The Olive Tree

August 18, 2014
A stone wall divides two houses owned by families with children; a gnarled olive tree grows on Muna’s land, and the olives drop on Sameer’s land. Although Muna’s family, gone “during the troubles, because they were different from most of the people in the village,” has returned home, they maintain a polite distance, disappointing Sameer’s hopes for a friend. The children engage only to disagree over who the olives belong to. After their fight, “the olives went on dropping in Sameer’s yard... but nobody ever gathered them.” Ewart’s (One Cold Night) watercolor illustrations deftly employ color to signal the story’s emotional developments. For example, warm hues of gold and green permeate the opening pages; in a center spread, a billowing blue storm washes over the small green village, with jagged lightning striking and killing the olive tree. In the final pages, a dusky purple backdrop and broken golden boughs convey a somber yet promising mood. Marston (The Compassionate Warrior: Abd el-Kader of Algeria) subtly transforms the story’s sadness into hope as the children surprise each other with acts of quiet generosity. Ages 5–up.

October 1, 2014
Sameer, a young boy in Lebanon, awaits the return of his neighbors who fled during the war. Sameer doesn't remember the family, but maybe there will be a boy his age. A boy he can play with-especially someone who can climb the olive tree that grows between the two homes. The conflict is unexplained, just touched upon briefly: "The family who had lived there had gone away during the troubles, because they were different from most of the people in the village." Unfortunately, there is not a boy playmate but a girl named Muna who does not like Sameer very much. She sees him picking the olives that have fallen on his side of the wall and declares he is stealing. The tree, after all, belongs to her family. One fateful night, lightning strikes the tree, and it crashes to the ground, bringing part of the wall down as well (symbolically and literally). An apt peace offering if ever there was one, the broken olive branches bring Sameer and Muna together. Marston's understated text aptly captures the children's feelings and their uneasy relationship. Ewart's illustrations are not as strong; in close-up, they are pleasing, but uneven perspective and confusing composition dog some of the longer shots, particularly those that depict the toppled tree. Uneven art aside, a valid story that shows how perceived prejudice can be just as destructive as actual hatred. (Picture book. 5-8)

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 1, 2014

K-Gr 3-This story, set in the contemporary Middle East, is about two neighbors and the ancient olive tree that stands between them. One family had "gone away during the troubles" but has now returned. In the meantime, Sameer and his family have enjoyed the best olives in Lebanon. Claiming ownership of the tree and its fruits, young Muna refuses to share, until a majestic storm, gloriously illustrated in swirling blues, destroys the troublesome tree. While the adults drift sadly back to their own houses, the two children work together to clean up the broken branches and stack them for firewood, each at the other's house. The style of writing is simple, direct, and accessible. Large watercolor paintings vary in viewpoint from one family's side of the wall to the other, until the tree is gone and Sameer and Muna cross over to each other's houses. Both mothers wear hijab, an authentic cultural detail for a country in which 54 percent of the population is Muslim. However, there is no explanation of "the troubles" or why Muna's family, "different from most people in the village," had gone away. Pair this title with Florence Parry Heide and Judith Heide Gilliland's Sami and the Time of the Troubles (Clarion, 1992) to provide background on family life during the 1975 Lebanese Civil War.-Toby Rajput, National Louis University, Skokie, IL

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.