Sees Behind Trees

This beautiful coming-of-age story captures one young Powhatan boy's road to truly finding himself.

No matter how hard he tries, nearsighted Walnut just can't earn his adult name the way other boys do, by hitting a target with a bow and arrow. With his highly developed other senses, however, he shows he can "see what can't be seen" and earns a new name: Sees Behind Trees. But his special skill proves to be more important than he'd ever imagined when is invited to go on a journey to a mysterious land, a trek filled with unforeseen challenges and dangers.

Told with heart, this is a lyrical novel about an Indigenous boy searching for his place amongst his community.

"Set in 16th century America, this richly imagined and gorgeously written rite-of-passage story has the gravity of legend." --Booklist, starred

A School Library Journal Best Book
A Publishers Weekly Best Book
A Book Links Best Book

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112 pages

Average rating: 8

3 RATINGS

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Mrs. Awake Taco

Nov 13, 2024

6/10 stars

Turns out I'd read this book before, probably when I was in elementary school, and had just forgotten. I remembered one of the opening scenes, though, where Sees Behind Trees locates a girl's needle using logic. I had thought that was so cool when I was a kid. I didn't remember anything else of the book, though, so I went ahead and reread it. I only gave this three stars because I felt the pacing was a little slow, but the themes were good and meaningful. It was much more meaningful as an adult than it probably was when I was a child, but oh well. Also a good book about learning to use a "disadvantage" to advantage, as well as staying humble.

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