The Letterbox Tree (Rebecca Lim & Kate Gordon, Walker)
In The Letterbox Tree, two acclaimed children’s writers have teamed up for the first time to write a platonic, cli-fi version of The Lakehouse, crafting a tense and pacy story of friendship and survival that spans 70 years. Nyx is living in climate-ravaged Tasmania in 2093: bushfires, deforestation and chemical spills have ruined the once pristine landscape, while Bea lives in the lush greenery of 2023 facing brutal ostracisation at school. The girls love their home town in spite of the challenges they face and find refuge in the enormous pine tree nearby. When each of their fathers decides that they are moving to the mainland (or the Northland, as Nyx calls it), they both express frustration by writing notes and leaving them in the tree, which magically connects them through time. Bea and Nyx quickly become friends and Bea vows to do what she can in the present to support Nyx through her apocalyptic future. The tension is palpable from the outset, painting the desolation of Nyx’s timeline in stark detail with impending fire and floods all around. The intensity of these predictions could be overwhelming, and although the authors skew towards a hopeful ending, it may come too late for an already anxious reader. The friendship that Bea and Nyx create across their timelines feels genuine, however some of the characterisation outside of our main protagonists are a little thin. Ultimately, the strong takeaway message is that our actions in the present can affect the future in a profound way and every little bit counts. For Zana Fraillon fans aged 10–14 who are willing to be a little confronted.
Books+Publishing reviewer: Annie Waters sells books, writes about books and podcasts about books. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.
