s physical range. Becker’s people, similarly, are simplified but his is a looser style. Facial features are, for the most part, nonexistent (you’re lucky if you get eyes). And yet, I am continually amazed by how people can look at lines that bear even the slightest resemblance to a fellow human being and identify with them. You want to give these tiny people stories. There’s a scene in this book where it’s raining and a single figure in pink is standing by the tree under an umbrella. Are they waiting for someone? Watching? Why are they the only person in pink? Questions without answers.
You know what kills me? Every single time I look through this book, no matter how many times I’ve looked before, I find something new. Look, Becker’s included a kind of lens flare technique on the page where the sun is setting to the left! Look, there’s a rainbow on the page after the baby tree has started to grow! Look, on the page before the flooding has happened, there’s a bit of foreshadowing with the rain! Look (and when I saw this I got ridiculously excited), if you go way way back to the very beginning of the book, you notice that further up the bank is a dead tree that mimics the way that this tree, at the end of the book, looks. Now look beyond that old tree, half hidden in the shadows. What’s that rusting away? Leave it Aaron Becker to hide something on the publication page that, if you spot it, will change your entire perspective of this book.
Becker keeps the book's focus fairly fixed on a single spit of land. That means that no one person ever takes precedence. There is no stand-in for the child reader, excepting the tree. And without an avatar on the page, the child turns detective, sniffing out clues, making up stories. The kids are now holding up a lens to a civilization that cannot speak to them, but begs to be understood. But that’s Becker for you. He’ll make budding anthropologists and archaeologists out of the lot of them. The Tree and the River. A book unafraid to assume that your kids are smart enough to figure out what it all means.
April 5, 2023
No words, but wow do these illustrations talk!
November 27, 2023
Watch the tree and the river as they witness the rise and fall of a civilization in this sad but hopeful wordless picture book.
March 8, 2023
Aaron Becker has done it again -- delivered us a memorable wordless-form picture book that gets better and better with every read. The Tree and the River explores the cyclical nature of life and also invites readers to consider the relationship between humans and nature.
A single tree on a riverbank stands and grows in the midst of a range of human civilization changes. As technologies change we see that the natural world (including and around the tree and river) are changed as well. There is an intuitive flow to the human advances throughout the book: small settlements grow to fortified settlements which grow even more through an industrial revolution and then expand to an imagined futuristic world. But, eventually the story journeys to ecological collapse and beyond. To me, the story is simultaneously sobering and hopeful.
My children are 9 and 7 now and we've been reading and re-reading the The Journey Trilogy since they could begin enjoying picture books. We are huge fans of Becker's artistic style and approach to storytelling. I appreciate that even with artistic storytelling there is no need for the author to impose some didactic moral lesson or particular viewpoint; so much of the experience and interpretation is left up to the reader. And, again, I appreciate that every single time you pick up an Aaron Becker book, you will notice something different. For example, after reading The Tree and the River I recommend flipping back to the title page illustration. You'll notice that the story here expands even beyond the initial time-lapse you first experienced.
What a gift to have a picture book that isn't afraid to challenge its readers but in such a gentle and fascinating way.
The art is (unsurprisingly) beautiful--epic and imaginative while also honoring natural elements. The tree especially is wonderfully depicted -- even with it's changing shape and health you still know it's the same original tree. I also love the juxtaposition of the human-made elements feeling historical and fantastical at the same time. It's an exciting book to peruse and children will love exploring every detail.
***Note: I was given a review copy of this book via Candlewick Press. Opinions are my own.
A single tree on a riverbank stands and grows in the midst of a range of human civilization changes. As technologies change we see that the natural world (including and around the tree and river) are changed as well. There is an intuitive flow to the human advances throughout the book: small settlements grow to fortified settlements which grow even more through an industrial revolution and then expand to an imagined futuristic world. But, eventually the story journeys to ecological collapse and beyond. To me, the story is simultaneously sobering and hopeful.
My children are 9 and 7 now and we've been reading and re-reading the The Journey Trilogy since they could begin enjoying picture books. We are huge fans of Becker's artistic style and approach to storytelling. I appreciate that even with artistic storytelling there is no need for the author to impose some didactic moral lesson or particular viewpoint; so much of the experience and interpretation is left up to the reader. And, again, I appreciate that every single time you pick up an Aaron Becker book, you will notice something different. For example, after reading The Tree and the River I recommend flipping back to the title page illustration. You'll notice that the story here expands even beyond the initial time-lapse you first experienced.
