With mystery, adventure, and resilient character, Skeleton Tree is a welcome experience for young readers. However, Miren is desperate not to lose her friend, forcing Stanly to question everything he’s ever believed about life, love, and the mysterious forces that connect us.īook Links: Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads | Publisher When Miren starts to grow sick, Stanly suspects that the skeleton is responsible and does everything in his power to drive the creature away. Mischievous Miren adopts the skeleton as a friend, and soon, the two become inseparable playmates. There’s just one person who doesn’t find any of this weird–Stanly’s little sister.

Even stranger, it seems to be growing into a full skeleton. With such a unique find, he’s sure to win the grand prize.īut, oddly, the bone doesn’t appear in any photos. Twelve-year-old Stanly knows the bone growing in his yard is a little weird, but that’s okay, because now he’ll have the perfect photo to submit to the Young Discoverer’s Competition. 'About this title' may belong to another edition of this title.“The ones you hold dear never leave you.” Purchase where stories dealing with illness and grief are needed.-Sarah Wethern, Douglas County Library, Alexandria, MN VERDICT Swinging between anger at his situation and palpable grief that his sister is dying, Stanly and the mysterious skeleton will resonate with young readers. There are no easy answers offered, but Ventrella's comforting storytelling reveals a magical world where a skeleton can grow and where a family's love for each other can provide healing. When the physical embodiment of death enters their world, an actual skeleton, Stanly's frayed life feels like it is coming apart. Stanly's narration is honest and authentic as he deals with his father's abandonment of the family, his mother's long work hours, and his sister's declining health. Touches of the extraordinary lift the mood of this somber story. The presence of the skeleton becomes increasingly foreboding in Stanly's mind.

She's spending more time in the hospital and has to rely on an oxygen tank. Unfortunately, as fascinated as he is by the skeleton, Stanly has a bigger problem: his younger sister, Marin, is sick. He is certain he will win and then his dad will have to come home. Stanly is determined to take a picture of the skeleton and submit it to the Young Discoverers' Competition. Perplexed and excited, Stanly soon discovers an entire skeleton growing up from the ground. Gr 3–6-Stanly Stanwright is living an ordinary day in his ordinary home when out of the blue he sees a skeleton bone emerge in his backyard.

Skeleton tree by kim ventrella