Harry's Trees (Thorndike Press Large Print Bill's Bookshelf) Library Binding – Large Print, December 26, 2018

Sweet, sad, moving and funny, Harry’s Trees is a fast-paced, engaging read that hits all of the right themes at all of the right times.Harry Crane, grief stricken and guilt-ridden over the death of his wife, flees his tree-less job as a bureaucrat for the U.S. Forest Service and finds himself, in of all places, a treehouse in the Endless Mountains of Northeastern Pennsylvania. There he meets 10 year old Oriana, who is suffering from the loss of her father Dean, and Oriana’s mother Amanda, who has to cope with both Oriana’s grief and her own.Impelled by Oriana, Harry takes on a mission that involves gold, grums, fairytales, and a librarian named Olive, among other characters human and not. In executing this mission, Harry exorcizes his demons, saves a library, and clears a path for Oriana and Amanda to move forward.Harry, Oriana, Amanda, and faithful friend Ronnie stole my heart, but it was the unsavory characters that delighted me the most. Older-brother Wolf (who actually scared me in the book), creepy Stu Giptner, and even the voiceless pit bull find some redemption in the “leaves” of Harry’s Trees.There is something for almost everyone here: I could read this book over and over again.Thumbs up and five stars for Harry’s Trees.

Wow, this was an impulse buy when I saw it for 2.99 on kindle. I almost never ever write reviews, but I had to do so for this treasure of a book. This has become one of my all time favorite books, I purchased a hardback copy in order to have a physical copy as soon as I finished the kindle version. The story itself is magical without any overt magic. Yet despite the lack of "magic" it makes you believe in it, like believing in fairies when you are a kid. The impossible is possible and it feels real. It reads like a dream, easy prose, all the characters are believable with realistic responses and behaviors. The writing style is lovely with phrases that conjure the best of the old fairy tales (a cow even has a dream!!!). It is now probably one of the top 5 books I have ever read (and I have read far more than 10K). The story was terrifying while reading it because I was so utterly invested in the characters, I would read a few pages and pause, just to soak it in. This book made me cry multiple times due to its abject beauty, none of it was sad enough to trigger tears, but the conjured beauty was breathtaking. I cannot reccomend this book enough. Lessons are learned, good triumphs, nature is enjoyed. Every character is important and has a backstory, yet it never gets bogged down. If you need a pick me up read this book, if you need distraction read this book, this book is worth every penny. The story itself is SO wonderous that I don't want to spoil even a little bit (and I adore spoilers).

I loved, loved, loved this book! Mr. Cohen is a marvelous storyteller, or should I say story-weaver, who knows how to make his audience laugh out-loud in the most unlikely places. He also has the courage to retell, re-invent, and re-store our lived worlds through the magic of narrative. Like the dog in William Steig's Dominic, Mr. Cohen and his Harry, through courage, kindness, and generosity of spirit, beget the karma of the ages. There is evil, regret, and redemption, too, and just enough. If you want a page-turner in which you find yourself identifying with, or knowing someone like, just about everyone in the story, set aside time for some binge-reading. I read a bazillion books CONSTANTLY and have not been happier in reading tale well-told in a long time. Thank you Mr. Cohen!

A luminous, gently humorous, truly humane tale that illuminates the struggles of intertwined human hearts stunned by tragedy and coping with unbearable loss. The innately magical, mystical powers of Love and Nature, wrap the characters in their healing powers, while forcing the evolution and growth that is required to move on into the future. Cohen takes us into an unsparingly realistic yet lovingly portrayed contemporary Pennsylvania, constructing characters so well drawn we recognize them the moment they appear. Harry the widower, Amanda the widow, Oriana the orphaned child, Olive the Librarian, Wolf the annoying older brother, and a cast of bartenders, dairy farmers, real estate agents and neighbors drawn from every community in America, struggle through the ordinary business of living and extraordinary of coping with tragedy while a series of almost magical co-incidents and developments lead them into the future. Magical? Realism? An author as killed and loving as Cohen leaves us to make the final determination, as he allows his characters to find their way. Read it! It will improve the quality of your own life and delight your soul.

Whatever you do, read it. If you know me, you know that I read a lot and wax enthusiastic about a few. This story of loss and the healing of broken hearts is stunning. Crafted as a fairy tale of sorts, it left me sobbing at the end. So go ahead, take a chance, read it. Then you can thank me.

In Harry’s Trees, Jon Cohen skillfully draws readers to the mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania and into a deeply satisfying story made of equal parts myth and modernity. The novel brims with feelings but stops short of cloying as it weaves together the lives of Harry, Amanda, Oriana and others into an increasingly complex web and, ultimately, a high-stakes finale. The book leaves you hopeful about the power of rebuilding and redemption. Cohen’s language is tight, smart and laugh-out-loud funny.