Reading: THE LITTLE FIR TREE - Christopher Corr

Corr's "modern retelling" of the famous classic Hans Christian Andersen tale about a beautiful little fir tree who always longs to break free of his forest and see the world is a bit of an odd jumble of trying to put a positive spin on what is ultimately a slightly unsettling message. Here, a young fir tree, ever since he (she?) was just a little tree among much bigger trees and always never chosen as a family's Christmas tree because he was too small, has only wanted to be one of the chosen ones, and see what the world is like beyond his forest. Finally, once fully-grown himself, the tree gets his wish and is cut down and taken by a family who then set him up in their home and decorate him on Christmas Eve, and the tree is immeasurably happy. But we know what happens to live Christmas trees once the holiday is passed, and while author/illustrator Corr does his best to put a positive spin to the story, the bottom line is obvious upfront and logic never comes into play as the tree continues to live on for some time, even after being cut down and honored for the holiday. Corr's folk art-style illustrations are at once charming yet feel a bit "off" at times, and once finishing this short book for kids I immediately went back and read it again, only to ask myself Is this really something younger kids would get, much less enjoy? Even to this adult, the story and illustrations come off a bit unsettling in the end.  2/5 stars

Note: I received a free ARC of this from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.