Press Release
From National Book Award Nominee Mitali Perkins Comes a Beautiful New Story for Celebrating the Hope and Promise of EasterWritten by National Book Award nominee Mitali Perkins,
Bare Tree and Little Wind: A Story for Holy Week (WaterBrook; on sale 2/22/22) invites families and young readers into a lyrically moving celebration of Palm Sunday, Holy Week, and Easter with a story designed to evoke heartfelt joy over the promise of Jesus’s triumphant return.
As the story begins, palm trees in Jerusalem clap their fronds with delight when Little Wind visits. But then someone new arrives who can make the trees burst into applause without Little Wind’s touch.
Little Wind couldn’t help getting excited. He twisted up high for a better view. Would he spot a noble horse? A crown with jewels? A royal parade? But all he saw was Quiet Man, still as a windless day. Sitting on a foal, he moved along a dusty road. Little Wind’s friend Bare Tree reassures him that Quiet Man is indeed Real King, but then everything suddenly goes wrong. Will the trees ever clap again? And when soldiers come with torches to destroy Jerusalem, what will happen to Bare Tree?
Described from the unique perspective of the Little Wind and the Trees that clap for Real King’s arrival, this beautifully illustrated picture book provides a never-before-seen view of the biblical story from the Gospels.
Accompanied by Khoa Le’s gorgeous artwork, which is reminicent of classic illuminated manuscripts, this story continues beyond Palm Sunday and the Resurrection and relates how the destruction of Jerusalem and the mission for believers to spread the Good News together point to the day when Real King will once again come in victory.
“Bare Tree and Little Wind is, of course, a story of something that is most precious to me,” Perkins explains, “—a story of Holy Week—which I did not encounter until I was nineteen years old. And so, in a way, I wrote it as an outsider to the story and tried to give it that fresh-eyed look of those who didn’t grow up with the story and describe the experience as they might see it.”
This story stands apart for its imagination, endearing characters, and how it weaves Old Testament imagery into Holy Week and the promise of Jesus's triumphant return. While the youngest readers will
connect to the curious Little Wind, older children and parents will appreciate the layers of meaning and Scriptural references in the story, making it a book families can enjoy together year after year.
For more information, visit waterbrookmultnomah.com or mitaliperkins.com
PRAISE FOR "BARE TREE AND LITTLE WIND"
“Inspired by scripture, Perkins draws on nature to illuminate the story of Holy Week. . . . Le’s elegant depictions of nature foreground seeds and fronds, gentling Perkins’s fast-moving, forward-looking chronology.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Renowned Christian author Mitali Perkins creatively employs Old Testament imagery to relate for children the events of Holy Week and beyond . . .
Bare Tree and Little Wind is a children’s picture book worthy of being savored again and again.”
—The Banner
“
Bare Tree and Little Wind is marvelous. Unlike any Easter book I’ve read, it has a timeless folktale quality. . . . Highly recommended.”
—The Redeemed Reader ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mitali Perkins is the author of many novels and picture books for young readers, including National Book Award nominee
You Bring the Distant Near and
Rickshaw Girl, which was adapted as a movie. She was a former judge for the National Book Award and the Kirkus Prize and received a “Most Engaging Author” award from independent booksellers across the country. Mitali has written articles for
Christianity Today and
America and has been interviewed on NBC News. She was born in India, immigrated to the United States as a child with her family, and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
https://www.mitaliperkins.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorMitaliPerkins/
https://twitter.com/MitaliPerkins
https://www.instagram.com/mitaliperkins/
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR: Khoa Le is the author and illustrator of numerous picture books. She currently lives with her cats and has a passion for traveling and discovering different cultures and stories. She has been honored by the Singapore Book Council as the grand prize winner of the Samsung KidsTime Authors’ Award and the second runner-up of the Scholastic Picture Book Award.
NOTE: A
digital review copy of the book, author interview, or original articles/blog posts are all available upon request.
Contact Publicist
Brett Benson
