The Man Who Planted Trees

"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

Over the years the desolate hills and lifeless villages which so oppressed the traveller are transformed by the dedication of one man. This title offers a hymn to creation and a purveyor of confidence in man's ability to change his - indeed the world's - lot.

‘A book for children from 8 to 80. I love the humanity of this story and how one man’s efforts can change the future for so many. It’s a real message of hope.’ Michael Morpurgo

Discover this beloved masterpiece of nature writing that is a hymn to creation and to the power of the individual to do their bit to change the world for the better.

In 1910, while hiking through the wild lavender in a wind-swept, desolate valley in Provence, a man comes across a shepherd called Elzéard Bouffier. Staying with him, he watches Elzéard sorting and then planting hundreds of acorns as he walks through the wilderness.

Ten years later, after surviving the First World War, he visits the shepherd again and sees the young forest he has created spreading slowly over the valley. Elzéard’s solitary, silent work continues and the narrator returns year after year to see the miracle he is gradually creating: a verdant, green landscape that is a testament to one man’s creative instinct.

A beautiful story of hope, survival and selflessness, The Man Who Planted Trees resonates as strongly with readers today as when it was first published.

Featuring an introduction from award-winning naturalist Richard Mabey, author of Nature Cure.