i have so loved shaun tan's work since i shared with my class his book " the arrival ".
he has a sense of the details of living and being in this world that i admire for his gentle insight as well as for the freshness of his perspective.
the red tree is about many things.
most especially though, the subtle appearance of hope.
6 comments:
I love this, wish I'd read something like it when I was young. I was talking to a friend last night about depression and I said it feels like you're dead, except you're not. She's had a tough go these past two years.
First of all, the illustrations and the text so perfectly fit to the words. The words here aren't ones that adults would think of sharing with children and yet they are such important words for everyone to hear. Also, the production and the music are such a cool way to share this treasure of a book. Thank you for bringing it to my attention today, Steven.
hey, steven, I really liked this. I had never seen this book before, even the author is new to me. Topics like this are so taboo, yet many children, even very young ones like the ones I teach suffer from depression (though supposedly they're too young—so let me call it extended melancholy moods). A book like this brings it out in the open and airs it out a bit. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
hi lilith, i've experienced sadness and an abiding sense of desperation but not depression. not as i have known it in friends. inclining towards optimism and hope can be so hard and yet it is always there, waiting with outstretched hand to pull you to your feet! steven
joanna, it's so cool to share with young kids because they entirely get the piece although their life context is so relatively short. they know what it is like to experience what in england is called "the black dog". steven
dan i've been missing you man, thanks for passing by! we know that for children there are no taboo topics, there are difficult subjects and learned places to avoid!!! steven
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