The Girl Who Became a Tree
A Story Told in Poems
Age 12+
Poetry General Fiction Personal & Social Issues: Family Issues Personal & Social Issues: Death & Bereavement
The Girl Who Became a Tree is a powerful and mesmerising exploration of grief and renewal
The Girl Who Became a Tree sees Joseph Coelho deploy a wide variety of poetic forms with consummate skill in its narration of events. He seamlessly but searingly weaves together the ancient legend of Daphne, who was turned into a tree to avoid the attentions of the god Apollo, and a totally modern tale, mixing real-life and fantasy, in which a latter-day Daphne seeks her own freedom. This a heart-stoppingly imaginative story told in poems, at times bleak and even tragic, which is layered, rich and ultimately a tour de force of poetic skill and energy.
Creators
Joseph Coelho is a performance poet and playwright. His collection Overheard in a Tower Block was longlisted for the Carnegie Medal and shortlisted for the CLiPPA. The Girl Who Became a Tree was first published in hardback in 2020 and was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and won the Bologna Ragazzi Award for Poetry. Joseph became the UK Waterstones Children's Laureate in 2022.
Kate Milner studied illustration at Central St Martin’s before completing an MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Anglia Ruskin University. Kate won the V&A Illustration Award 2016 and the Klaus Flugge Prize 2018 for My name is not Refugee. Her It's a No-Money Day was shortlisted for the Greenaway Medal.
Reviews
The author skilfully reworks the legend of Daphne…into a bleak and emotional YA story of loss and loneliness full of powerful imagery. It is a thought-provoking book which merges fantasy and reality, inner and outer worlds, and urban and forest landscapes. It is an emotional and complex read, but those older readers who enter the forest with Daphne as she confronts the darkness inside will emerge with her into a more hopeful world.
Books for Keeps
A classic…the way Joseph has blended the modern with the mythic held me totally – I loved it. Absolutely loved it. That’s what we have been waiting for. A great book…Not been so excited about a book for a long time.
Pie Corbett
Very special. Multi-layered, emotionally intense, beautifully illustrated and written by a poet at the top of his game…beautifully constructed…stayed with me long after reading. Absolutely superb.
Jon Biddle
