Listening to Trees: George Nakashima, Woodworker
Listening to Trees: George Nakashima, Woodworker, by Holly Thompson, illustrated by Toshiki Nakamura (Neal Porter Books, Holiday House, 2024)
Listening to Trees: George Nakashima, Woodworker (October 2024) is a poetic and moving picture book biography celebrating the life and work of the visionary Japanese American woodworker George Nakashima.
Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, George Nakashima began a love story with trees that grew throughout his remarkable life as architect, designer and woodworker. During World War II, George, with his wife Marion and their baby daughter, endured incarceration in Minidoka prison camp, where he drew comfort from the discipline of woodworking. Once free, George dedicated the rest of his life to crafting furniture from fallen or discarded trees, giving fresh purpose and dignity to each tree, and promoting a more peaceful world.
Author Holly Thompson narrates Nakashima's life using haibun, a combination of haiku and prose, which twines smoothly through Toshiki Nakamura's earthy illustrations. A foreword by Nakashima's daughter Mira and robust back matter will deepen young readers' understanding of woodworking and poetry and offer added insights to the work of a master artisan.
Praise
"A moving story of family, resilience, and sustainability."—Booklist
A 2025 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award Recommended Book
Available through your local independent book store or via Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, AmazonJapan