THE TREE THAT WAS A WORLD

An ancient tree is home to a menagerie of creatures grappling with existential questions in this quirky collection of interconnected vignettes.

Each chapter focuses on a different animal inhabiting the towering tree, from a spider who can’t bring himself to eat the flies caught in his perfect web to a despondent barn swallow searching for something she’s lost but can’t identify (“Well, emptiness apparently weighs quite a bit”). Goldewijk’s characters spend most of their time complaining, philosophizing about their perceived insignificance, or desperately trying to convince others of their importance. A lovelorn pike shares a small water hole with another pike but doesn’t communicate its feelings until the very end; Annie the aphid struggles with cannibalistic urges toward her siblings. The tone veers between absurdist humor and melancholy. Many of the smaller creatures meet their ends, reflecting the natural life cycle of insects rather than gratuitous darkness. Although a couple of vignettes drag on, Goldewijk maintains an engaging balance of whimsy with deep themes about self-acceptance, as when a little owl realizes, “I get to decide for myself who I am.” Verstegen’s stunning, atmospheric portraits of the creatures are by turns intimate and cosmic. Only in the final chapters do the creatures begin to find hope and connection, culminating in a community celebration. The morbid undertones of this Dutch import may not suit all readers, but those drawn to its strangeness will find genuine charm.

Weird yet wonderful.