Description
Back cover copy.
“They call me a witch, Liv, and maybe I am, in a manner of speaking.”
Olivia doesn’t believe in magic. No sensible person does. So why, when the family moves to Devon after her dad’s accident, does the hill speak to her? The hill’s guardian, Annie Tilke, can’t – or won’t – explain.
At school, sparky Sadie takes Olivia under her wing, but what about the smouldering Robert Enticott and the devoted but hopeless Wadsy? Are they friend or foe?
Olivia’s dad isn’t getting better and her mum wants to move back to the city. Telling her parents she wants to stay in Devon to become a vet is the least of Olivia’s worries. Old Annie’s mysterious tormentors are becoming more menacing, the natural world is in trouble, and the mysterious voice on the hill has an urgent message that only Olivia can interpret.
Advance reviews.
For the first time we produced a physical advance review copy of a book and sent it out to a few choice reviewers. See what they thought, below.
Review by Robert Macfarlane,
“The Whispering Trees is a terrific book: at once haunting, witty and witchy, with the tang of the real to it as well as the shiver of the uncanny. Here are shades of Susan Cooper, echoes of Michael Morpurgo, all in a living landscape set just askew from what might be expected.”
Robert Macfarlane is best known for The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot, Underland: A Deep Time Journey, Landmarks, and The Lost Words. (Amazon affiliate links)
Review by Claire Reviews
“A compelling, emotive, and beautifully written tale of friendship. This is one of the most original books I have read in a long while, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.”
Review by Maria Oliver,
author of Once Upon a Time, You and
A thrilling tale about growing up, finding your own path, connecting with nature, and respecting our planet. Set in the Devon countryside, it involves night-time adventures, the magic of nature and the bonds of intergenerational friendship.
I was excited to read this book as I love stories about magic, and I love teen books. I didn’t expect the book to speak to me on so many levels as an older woman.
Liv, the main protagonist, is a teenage girl who has moved to Devon with her family. She forms a friendship with Annie, an archetypal old crone, who specialises in herbalism and hedge witchcraft. Annie used to be respected as a wisewoman and midwife, but is now shunned and disparaged due to malicious rumours. Annie has a connection with the titular whispering trees on the hill behind her cottage, and is surprised to discover that Liv has this connection too.
The plot races along as Liv discovers more about the magic of the hill, stands up to her parents, raids a chicken farm and forms a relationship with a local young farmer.
For me, it was the relationship between women and nature that really drew me in. Liv is late to start her first period, but it arrives with the full moon. Annie knows that only another woman should rightfully inherit her hill. And it is the ‘masculine’ attitude to farming, of stripping the land of resources without respecting the need for balance, that is called into question throughout the book.
Historically, wisewomen were treated with respect and held positions of influence in the community. However, in recent generations, older women have been treated as worthless when their childbearing days are behind them, and Annie fights back against this. I love this empowering book for girls, showing two headstrong women from different generations, who won’t allow others to make decisions for them.
Maria Oliver
13 May 2024
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