Tree is twelve years old and too tall&150six feet, three and a half inches and growing. He's never really been able to fit in at school or on the basketball team, and since his parents' divorce he isn't even comfortable in his own home. Tree copes by helping people like his grandpa, a Vietnam vet who's just had part of a leg amputated, and Sophie, a new girl at school who is being teased by the popular kids. In helping his grandpa learn to walk again, and in listening to Sophie's advice that he be himself, Tree begins to heal, to stand tall. But when a flood threatens his town and his home, Tree's newfound confidence is put to the test.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Tree is 12 years old and the tallest kid ever in his school: 6-foot-3 and still growing. He's a pretty intelligent and sensible guy and he copes by helping people, like his wonderful grandpa, a Vietnam vet who's just had a leg amputated. But still, being tall leads to problems. Coaches always expect him to be good at sports, even though he tries to explain, "I'm not real athletic." When he meets the father of Sophie, the independent-minded new girl at school, he has to show his birth certificate to prove he's not much older. "I'm tall for my age," says Tree. "You're tall for my age," says Sophie's suspicious father. And dance lessons--! Well, they're a nightmare, especially the tango, where he and Sophie have to replace hand-in-hand with hand-in-elbow, and cheek-to-cheek with cheek-to-chest.
But the thing that really makes Tree's life complicated is not his size but his parents' recent divorce. They have joint custody, so Tree has to divide his life, and he's always needing something he left at the other house. Then disaster strikes, and Tree proves that he has courage to match his size.
Joan Bauer's great heart and dry wit is always a delight, especially in Hope Was Here and Rules of the Road. In Stand Tall she gives us wonderfully interesting characters, funny scenes, zingy lines, and a story that has something warm and beautiful to say to kids. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Publishers Weekly
In her heartfelt and humorous novel, Bauer (Hope Was Here) leaves teenage girl protagonists in favor of a middle-grade boy as she did also in Sticks (1996). But her fans won't be disappointed. At first, 12-year-old Tree, "six feet, three and a half inches and growing," only literally "stands tall." At school, Coach Glummer expects him to lead the basketball team (though he's not very athletic) and teachers expect him to act older than his age. On the home front which shifts weekly due to his parents' recent divorce and joint custody arrangement Tree is the glue of his family. He helps care for his Vietnam vet grandfather (who recently had a leg amputated) while worrying about his aging dog, Bradley, his two college-student brothers and his parents. Bolstered by his budding friendship with the outspoken new girl at school, Sophie, and by Grandpa, Tree finds an inner strength that helps him deal with just about anything including a natural disaster. Bauer once again creates a clan of believable characters scrambling to make the best of their particular brand of dysfunction. Her swiftly paced story artfully blends poignant and outright funny moments, resulting in a triumphant tale that will resonate with many young readers. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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More About the Author
"I had moved from journalism to screenwriting when one of the biggest challenges of my life occurred. I was in a serious auto accident which injured my neck and back severely and required neurosurgery. It was a long road back to wholeness, but during that time I wrote Squashed, my first young adult novel. The humor in that story kept me going. Over the years, I have come to understand how deeply I need to laugh. It's like oxygen to me. My best times as a writer are when I'm working on a book and laughing while I'm writing. Then I know I've got something." Joan's first novel, Squashed, won the Delacorte Prize for a First Young Adult Novel. Five novels for young adult readers have followed: Thwonk, Sticks, Rules of the Road (LA Times Book Prize and Golden Kite), Backwater and Hope was Here (Newbery Honor Medal). Joan lives in Darien, CT with her husband and daughter.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A book for today's turbulent times.,
By
This review is from: Stand Tall (Hardcover)
Tree earned his nickname because he is tall and solid, like a Tree - he's 12 years old, 6'3" and still growing. However, life in Tree's world isn't so solid these days. His parents have divorced and his beloved grandfather - a Vietnam vet - just had his leg amputated. Tree compares his life to a war, but finds a way to work through his problems with advice from his grandpa and help from his new friend, a quirky girl named Sophie.Joan Bauer is a perennial favorite of mine and is always guaranteed to make me think. This novel, which talks both about everyday life and war, is quite timely considering the turmoil our country is in. The one passage that struck me the most is this one: "I think important things are worth fighting for, but there's nothing glorious about battle, nothing cool about holding a gun. It's scary and lonely and too many people die young. Never be a person who wants war - hate it with everything you've got. But if you've got to fight to protect people, try to do your job the best you know how. Protecting people is the only reason to ever fight." Those words were spoken by Tree's grandfather, and it summed up my feelings about war perfectly - sometimes necessary, but *never* good. Food for thought. All in all, Stand Tall is a wonderful book that tackles real life problems and offers real life solutions. For young readers that are confused about what to feel these days, Stand Tall would be a perfect book for them to read - perhaps they will find some of the answers they were looking for.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review by Mirit,
This review is from: Stand Tall (Mass Market Paperback)
Stand tall! Standing tall is a metaphor for sticking up for yourself and not letting things such as words hurt you. This book Stand Tall has an amazing message. It shows what happens when people are self-conscious. Then at the same time it shows how the area that you're self-conscious about is a positive feature. It also shows that if you let words or actions get to you then you'll never be happy.
I think that the author, Joan Bauer, really captures the character, Tree, Because she seemed very connected to him. Tree was a seventh grader that had some height self-conscious issues. He also had many other issues to deal with during the duration of this book. He seems to not have many friends too. The good things about this book are that Joan was able to have several conflicts going with Tree, but keep them all under control. When he went through very hard times such as when his grandpa needed help with his leg he seemed to struggle until he met a girl named Sophie who seemed to know how to help. She was a strong character that knew what sticking up was all about. Sophie also went through tough times, but had already learned about letting things get to you and how that can really mess up your life. She helped Tree understand that no ones life is perfect and that there are hard times, amazing times, okay times, and many others. This book has good quality writing for a teenage book. This book is easy to read because it's about a teenager so it doesn't use complicated words. The good part about that is that you get to focus a lot on the story. Stand Tall is not a slow reader. It seems very climactic so that you want to keep reading it. Almost every chapter something happens that changes Tree's life in a way. An example of that is when a natural disaster occurs and he has a lot of changes to adapt to. This book is an amazing book and I recommend it to teenagers that need help overcoming self-consciousness and family issues. It helps you get an idea that you're not the only one going through those tough times. It makes people realize that people do care about others and that if you are self-conscious than you should start look at the good things about that area instead of being pessimistic.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A STORY OF HOPE AND ACCEPTANCE,
This review is from: Stand Tall (Audio Cassette)
Young people like to fit in. They're often confident if they are like their peers; they hate to stand out in a crowd. It's difficult not to stand out in any crowd when you're 12-years-old and stand 6 feet three inches tall. Plus, you're still growing.And, wouldn't you know? The rangy young fellow has a nickname because of his height - he's called Tree. He's heard all the jokes about being tall; he's heard most of them more than once. Unlike his brothers Tree doesn't excel at athletics even though everyone seems to expect him to be a basketball player. Being taller than everyone else is enough of a problem, but there's another one - Tree's parents were recently divorced so he must divide his time between his mom's new house and his old home where his father and grandfather live. His granddad, a Vietnam war vet, has a great deal to teach Tree about life and courage. Due to an old war wound Granddad has just had part of a leg amputated, yet he never stops encouraging Tree to accept life as it comes and encouraging him to be the best that he can be. Veteran voice performer Ron Mclarty brings a keen understanding to his reading of this story of hope and acceptance. - Gail Cooke
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