Thank You, Forest

'Thank You, Forest' by Johanna Venho is a heartfelt story about a girl named Spruce and her strong connection to the forest. The book feels like a tribute to nature and everything the forest represents. The sketch-style illustrations help make the story feel realistic, as though the reader is seeing the world from Spruce’s point of view. The detailed drawings of leaves and insects add to this feeling, appearing both natural and carefully preserved, like items pressed in a flower book.

The sentence structure is effective and makes the text easy to read. The language is descriptive and visual, helping readers clearly imagine the scenes. Some sections of the text have a poetic style, which adds depth to the story. Throughout the narrative, Spruce meets a mysterious boy who shares her love for the forest and wants to protect it from being destroyed by machines.

This book would appeal to a wide range of readers due to its imaginative ideas and themes of curiosity and care for the environment. However, the language and ideas may be too complex for younger primary students. For this reason, the book is better suited to upper primary readers. It would also work well as inspiration for class writing and publishing activities.