Wishtree is a wonderful tale that is about friendship, hope, family, and most importantly wishes. Red is a 216 year old oak tree, or more commonly known as a wishtree. A wishtree is a tree that is known for granting wishes to help the people around it. Red has a secret because she can talk. Every animal and plant can talk. One day a 10 year old girl named Samar asks Red for a friend. Samar is not like everyone else in that town she is special and different. Samar comes to the tree every night to talk with the tree. Red finds a wanting to grant her wish because she sees something in Samar that is not in others. With the help of Red's best friend Bongo they might be able to help Samar find a friend. I really enjoyed how the author put this book in the perspective of a 216 year old oak tree. This book was so well written that you might even believe that trees can talk.
Wishtree
By Katherine Applegate
Trees can't tell jokes, but they can certainly tell stories. . . .
Red is an oak tree who is many rings old. Red is the neighborhood "wishtree"―people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Along with her crow friend Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red's hollows, this "wishtree" watches over the neighborhood.
You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red's experiences as a wishtree are more important than ever.
Funny, deep, warm, and nuanced, Wishtree is Newbery Medalist and New York Times–bestselling author Katherine Applegate at her very best―writing from the heart, and from a completely unexpected point of view.
Book Reviews (69)
Red is an 216 year old oak tree. But, there is something that you probably don't know about tress and animals. They can talk! How? Well, it's a "mysterious dance of sunlight and sugar and wind and water". Red is also a wishtree. Many people come in May (but also all year round) to tell Red there wishes. She's heard many ridiculous and sincere wishes. However, when a ten year old muslim girl, Samar, moves into the neighborhood, people aren't very welcoming to her. Her wish is to have a friend. Red decides that she must help her. With the help of a best friend Bongo they might be able to find a friend for Samar. This was a cool book from an interesting perspective. There are many books about trees or animals being able to talk, but I felt this book was very unique. It is written from Red's perspective in a world full of humans. This is a great book for grades four to five and up.
I love Kathrine Applegate's books. There's so much adventure. In this book, Red, an oak tree that is 150 years old, Red is a wish tree. People hang wishes on him. How he became a wish tree you ask. If you really want to know find out in Wishtree.
Ever think if trees can talk? Meet Red( a red oak tree that is 150 years old.) As you see Red is an oak tree. But not an ordinary oak tree. A wishing tree that can talk. He is home to many different animals. One of his best friends is a crow named Bongo. One day a new family moves in. There community is suppose to welcome everybody but, they do not welcome this particular family. They are Muslim. There is a girl that comes to the tree and wishes to have a friend. Red makes a new mission. The mission is to help the girl make a friend. They make lots of plans and it fail. Then they finally become friends. After that, the community threatens to cut down red. I felt that this book wasn't the best. Even though it wasn't good, you should still read this book. This book has an important lesson, be friendly with your environment. I rate this book 2.5 stars.
Red is a red oak tree that is very popular in the town. Every year on wishing day everyone in the town will gather round this big old oak tree and tie scraps of cloth to the tree while making wishes. When a new family moves in things start to become less welcoming. To add more problems for Red somebody wants to cut down Red. To find out what happens read this great book told from the point of view of a tree. This is a great book so I recommend you read it.
Wishtree is a book I really want to be apart of its really cool. I wish I had a wish tree to wish on I would have everything I want to have.
This book is really unique because it is narrated by an oak tree named red. Red watches over a community of diversity. Red has lived for 216 years. Another name for Red is "the wishtree" because once a year people come to Red and tie their wishes to the branches. One day, an odd boy carved the word leaves into Red, which was offensive to a Muslim family.This book is good for elementary school students, but middle schoolers may enjoy this book too.
I really like this book. I think it would be a good family book, because it is a really good book. I really liked Bongo and Red, the main character. I think it has a really good ending. It is about a tree who people put wishes on. One person carves a word onto Red, the wishtree. It is a clean book.
The Wishing Tree is a red oak (named Red) where people write down a wish and tie it to Red. Red sees tons of things throughout his two hundred and sixteen rings (years) of life. A girl named Samar lives in the house in front of Red. Every night, she gets out of bed to lean on Red. All the animals that live in Red love her, including Red’s friend crow, Bongo. One day, she comes outside with a wish on a piece of fabric. While she ties it on to Red, she says “I wish I had a friend.” Samar’s neighbor is a student at her school named Stephen. In the beginning, they dislike each other. But, when Red tries to grant Samar’s wish, they become friends. One night, Red put plan #3 into action. He instructed Bongo to untie Samar’s wish and leave it on Stephen’s windowsill. Once he looks outside, he sees the wish, opens the window and reads it. He walked to the wishing tree and started a conversation. However, during the conversation, Red tells them a story, even though he broke the #1 rule, the no talking to people rule. Red is planted on a lawn. The owner of that lawn doesn’t like it there. So she tries to cut it down. But in the end, the animals saved Red from being cut down and that convinced the owner to keep Red alive. My favorite part is when the animals saved Red by perching on the branches to save Red. She didn’t want to hurt the animals, so she decided not to cut Red down. My favorite character is Red. He is a good friend of Samar’s and is so nice to her that he breaks the rules for her to have a friend. Even though he is sad, he overcomes many obstacles (such as someone carving the word “leave “ into his trunk) but in the end, everyone is happy. I recommend this book to people who love nature.
This book is thoughtful and sweet and told in a unique perspective. The narrator of the story is a tree that is extremely old and witnesses the arrival of a Muslim family into the neighborhood. Not everyone is happy with the arrival, and a boy even carves "leave" into a tree in their yard. The story focuses on the young girl, Samar, in this family trying to find a friend.