The Family Tree

In The Family Tree, young Ada is assigned a family tree to label for homework. Ada comes from a nontraditional family and is unsure how to complete the tree. Her parents suggest visiting friends and family to talk about the tree. There are a variety of non-traditional families visited, such as a foster family, a family that used a surrogate, and a family with separated parents. Each friend or family member has a suggestion for the tree. Instead of writing their names on a branch, they add an illustration to the tree. For instance:

   “I like the river idea better,” said Leo.
   “The river idea?”
   “It’s where Da and Pa and Ellen and Auntie Mika are all rivers that empty into an ocean of ME.”

Then Leo and Ada draw rivers beside the tree. By the end of the book, the simple tree has been transformed into an entire metaphoric scene of rivers, stars, flowers, and more. The final pages of the book unfold to view Ada’s completed assignment.

The concept behind The Family Tree is well-conceived. There are many types of families, and many families do not fit a traditional family tree. A variety of families are represented, and their depictions in the illustrations are diverse. Sean Dixon does a good job using appropriate language and tone to speak to the audience of elementary school-age children. At times, however, the writing can be a bit clunky. For instance, children in two different families mispronounce words: “What-If Baby” instead of IVF baby and “Sure-Is-Great” instead of surrogate. Lily Snowden-Fine’s illustrations are colourful and almost childlike. While I found the simplistic faces of the people a bit jarring, my children (ages 11 and 13) liked the illustrations and thought the pictures were the highlight of the book.

Teachers and students in elementary schools would find how The Family Tree explains and depicts diversity helpful and welcoming. In the classroom, the book would be a good springboard for conversations about family and how students could represent their own families in ways instead of a tree. The Family Tree would also be a good book for families to explore differences, similarities, and celebrate each family’s own uniqueness.