This achingly beautiful story of a young girl and her pioneer family evokes the vastness of the land, the whisper of the wind, and the promise and hope of the people who settled the endless prairie. Maxine Trottier’s lyrical prose captures the rhythm of the seasons and of life itself. Emily’s growing up is mirrored in the growth of the tree mentioned in the title of the book – a weeping willow planted by Emily the spring after they arrived at their homestead. We see the tree – a symbol of the pioneer spirit – grow from a sapling to a tall tree gripping the prairie soil with strong deep roots. And we see Emily as she goes to school, watches her brother Jack go off to fight in the war, weeps under her tree when he is killed, marries, has children, and visits with grandchildren when she is old. In a joy-filled ending, Emily dreams that she is a young girl again, running to meet Jack across the prairie. The life cycle is complete, but as we see on the last page of the story, the willow stays, firmly planted. “The tree is part of the earth. That is the way of things on the prairie.”

The illustrations, done in oils, are rich in texture and full of glowing colour. Many are spread over two pages, giving readers a sense of the hugeness of the land, the size of the sky. Historical detail – the pioneer wagon, the horse-drawn plough, the sod house – is present, yet subtle. Artists Laura Fernandez and Rick Jacobson, a husband and wife team, bring to their paintings a sense of the simplicity of pioneer life (planting seeds by hand, jumping in the harvested stalks of wheat) as well as the strong spirit and commitment of early settlers.

While it’s an ideal story to read aloud, Prairie Willow could also be used in the classroom as part of a unit on pioneer life, especially in younger grades. It is an outstanding picture book for children, likely to win awards and recognition across the country.