The house next door to Sameer's had been empty for as long as he could remember. The family had gone away when the war began. But now they were back, and he was ready to have fun with his new playmate. Together they could climb the big olive tree that overlooked both their gardens, and eat the delicious olives it produced. The only problem was that Muna, the little girl next door, didn't want to play and she didn't want to share the olives. She said they belonged to her family alone-that is, until one fateful night when lightning struck the tree. Poignantly told by award-winning author Elsa Marston and with beautiful paintings from award-winning illustrator Claire Ewart, The Olive Tree follows two children as they learn to share and work together by looking past their differences. It shows young readers that compassion and understanding lie at the heart of all friendships.

 

This book is the winner of numerous awards. It was recognised in the Picture Book category by the Middle East Book Award. It was recognised in the Interior Design category by the Benjamin Franklin Award. It also was recognised in the Illustration category by the Midwest Book Award.

There are 32 pages in this book. This is a picture book. A picture book uses pictures and text to tell the story. The number of words varies from zero ('wordless') to around 1k over 32 pages. Picture books are typically aimed at young readers (age 3-6) but can also be aimed at older children (7+). This book was published 2015 by World Wisdom Books .

Claire Ewart lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with her husband, their daughter, and a cat, in a place that was once covered by a warm, shallow sea. Elsa Marston is the author of over a dozen books of fiction and non-fiction for children and young adults. She grew up in Boston, and from a young age was fascinated with the stories of ancient Egypt and the Middle East. She attended Harvard, the American University of Beirut, and Indiana University. She lives in Bloomington, IN.