A Family Tree
by Staci Lola Drouillard; illus. by Kate Gardiner
Primary    Clarion/HarperCollins    40 pp.
5/24    9780063242463    $19.99

When Francis’s family plants Gaawaandagoonce (“little spruce” in Ojibwemowin) in her grandmother’s garden located alongside Gichigamiing (Lake Superior), the tree and baby Francis are almost the same height. The two grow together: “While Francis learned to walk on two little feet, the spruce tree walked in her own way—stretching her roots out into the ground, where they talked to roots of other trees.” Grandma knows that “trees, like people, are stronger together,” which is why Gaawaandagoonce was planted near older spruces. Drouillard’s inviting text naturally weaves information about trees’ root systems and species’ interconnectedness into a story about adjusting to change. When Francis’s grandparents eventually need to move from their Grand Portage home, the family brings the little spruce to Francis’s aunt’s house. They carefully and lovingly transplant the tree, but acclimating is tough. Slowly, she connects with the other spruces and begins to feel at home again. Children who have had to move to a new place will relate to Francis and Little Spruce. The gouache and colored-pencil drawings’ limited palette is a good match for the text’s contemplative tone. An author’s note explains that the story is based on a real spruce tree, and Drouillard discusses the importance of land and the significance of its loss for the Ojibwe people. Two Anishinaabe uses for white spruce and a glossary of the Ojibwemowin words included in the story are also appended.

From the July/August 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.