A fantastic children's book
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My copy of this book is so old and has been read so many times that the pages are held together by sellotape and elastic bands!!
This is a wonderful book....a fairy tale with a moral story behind it without being preachy. The descriptions of the Clerk of the Weather are my favourite part. Every time I see lightning it reminds me of the book!
In a nutshell, the book is about a girl called Judy, and her grandmother, Mrs Judy who run a shop in a Willow tree - a very old tree hence the book's title. The story is about the effects the newcomers to the wood - a boy called Sam and his Grandfather - have on Judy and her Granny when a rival shop, The Shop in the Ford, starts trading. The rest of the characters are mostly animals and the descriptions of their appearances and personalities are amazing. Another particular favourite is the passage about Mrs Peacock staying up all night to iron Mr Peacock's tail and wrap it in tissue paper!
This is a lovely old fashioned fairy tale, with a fairy tale ending. The animal characters are warm and funny without the cartoonish twee-ness you tend to find now. The old themes of good versus evil are addressed but without a big moral punch in the face type ending. The book covers many issues which are still relevant today. I can remember my Mother reading this to me as a child. I still re-read the book every so often and I have saved it to read to my future children.
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a wonderful classic tale
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This lovely book, exciting, moral, beautifully written, was a big part of my childhood. I would recommend it to anyone looking pure magic.
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The Tree That Sat Down
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I read this book as a child and it always stayed with me as one of those magical stories (I remembered the bit about the beautiful witch who used clothes pegs on her face to hide her wrinkles and the wicked boy who sold stuff from Woolworths as expensive jewels) It was one of those special books that gave me a love of reading which really helped me as I am dyslexic. I now have a daughter who is eight the same age as I was when I first read this book with the same learning problems and I tried to get a copy of this book for her and found out it was out of print. Doing my Xmas shopping on Amazon I typed the title in on a whim and was delighted when I found a copy to buy. I reread it in one sitting and really enjoyed reliving my childhood. Also my daughter picked it up and started reading it without my knowledge and asked me this morning "Is that the book from your childhood Mom? Cos its really good!" I'm going to get a copy of The stream that stood still next. The only thing I remember is that nasty pike!
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An unforgettable, magical tale!
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I was browsing Amazon (as you do) when I thought I'd look to see whether this wonderful book for young readers was available and if so, what reviewers were saying about it. Since nobody else is singing its praises, I shall attempt to do it justice – it's about twenty years since I reread it but some books never fade from your memory, and especially those which impacted you deeply as a child. This book captured my imagination (and my mother's imagination before me – I had her old battered copy but she wouldn't let me have it "for keeps"). The tree in question is a huge old tree under the protective branches of which there is a woodland "shop" where all of the woodland animals can shop for magical items such as "Sleepo" which will help them sleep and have good dreams (this is carefully collected from the breathings of snoozing animals). The proprietor is a good witch, who along with her niece(?) concocts all manner of fantastic treats and remedies, and I'm probably not the first child who has tried to copy some of the recipes... All is well until nasty Sam finds the forest, the tree and the innocent and gullible woodland animals and he sets about taking advantage of them and destroying the innocence in the forest. It's a tear-jerker in parts, a story of good versus evil and a delightful work of the imagination and comedy in parts (great courtroom scene) that every young reader should try.Perhaps it would be judged old fashioned now but I grew up with Enid Blyton's books (I'm 35) and doubt whether I've been too warped by indulging in some innocent escapism. I have my own copy of "The Tree that Sat Down" now and will read it aloud to any who want to hear, but I shan't be lending it out any time soon... Share this with a youngster or two.
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