What a gift to have a picture book that isn't afraid to challenge its readers but in such a gentle and fascinating way.
The art is (unsurprisingly) beautiful--epic and imaginative while also honoring natural elements. The tree especially is wonderfully depicted -- even with it's changing shape and health you still know it's the same original tree. I also love the juxtaposition of the human-made elements feeling historical and fantastical at the same time. It's an exciting book to peruse and children will love exploring every detail.
***Note: I was given a review copy of this book via Candlewick Press. Opinions are my own.
April 3, 2024
My Favorite Children's Book This Year Has No Words 😶
Review: The Tree and the River by Aaron Becker 🌳🌊
Special thanks to @candlewickpress for the #gifted copy!
The Tree and the River by Aaron Becker is a book with no words. But the more you “read” it the more you find and learn. I was a little apprehensive at first, but when I did the second “read” with my son I was blown away by how much more I imagined was being told through the images. This is one of my favorite picture books of the year.
Through one lone tree and its deep roots you witness centuries of growth and change along one river. Things start simple, get complicated and then return to its simple beginning. My son said, “I feel like this book should’ve been called the Circle of Life.”
This book inspired so much deep thinking. I noticed something different each time, whether you are following the shape of the river, the movement of the people or the construction of the buildings. I found myself flipping back and forth between pages to catch all of the subtle differences and comparing the images together. Let’s just say if you like if you are the kind of person who likes the ‘find the difference’ puzzles you may end up spending a lot of time with this book.
The Tree and the River is great for all levels of readers. It will generate lots of discussion. I would recommend it in a social studies course that talks about environmentalism and developing civilizations. This would be a great book for Earth Day too! Aaron Becker has another book that just came out called, The Last Zookeeper, and I can’t wait to “read” that one too!
Check out more reviews on my blog: www.cocoawithbooks.com
Review: The Tree and the River by Aaron Becker 🌳🌊
Special thanks to @candlewickpress for the #gifted copy!
The Tree and the River by Aaron Becker is a book with no words. But the more you “read” it the more you find and learn. I was a little apprehensive at first, but when I did the second “read” with my son I was blown away by how much more I imagined was being told through the images. This is one of my favorite picture books of the year.
Through one lone tree and its deep roots you witness centuries of growth and change along one river. Things start simple, get complicated and then return to its simple beginning. My son said, “I feel like this book should’ve been called the Circle of Life.”
This book inspired so much deep thinking. I noticed something different each time, whether you are following the shape of the river, the movement of the people or the construction of the buildings. I found myself flipping back and forth between pages to catch all of the subtle differences and comparing the images together. Let’s just say if you like if you are the kind of person who likes the ‘find the difference’ puzzles you may end up spending a lot of time with this book.
The Tree and the River is great for all levels of readers. It will generate lots of discussion. I would recommend it in a social studies course that talks about environmentalism and developing civilizations. This would be a great book for Earth Day too! Aaron Becker has another book that just came out called, The Last Zookeeper, and I can’t wait to “read” that one too!
Check out more reviews on my blog: www.cocoawithbooks.com
March 27, 2023
A wordless picture book can stir the reader's imagination and allows one to draw their own conclusions about what he or she is looking at - and it can lead to asking further questions. It is also the basis of a great classroom lesson. Often times it is fascinating to hear the feedback. As I paged through The Tree in the River, my immediate reaction was that it is an environmental tale. However, looking closer at the incredible detailed illustrations seem to tell quite a bit more - this is a story of a settlement derived along the banks of a river near a single tree - and over the span of decades and centuries, how the settlement grew into a village and town(s) and then fell; conflicts took place as industry, technology, and weaponry advanced, and eventually led to the collapse of all that was built. This, of course was my interpretation which might be viewed differently from another reader. All in all, it is poignant tale that does very much include environmental implications as well - it is interesting to note that the colors and tones change with the passage of time as the pastoral tone and colors shift and change to oranges and browns as the the civilization expands and grows. Aaron Becker, known for the likewise wordless, picture book series, Journey offers up another inquisitive and unique story open for imaginative interpretations and ideas. it is a book that is worth reading over and over.
March 29, 2023
A wordless book! An Aaron Becker treasure! Every pictured wordless story by Becker I've had the pleasure of experiencing has been exceptionally astute. Exceptionally detailed.
A casual flip through of The Tree and the River shows the eon life of a mighty tree and the ever changing environs in which it is seated. The change with time as the tree grows, the river changes, and man comes and goes. Change. Sameness.
Becker's detail is immersive and captivating and engaging. And it drives the imagination to story time or fantasying.
