Sees Behind Trees

Sees Behind Trees, the story of the boy Walnut, turned man named Sees Behind Trees, is highly suggested for parents who want to teach their children that everyone has limitations, but that those limitations do not have to be the end to your world. This is a boy who grows up with poor eyesight and

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eventually learns to rely on his other senses in order to make himself into an important part of his society.

The text has a few moments where I wished I was the type of person to highlight or underline fictional passages. This is a book that creates lines of thought that you want to kick yourself for not having all of the time. Each character has something to add to the lessons, even in minor ways. Gray Fire teaches Sees that life is for living in the present, that getting tied down by the past is dangerous. Otter teaches him that trying to hold onto someone too tightly makes them even easier to lose. Three Chances teaches him that some things can’t be told, but that there is always a compromise to make.

Perhaps the most poignant quotation I took from the book is part of Gray Fire’s lesson… “To not want more, to be so satisfied that you didn’t want to move, didn’t want to be surprised at what happened next, didn’t want to hear a new story, learn a new song, wish a new wish, didn’t want more–to me, that was like being a rock or a stick frozen in the ice of a pond: awful.”

Highly suggested for children (preteens) and parents. For others, the writing might be a bit too transparent, but I felt as though it was done properly given the Native American environment. There are questions that are not answered, seemingly as though Dorris was leaving room for a sequel he would never complete.

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The author is great at making someone who has a handicap or disability not feel so abnormal but a benefit to society. It's amazing to see how a young boy can overcome his handicap and find a way to fit in. This is a great adventure story of a young boy coming of age.

This book is an excellent addition to the collection for its portrayal of dealing with limitations and growing up. The story is set in the pre-colonial past and the main character, Walnut is a visually handicapped Native American boy. He does not see as well as his peers, but learns to compensate

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for his limitations and even excel in his life. He develops his ability to use his other senses and this earns him the adult name Sees Behind Trees. The story shows Walnut gradually gaining confidence in himself and earning the respect of his tribe when he escorts an elderly wise man on a dangerous journey. The book deals with themes of becoming an adult and maturing from a child to a man. Themes of self-confidence, self-sufficiency and becoming an adult make this a good choice for the middle school collection.

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I liked this book. It mixed to interesting subject matters (Native Americans and disability) in a nice way. Very simple writing.

I love this book, and I'd give it my highest recommendation to parents who have kids who are visually impaired--as I was, when I was a child. Those with clear vision can have no idea what it's like to see people and objects as blobs. So much is missed when we can't see the facial expressions of

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those we interact with. In my case, it made me withdrawn as a child. In this poignant story, "Walnut," who later becomes "See Behind Trees," is gently made to realize that he, too, is an integral part of his tribe, despite not seeing the way others see.

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In turns lyrical, wise, and funny, this compelling novel, set in sixteenth-century America, tells the story of how one Native American boy learns to turn handicap into an advantage as he crossed the often blurred boundaries between being a child and becoming a man.

Wonderfully written, you can really understand what it is like to be severely nearsighted. Dorris writes sympathetically of a boy on the brink of becoming a man who is worried that he won't be good enough. As he fails again and again to shoot accurately, his mother realizes he can't see the target.

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We find there are many ways he has just figured out how to get along with poor sight, some of which help him pay attention to what most other people miss. He goes on a journey with an elder, and learns that being an adult often means keeping secrets.
The time and place are left vague, but we get the idea that this is a Native American (or Canadian) in pre-contact times.

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