The Man Who Planted Trees

The Man Who Planted Trees

by Barbara Bray (Translator), Barbara Bray (Translator), Richard Mabey (Introduction), Jean Giono (Author), Harry Brockway (Illustrator)

Synopsis

Jean Giono's beautiful allegorical tale is legendary. Written in the 1950s, its message was ahead of its time, inspiring readers to rediscover the harmonies of the countryside and prevent its wilful destruction. The narrator, journeying by foot across the barren plains of the lower Alps, has his thirst assuaged by the well water drawn by the shepherd Elzeard Bouffier. Here begins the subtle parable which Giono weaves of the life-giving shepherd who chooses to live alone and carry out the work of God. Over forty years the desolate hills and lifeless villages which so oppressed the traveller are transformed by the didication of one man. All with the help of a few acorns. Giono's hope was to set in motion a worldwide reforestation programme that would rejuvenate the earth. The Man who Planted Trees is a hymn to creation and a purveyor of confidence in man's ability to change his- indeed the world's- lot.

$11.96

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 56
Edition: Revised ed.
Publisher: Harvill Press
Published: 16 Nov 1995

ISBN 10: 1860461174
ISBN 13: 9781860461170
Book Overview: In Giono's work what every sensitive, full-blooded individual ought to be able to recognise at once is 'the song of the world' Henry Miller

Media Reviews
One of the greatest writers of our generation -- Andre Malraux
Thoughtful and potent, this captivating tale of nature and nurture will bring a smile to many lips * Connexion *
The Man Who Planted Trees...is really special to me - it's a book I give away to people a lot -- Kevin McCloud * Mail on Sunday *
One of the greatest writers of our generation -- Andre Malraux
Thoughtful and potent, this captivating tale of nature and nurture will bring a smile to many lips * Connexion *
Author Bio
Jean Giono (Author) Jean Giono was born in 1895 in Manosque, Provence, and lived there most of his life. He supported his family working as a bank clerk for eighteen years before his first two novels were published, thanks to the generosity of Andre Gide, to critical acclaim. He went on to write thirty novels, including The Horseman on the Roof, and numerous essays and stories. In 1953, the year in which he wrote The Man who Planted Trees, he was awarded the Prix Monegasque for his collective work. Jean Giono died in October 1970. Harry Brockway (Illustrator) Harry Brockway was born in 1958 and studied sculpture at Kingston Art School and at the Royal Academy, where he learned engraving. He makes a living as a stonemason as well as a wood engraver.