Wishtree by Katherine Applegate is the first book I’ve ever read that’s narrated by a tree. Yes, a tree. An oak tree named Red, to be precise.

She’s lived for more than two hundred years.  Many different kinds of animals have made their homes between her roots, on her limbs, and in her hollows. And many different people have tied their wishes to her branches.

Then, one day, a Muslim family moves into one of the houses Red shades. The family has a little girl who wishes for a friend. When someone carves “LEAVE” into Red’s trunk, she decides she needs to do something. But what can a tree do?

Wishtree is a beautiful, poetic, philosophical story about friendship and community. As Red herself says, “Trees can’t tell jokes. But we can certainly tell stories.”