Page borders hint at a journey through time while the forest within has an ancient feel to it. Creepy but hypnotising, the branches and roots of the Beech draw you deeper. As the pages offer facts about these timeless trees, the drawings insist on mystical, even mythical possibilities. Although no blood is shed, danger lurks.
You have to keep going once you start. It’s important to see whether the teenager who enters this forest manages to leave.
Was he ever really in danger? You’ll be the one to decide.
While there is a slight potential for nightmares, anyone into electronic gaming quests will lap up In the Beech Forest.
In the Beech Forest fills a gap for older readers struggling to read, or those fixated on electronic games. It's a book that proves there can be fascinating times between the pages for those in the higher Primary School years.
Title: In the Beech Forest
Author: Gary Crew
Illustrator: Den Scheer
Publisher: Ford Street Publishing, $29.95 RRP
Publication Date: 1 May 2012
Format: Hard Cover
ISBN: 9781921665578
For ages: 9+
Type: Picture Book for Older Readers