The Hugging Tree: A Story about Resilience

'...The moon gazed down and softly said, “Sometimes we lose our way. But with some help, we start again. That’s how life is, you know.”...’ The power of illustration, both atmospheric and fragile, drew me to this poetic tale, initially. ♦ THE HUGGING TREE : A STORY ABOUT RESILIENCE ♦ AUTHOR : JILL NEIMARK ♦ ILLUSTRATOR : NICOLE WONG ♦ MAGINATION PRESS (*) ♦ 2016 ‘The Hugging Tree is a peaceful story of caring and compassion that follows the life of a little tree growing all alone on a granite cliff in harsh environmental conditions. The ocean, moon, and birds (loons) are kind to the tree and protect it from the elements, and eventually a young boy brings rich earth to sustain the tree. Throughout the story, the tree withstands challenging conditions and thrives. The resilience of The Hugging Tree calls to mind the potential in all of us: to thrive, despite times of struggle and difficulty. To nurture the little spark of hope and resolve. To dream and to grow, just where we are.’ ooOoo From the back cover: ‘Life Skills/Resilience Ages 4-8 ooOoo Inspired by the illustrator ‘Nicole Wong’, for a completely different reason, I sought out a copy of this book, from Amazon, as, sadly, it is hard to track down on the High Street! It is a very slim paperback, measuring around 25.25 cm x 20.25 cm and could easily be missed on the bookshelf. In between the covers, is a purposeful story, set in verse, over 24 shiny pages in 2-page spread format. The foreword from the author, Jill Neimark explains the background behind the writing of the book comparing her own troubled childhood. There is reference to the work of Emmy Werner, PhD, and, she covers the similarity to The Giving Tree , by Shel Silverstein. The piece finishes poignantly: ♠ ‘...Trees hold us fast in their embrace. ‘The Hugging Tree’ is about a tree that, in spite of harsh circumstances, grows until it can hold and shelter others. It is about each one of us.’ At the back of the book are 4 informative pages, written by Elizabeth McCallum, PhD, which is headed up: ‘Note to Parents and Caregivers’. The information therein is very important but, IMO, it would be better if it were not included in the storybook and perhaps as a pamphlet enclosure. (*) Magination Press is an imprint of the American Psychological Association, the largest, scientific and professional organization representing psychologists in the United States and the largest association of psychologists worldwide.

I bought this book wondering whether a) it was a mesmerizing story for kids; and b) whether it carried a message of hope during this pandemic when too many kids are bombarded by terrifying news and social media with too little shielding them from it all. The illustrations are artistically beautiful and the storyline page-turner reminds kids that, like a tree on an arid rocky top, we can all thrive by making the best of our circumstances and by getting a little help from our friends. I am ordering four more today for the rest of our grandkid households and will add a note about how truly good the word can be and how strong each of them is.

I was not really sure what I had ordered. I fell in love with the book. It teaches about experiencing difficult times, finding comfort, and receiving love from surprising sources. Learning that it is ok to be different, push when it is hard and know that in all things there is great beauty! Story telling ages to adults

This is a beautifully illustrated book, with a lovely story about resilience. I have used it in my Y5 class though would suit much younger children as well. Brilliant length to be able to read and talk about in a 30 minute lesson, got great discussion in class from it.

Lovely story. Read it to my kids and we talked about it for a long time. Has useful information at the back about how to get the best out of the book. Will be reading it to my class.