Alberta has the summer school holidays sorted. She’s going to spend every moment she can with her friends on the beach, or in the surf
boogie boarding. A run in with a local bully dumps her plans… hard! Now with a broken arm in plaster and in a sling for the next six weeks, she’s at a loss what to do.
Hanging out with her extremely over the top, argumentative and chaos causing eight year old sister Clementine is definitely out. And come to think of it, her friends have been acting a little weird lately. Will six weeks of summer be complete boredom?
Another friend who has just returned from visiting family in Japan, notices her broken arm and suggests helping him with a project. Alberta is unsure at first at Mikki’s suggestion, but the subject and process is fascinating. Mikki is a budding doco film maker, and his specialist subject is trees. National forest edges their small seaside town, and Alberta has never thought much about it as she uses the bike trails to get from A to B.
At first, Alberta wonders if this is all a bit “woo woo” for her, but as she immerses herself in the books she has borrowed from Mikki, she can understand her friend’s excitement. She quickly becomes the face of their new YouTube channel as Mikki films and uses his skills to edit short films for followers to watch and learn about trees, forests and nature.
When they learn that the stand of pine trees they have been studying and filming within the national park is marked for removal, they leap into action to do everything to save them.
The forest might be calming and a focus for her holidays, but life at home is anything but. Alberta finally learns what her friends have been acting so strange about. It’s not Alberta they are cross with but her parents. Both are under the eyes of the small town and filling mouths with juicy gossip.
For a holiday that was looking to be a long boring one, Alberta is suddenly famous online for ‘listening’ to trees, trying to help her parents and pulling her community together. Phew!
This might look like just another eco story for kids, but it has so many more layers. There is a fracturing family and the stress release that causes its own problems. The main character’s mum is an author of a hugely successful manners book which again causes more friction than help. Snippets of the book are included throughout this story in the form of ‘Tammy’s tips’ – manners advice. These tips are balanced with opposite behaviour, especially by younger sister Clementine, throughout the story.
The technology to listen and ‘play’ the trees is actually possible and I have included a link below to learn more about this wonder.
The insight and information about trees is interesting and for any young botanist, worth studying further. Hoping readers will be inspired by this story and help save their own trees!
Author – Marion Roberts
Age – 9+
(2022, Allen & Unwin, Trees, Nature, Forest, Summer Holidays, Friendship, Loss, Saying goodbye, Japanese culture, You Tube, Followers, Family split, Gossip, Secrets, Bullies, Environment, Community, Courage, Film making, Docos, Tree climbing, Small town, Coastal town, Concert, Crime, Grief, Growing up)
Hi there – I am the author of Mikki and Me and the Out Of Tune Tree. Just want to thank you for the review of my novel and also to let you know that the technology to “listen and ‘play’ the trees” is actually possible. I have first hand experience of this and it was part of the inspiration to writing the novel. Here’s a link to how you can learn more … https://www.damanhur.foundation/project/the-music-of-the-plants/. Thanks again for your support. Marion Roberts