Picture · ages 3–7

The Wish Tree

Name: The Wish Tree
Author: Kyo Maclear
ISBN: 9781452150659

Written by Kyo Maclear · Illustrated by Chris Turnham

Top giftableEndlessly rereadable

A cosy, snow-dusted adventure about a boy and his toboggan searching the winter woods for a wish tree, finding that small kindnesses along the way lead somewhere magical.

Best for3–7
FormatPicture
Length40 pp
Read aloud~8 min

Where to buyPaperback

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The vibe

What it’s like.

Style

Literary
Conversational

Tone

Warm
Gentle
Whimsical
Heartwarming

Themes

On the pagewinter, snow, woodland animals, kindness, toboggan

Experience meters

Energy2/ 5

Humour2/ 5

Scariness1/ 5

Peril1/ 5

Wonder4/ 5

Cosiness5/ 5

Emotional intensity2/ 5

Conceptual intensity1/ 5

What’s it about?

The story.

Charles is sure there is such a thing as a wish tree, even if his brother and sister aren't. So he sets off into the winter woods with his trusty toboggan, Boggan, to find it. Along the way he stops to help the animals he meets — carrying hazelnuts up to Squirrel, hauling birch logs for Beaver, ferrying berries to Fox's burrow — never once giving up on his quest. As dusk falls, the grateful animals lead Charles to a snow-covered pine, where he hangs his wish and they share a woodland feast under the stars. Kyo Maclear's tender text and Chris Turnham's glowing, retro-styled winter landscapes make this a warm, wish-granting read-aloud about kindness, imagination and the small adventures right on your doorstep. A perfect cosy-season bedtime book that quietly rewards helping others.

Fit check

Right for your child?

Where it lands by age

A read-aloud for roughly 3 to 7, at its cosiest as a wintery bedtime book. Newly independent readers of 5 to 8 can enjoy it alone. Gentle throughout, with no peril — very safe for sensitive children.

Best fit · 3–7
Read aloud · 3–7
Independent · 5–8

Prose load

Light

Visual support

Very high

Reluctant-reader friendly

Workable

Read-aloud quality

Strong

Works well for

Reading aloud
Bedtime
Reading together
Gift-buying

Low sensitivityNo content warnings

Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.

Bedtime suitability

5 / 5 · Bedtime-friendly

Sensitive-child

5 / 5 · Good fit

Graphic intensity

1 / 5 · None

Best for

Cosy bedtime
Winter reads
Kindness
Read aloud

Avoid if

Wants action adventure
Wants scary

Why it lands

Why they love it.

Why kids love it

Charles believes even when nobody else does, and children love that stubborn faith. Trekking through the snow with a talking toboggan, helping animals who then repay the favour, and finally finding the tree feels like a proper adventure at bedtime scale.

Going on a quest
Adventure and freedom
Talking to animals

Why parents love it

Chris Turnham's warm, mid-century-styled snow scenes are a pleasure to linger over, and the gentle message — that kindness and belief carry their own reward — lands without preaching. An ideal seasonal bedtime read that holds up to repeats.

Beautiful illustrations
Bedtime appropriate

About the creators

About the creators.

Kyo Maclear

Writer · Canada · b. 1970

Kyo Maclear is a Canadian picture-book author, born in London in 1970 to a British journalist father and a Japanese artist mother, and raised in Toronto. She writes lyrical, quietly thoughtful picture books that pair everyday objects and small journeys with big ideas: Spork turns a piece of cutlery into a tender fable about mixed identity and belonging; Story Boat introduces very young readers to the refugee experience; The Fog and The Wish Tree fold environmental care and kindness into gentle, imaginative stories. Always working with distinctive illustrators, Maclear leans on atmosphere and feeling rather than plot, making her books natural discussion-starters at home and in the classroom. Widely translated and much-honoured, including a 2025 Caldecott Honor and a Vicky Metcalf career award, she is a reliable choice for families wanting warm, artful picture books with real substance.

Chris Turnham

Illustrator · United States

Chris Turnham is an American illustrator based in Los Angeles, originally from the Pacific Northwest. Before turning to books he built a career as a visual-development artist in animation, contributing to feature films including Coraline and ParaNorman for the studio LAIKA, as well as work for Sony Pictures Animation and DreamWorks. His picture-book work carries that same eye, a mid-century graphic sensibility of clean shapes, glowing light and layered woodland scenes that owe a debt to illustrators such as M. Sasek and the Provensens. In children's publishing he is best known for The Wish Tree, written by Kyo Maclear, a snow-dusted read-aloud about small kindnesses. His nature and landscape work is warm, retro and quietly detailed, a good fit for cosy, seasonal picture books that reward a slow look.