So what more do I think of this special book? I see that Becker has told the story of mankind from early days to vast civilization, from competing or warring to destruction. From beginnings to endings. From little or nothing to richness to destruction and loss, to emptiness and ruin, to beginnings anew.
Nothing is said of the why or the fault or the blame. Nothing about environmental changes and the reason for that change. Just the simple idea that there is change and it can be good and it can be bad but change is there. There is a beginning and a middle and an ending. And then there is a continuum or new beginning.
A pure delight and treasure to ponder over with meshing of young and old minds.
I received a complimentary copy to facilitate a review. Opinions are mine, alone and are freely given.
A casual flip through of The Tree and the River shows the eon life of a mighty tree and the ever changing environs in which it is seated. The change with time as the tree grows, the river changes, and man comes and goes. Change. Sameness.
Becker's detail is immersive and captivating and engaging. And it drives the imagination to story time or fantasying.
So what more do I think of this special book? I see that Becker has told the story of mankind from early days to vast civilization, from competing or warring to destruction. From beginnings to endings. From little or nothing to richness to destruction and loss, to emptiness and ruin, to beginnings anew.
Nothing is said of the why or the fault or the blame. Nothing about environmental changes and the reason for that change. Just the simple idea that there is change and it can be good and it can be bad but change is there. There is a beginning and a middle and an ending. And then there is a continuum or new beginning.
A pure delight and treasure to ponder over with meshing of young and old minds.
I received a complimentary copy to facilitate a review. Opinions are mine, alone and are freely given.
March 24, 2023
In a movie about a legendary hero and his band of merry men, when under enemy attack one of the patriotic thieves shouts, To the trees! The trees were a refuge for them and a more strategic vantage point from which to defend themselves. Around the world for centuries, trees equal life for what they supply humans and an array of plants and animals. I wonder how often throughout time those same three words were uttered by other humans or in the language of birds taking a sudden turn in flight to roost in treetops or of squirrels racing over grass and scampering up tree trunks?
Small or tall, the size is of no importance. Standing next to a tree offers, for those open to embracing it, a true sense of solitude and strength. For most of us, they've always been there and hopefully, they always will be. Two recent publications highlight this almost immortal quality of trees.
In his newest, expansive wordless endeavor, author illustrator Aaron Becker presents possibilities. He asks us to examine our beliefs on the relationship between the natural world and humans' place in it. In this gorgeous, highly detailed presentation of the passage of time, The Tree and the River (Candlewick Press, March 14, 2023), we take a journey unlike any other.
My full recommendation: https://librariansquest.blogspot.com/...
Small or tall, the size is of no importance. Standing next to a tree offers, for those open to embracing it, a true sense of solitude and strength. For most of us, they've always been there and hopefully, they always will be. Two recent publications highlight this almost immortal quality of trees.
In his newest, expansive wordless endeavor, author illustrator Aaron Becker presents possibilities. He asks us to examine our beliefs on the relationship between the natural world and humans' place in it. In this gorgeous, highly detailed presentation of the passage of time, The Tree and the River (Candlewick Press, March 14, 2023), we take a journey unlike any other.
My full recommendation: https://librariansquest.blogspot.com/...
April 10, 2023
Cover art for this wordless picture book from the Master, Aaron Becker, shows a placid landscape with a tree, a flowing river and a couple of deer watchfully enjoying a drink by a riverside – but what’s that reflected in the river? Upon opening the book, we find that there’s a small wooden house being built on the land. The next spread shows that the one house has grown to a few houses and a village has been born. Each spread beyond that adds to the space with the village turning into a castle enclosure, then a sprawl of buildings, then a steam-punk medieval industrial center (complete with imaginative flying machines) with smoke and ashes spouting from many chimneys. Eventually, of course, the tree, the river and the countryside are destroyed by pollution and overuse but there’s still one acorn on the ancient tree and it drops to the ground to begin again. A hopeful rainbow shows over the last spread of a sapling just poking out of the ground.
Interestingly but not surprisingly given the content, Aaron Becker’s bold colors from Journey, Quest and Return are absent from this volume. Colors range from grays to drab greens to diluted and subtle purples. Finally, at the end, we find boldness in the rainbow spread over the desolate landscape.
Interestingly but not surprisingly given the content, Aaron Becker’s bold colors from Journey, Quest and Return are absent from this volume. Colors range from grays to drab greens to diluted and subtle purples. Finally, at the end, we find boldness in the rainbow spread over the desolate landscape.
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