The Education of Little Tree

The education of Little Tree is a book by Forest Carter. The story is about an Indian boy who grew up with his Grandma and Grandpa. It is the first book I read this year. I loved it! I was already taken the first time I read it. It seems like the book is a gentle Cherokee hostess touring you around their way of life. Letting you see things. Halfway through the book I felt like I am already one of them. That's how enchanting the book was. The forest, the trees... One beautiful sentence after another like:

One little patch of fog would come around the end of a mountain like a silver boat and bump into another one and they would melt together and take off up a hollow.

There is not anything like dawn from the top of the high mountains. 

My head swirled after reading that sentence and I felt the urge to want to go to the mountains and experience the dawn at the top of it. That's how badly affected I am with the book. It made my head swim.

Nuggets of wisdom sprinkled the book which made we wish I could live like them.

“Grandma said when you come on something that is good, first thing to do is share it with whoever you can find; that way, the good spreads out to where no telling it will go.” 

"Grandma's name was Bonnie Bee. I knew that when I heard him late at night say, "I kin ye, Bonnie Bee", he was saying "I love ye," for the feeling was in the words. And when they would be talking and Granma would say, "Do you kin me, Wales?" and he would answer, "I kin ye." it meant "I understand ye." To them love and understanding was the same thing. Grandma said you couldn't love something you didn't understand; nor could you love people, nor God, if you didn't understand the people and God." 

The book was so mystical - characters could sense the trees, stars, changing of seasons and spirits. It was so mystical I believed it.

That's why I was shocked to find (google) that there were many complaints against the book claiming that it was fraud and that the author was really not Little Tree, and to top it all he was a racist. I did not care. I'm glad he wrote it. And im pretty sure he had somehow understood people and learned to love regardless of race for him to write this. I felt the spirit of the book (and the sincerity of the man behind it) and I am glad he wrote it.

I am an emotional reader. When I read this near the end,

Little Tree, I must go. Like you feel the trees, feel for us when you are listening. we will wait for you. Next time will be better. All is well. Granma."   

I could not hold it in. I cried like Pine Billy would. I cried with a glad heart for it was such a good story. I cried knowing that all is good. Life is good. And that it is possible. You can listen and talk to trees. I love trees. I love this book. I think it is true. All is told in honesty. No assumptions, no pretensions, just what is.

This is the kind of book I want to read again from time to time for the rest of my life.