The Lie Tree

The Lie Tree is the seventh children's fantasy novel by Frances Hardinge, published in 2015 by Macmillan Publishers. The book won the 2015 Costa Book of the Year.[1][2]

The Lie Tree
Cover of The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge
AuthorFrances Hardinge
Cover artistJames Fraser
CountryUK
GenreChildren's fantasy
Set inVictorian Britain
Published2015 (Macmillan)
Pages413
Awards2015 Costa Book of the Year
ISBN978-1-4472-6411-8

Synopsis

The Lie Tree is set in the male-dominated Victorian scientific society, and tells the story of Faith Sunderly, a 14-year-old girl whose father is killed under mysterious circumstances after the family moves to a small island to get away from London. In her efforts to discover what happened to her father, and to follow his footsteps of studying natural science, she discovers a tree that provides truths by feeding on whispered lies. The lies and rumors that Faith starts grow rapidly and events soon become out of control.

Reception

The Guardian praised The Lie Tree's "convincing picture of the times" and Hardinge's "trademark wit and intelligence", calling the book "at once entertaining and provocative".[3] The Sunday Times named the book its children's book of the year for 2015.[4]

In the 2015 Costa Book Awards, The Lie Tree won both in the Children's Book Award category and the overall Book of the Year, an achievement only previously managed by Philip Pullman's The Amber Spyglass in 2001.[5] The judges for the Children's Book Award "loved [the] dark, sprawling, fiercely clever novel", stating it would "grip readers of all ages",[6] while the chair of the judges for the Book of the Year award described the book as a "real page turner", suitable for adults as much as for children.[1][5]

In 2021 the Japanese edition of The Lie Tree was shortlisted for the Best Translated Honkaku Mystery of the Decade (2010-2019).[7]

References
  1. Masters, Tim (26 January 2016). "Children's novel The Lie Tree wins Costa Book of the Year". BBC News. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  2. Furness, Hannah (26 January 2016). "Costa Prize: Frances Hardinge children's novel wins". The Telegraph. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  3. Buckley-Archer, Linda (27 June 2015). "The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge review – a witty fantasy about Victorian society". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  4. Jones, Nicolette (6 December 2015). "All they could ever want". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 12 December 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  5. Brown, Mark (26 January 2016). "Frances Hardinge's The Lie Tree wins Costa book of the year 2015". The Guardian.
  6. "2015 award winners" (PDF). Costa Book Awards. Costa Coffee. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  7. "2010年代海外本格ミステリ ベスト作品選考座談会" [Best Translated Honkaku Mystery of 2010s]. Giallo (in Japanese). Tokyo, Japan: Kobunsha. 23 July 2021.
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