The Tree and the River

 
★以《旅程》（Journey）榮獲美國凱迪克榮譽獎艾隆．貝克（Aaron Becker）磅礡新作
 
　　一棵小樹立在蜿蜒的河岸上，默默見證時光流逝。樹看著人類出現，一個家庭開始在肥沃的山谷裡耕種，接著出現村莊以及城鎮，人們學會用水、風還有獸力來生存，卻也彼此發動戰爭。隨著時間推移，人類文明一路發展，不只嘗試改變河的流向、甚至延長日光時間，試圖要使大自然屈服在人類意志之下。不斷追求開發之下，人類迎來工業革命與現代化文明，隨之而來的卻是生態浩劫……
 
　　時空流轉，生生不息，一顆橡子落入土裡，帶來新的生命。儘管人們的世界時而陷入混亂，然而只要有生命延續，未來就仍有希望。
 
　　艾隆．貝克以一向擅長的無字繪本形式，使用鉛筆、水粉畫以及數位繪圖，透過一棵樹的視角，看大自然與人類兩個強大力量之間的角力，反思人類的存在和未來，以及人與自然間的關係。氣勢壯闊的跨頁大場景中，看得見艾隆．貝克對每個細節的精細要求，帶領讀者踏上過癮又難忘的視覺之旅，彷彿站在時間的長河，轉瞬間便看盡文明興衰。（文／博客來編譯）

＂In an alternate past--or possible future--a mighty tree stands on the banks of a winding river, bearing silent witness to the flow of time and change. A family farms the fertile valley. Soon, a village sprouts, and not long after, a town. Residents learn to harness the water, the wind, and the animals in order to survive and thrive. The growing population becomes ever more industrious and clever, bending nature itself to their will and their ambition: redirecting rivers, harvesting lumber, reshaping the land, even extending daylight itself. . . .＂--

Aaron Becker is the best-selling author of the award-winning Journey trilogy, along with several other books for children young and old. His love of travel led him to the city of Granada, Spain, where a rich history of layered civilizations inspired him to write The Tree and the River. To prepare for the story’s illustrations, he first constructed a scale model of the book’s rolling landscape, which he then slowly transformed with clay and wood over many months. When he’s not home with his wife and two daughters, Aaron Becker can be found creating something new in his studio in western Massachusetts.