The Tree in the Courtyard

February 15, 2016
Gottesfeld (Anne Frank and Me) imagines that a massive horse chestnut tree, with leaves like "green stars," was a stalwart, loving observer of Anne Frank as she hid with her family for two years (the afterword notes that the tree is mentioned three times in The Diary of a Young Girl). The tree watches through an attic window as Anne fills the pages of her red-and-white diary and has her first kiss; when the family is taken away, the tree keeps vigil for them season after season. Writing with a quiet lyricism, Gottesfeld portrays the tree as never understanding why the family has to stay inside, or the forces that swept them away, which makes it a poignant surrogate for readers who are themselves coming to grips with happened to Anne and all the Jews who perished in the Holocaust. McCarty's (Bunny Dreams) sepia drawings, somber tableaus textured like fine engravings, convey the seriousness and sadness of the story, though perhaps less of Anne's exuberant personality. Ages 5â8. Author's agent: Jason Yarn, Paradigm Talent Agency. Illustrator's agent: Gotham Group.

January 15, 2016
Nature watches as humans wage war. A personified horse chestnut tree witnesses history as it grows, "reach[ing] skyward in peace. Until war came." So begins the story of military "strangers" who enter a city. Soon after, eight solemn-faced people--five adults, two girls, and one boy--come to live in the nearby factory annex, and the tree watches as one of the young girls sits by the attic window and writes in her diary, never leaving the building. The tree blooms "extra bright" the spring after the young girl and boy kiss. Then the people are taken away, and the "tree ke[eps] a vigil." Years later, the tree dies, only to have her seeds replanted in many cities. The book's nameless war is, of course, World War II, and the unnamed soldiers were German troops. By avoiding specifics, Gottesfeld seems to be trying to universalize the story of Anne Frank, and in doing so, he diminishes the terrible truth of the Holocaust and Hitler's Final Solution, during which, according to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, 1 million or more Jewish children perished. Giving the tree human sentiments is a further misstep. McCarty's brown ink drawings on a white background are suitably sober and evocative, with scenes that are photographic images capturing stark moments. Anne Frank has been memorialized properly--elsewhere. (afterword) (Informational picture book. 8-11)

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Starred review from April 1, 2016

Gr 2-4-A horse chestnut tree in the courtyard next to Anne Frank's secret annex serves as the focal point in this beautifully subtle picture book. Beginning with a quote from Anne's famous diary describing "the bare chestnut tree glistening with dew," the spare text and delicate illustrations create a moving and powerful ode to the tree that gave Anne comfort and hope during the years she and her family hid from the Nazis. Bearing witness to Anne's life in the annex, the tree serves as a fitting surrogate for readers, watching as Anne's story unfolds yet having no power to affect the outcome. Simple phrasing keeps the narrative poignant without becoming overly dramatic or sentimental. Mild anthropomorphizing gives the tree heart. Monochromatic illustrations rendered in brown ink are exquisitely detailed in fine lines and shading, conveying a solemn beauty befitting the book's subject. Additionally, the narrative choice to tell Anne's story through a series of moments deftly captures its pathos and importance, distinguishing this work from similar titles-Jane Kohuth's Anne Frank's Chestnut Tree and Sandy Eisenberg Sasso's Anne Frank and the Remembering Tree. Details of Anne's arrest and death are presented in a brief yet thorough afterword, as is a list of the American locations where saplings from the chestnut tree have been planted in her honor. VERDICT A noteworthy and highly recommended introduction to a difficult and significant topic.-Teri Markson, Los Angeles Public Library

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2016
Grades 1-3 *Starred Review* With subtlety, Gottesfeld tells Anne Frank's story from the perspective of the glorious horse chestnut tree that grew outside Anne's father's factory and stretched up to the annex attic where her family and others were hidden. Given the narrative's point of view, the most disturbing details of WWII and the Holocaust are not elaborated upon, maintaining a gentle detachment that makes the dramatic episode appropriate for the youngest of students. The poignancy of the parallels between Anne and the tree becomes pointed when readers realize that young Anne dies before help arrives, and though many make tremendous efforts to rescue the 172-year-old tree, it still succumbs to its age. Yet Anne and the tree live on as explained in the author's note: Anne through her writing; the tree through its saplings. McCarty uses his stippled pen-and-ink style to great effect here: the shapes are soft, and the sepia ink conveys somber but warm sensitivity, all while maintaining a whisper of realism that hints at the dire circumstances Anne and the tree both face. McCarty's piercing portrait of Anne on the closing page, looking out her window and gazing directly at the reader, is particularly stunning. Haunting and deeply affecting, this take on Anne Frank's iconic story will be one readers won't easily forget.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2017
The tree outside Anne Frank's annex window observes her life there, taking on a central symbolic role as it relates the iconic story. With its focus on symbolism and lyricism and its strangely peaceful tone, this might serve as a gentle introduction to Holocaust history, but its vagueness is problematic. Sepia-toned ink illustrations suggest the sadness and distance of old photographs.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)