The Apple Tree

Summary of Book

A Cherokee boy plants an apple seed, already seeing the apple tree it is meant to be. But the little apple tree is not so sure. Young and impatient, it begins to doubt its calling after apples fail to appear that first fall. How can the boy convince the tree to give the seasons the time to work their magic? The story is told in English with Cherokee translation, and includes a Cherokee syllabary.

Author Biography

Sandy Tharp-Thee is the granddaughter of sharecroppers and survivors of the Cherokee Trail of Tears, who taught her parents who taught her to be strong, to give, and to laugh. As a tribal librarian, she has received the White House Champion of Change Award and is an enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation. She is the wife of a man who married her despite the magnet on the refrigerator that reads, "I kiss better than I cook," and the mother of a son, who still helps her collect autumn leaves and listens to her stories and songs.