Me + Tree (written by Alexandria Giardino, illustrated by Anna and Elena Balbusso) opens with an image of tight concentric circles. Turn the page to an urban scene with a tree stump, and it becomes clear those circles were tree rings, and immediately the sense of time and history (both arboreal and human) enters the story. The lives of a diverse range of people are intertwined with that of the tree, and their relationship with the tree evolves. Where once it was loved for its fruit and as a place to sit, court, and contemplate, its wood becomes useful for fuel and building, and all that remains is a stump.
The girl who is the “me” of the title is drawn to the stump in the bleak playground, and intuitively grasps the changes it has endured because it reflects what she and her family have experienced. As she draws her own stories on the stump, she depicts joyful times in a beautiful garden, but also the upheaval of fleeing and moving to an unfamiliar place where she feels alone. The sense of connection between girl and tree is mutual, and just as the tree sends up a sprout of new growth, the girl too begins to sense new possibilities of friendship and belonging.
