"What are you doing, mister?"

The old man ran a creased hand over his half-completed woodwork. "I'm carving a Jesse tree, if you must know. Now run along out of here. A church isn t for playing in."

"Is that your name, then? Jesse?"

The carpenter was impatient to get back to work. "Of course not. A Jesse tree is a very ancient tradition. A thousand years ago, every church had a Jesse tree. A stained-glass window or a carved wooden screen . . . Nowadays, it?'s a lost art."

As Mr. Butterfield carves a Jesse Tree in an old dusty church, a curious young boy distracts him, asking about the various symbols on the tree. Against his better judgment, the old man finds himself retelling the familiar Biblical tales that trace the lineage of Christ, from the Garden of Eden to Jesus birth. Under the carpenter?'s skilled hands, the Jesse tree grows and an unlikely friendship begins to take root as well.

Geraldine McCaughrean's fresh retellings of familiar Bible events and Bee Willey?'s whimsical and striking illustrations create a rich and contemporary tale, perfect for reading during Advent or anytime.

The Jesse Tree will captivate readers who know and love the Bible stories as well as those who are reading them for the first time.