‘As absurd as it is utterly convincing, this is a book about holding onto love in a world of seismically shifting reality. In other words, a book about us, a book about now. It’s brilliant.’ SHAUN TAN
'A balm and an urgent whisper of hope. This is a book to help us believe that all is not lost. Extraordinary' KATE MILDENHALL
'Dazzling, profound, beautiful. A devastating and unforgettable elegy for the planet' CHRIS FLYNN
'A strange and compelling exploration of our current moment. Arborescence is part Sally Rooney, part Stephen King. It reads like a thriller but has the tenderness and insight of poetry' BEN RAWLENCE
'Original, mind-bending and uplifting. I loved this beautiful, feral book so much, I wanted to walk into its pages and never look back' INGA SIMPSON
'You will not be able to stop thinking about this extraordinary book. A thrilling page-turner for our times, that both chills and provokes.' SOPHIE WARD
'Arborescence is a tremendously moving affirmation of what’s worth saving – love, family, clean air, and silence. I wept through the last fifty pages.' AMITY GAIGE
'Thrilling, thought-provoking, and incredibly tender... I devoured it whole’ CHIOMA OKEREKE
'A great and beautiful book that is profound and profoundly moving. Airy, light, witty, with the frankness of a Sally Rooney novel and the delicate strangeness of Olga Tokarczuk. I couldn’t have been more entranced.' JENNIFER CROFT
Arborescence
My second novel, Arborescence, has arrived in Australia through Hachette and will be published in January in the UK by Fleet (Little, Brown).
Here’s my three word pitch: people becoming trees.
That would be enough for me, but I’ve found that what I consider a brilliant pitch often gets a confused response. Here’s a blurb if you want to know more:
Bren works at a job he joined after graduating. He works remotely and has never met his odd colleagues in person. He has no idea what he’s doing.
Caelyn is looking for something but isn’t sure what it is. She takes jobs that don’t interest her. She has conversations in her head, arriving at sudden, startling conclusions. People are breaking the world and she’s powerless to do anything about it.
One day they find a video of people standing eerily still for hours. ‘What makes a person pretend to be a tree?’ Caelyn wonders. Deciding she’s now an investigative journalist, she uncovers a cult who believe that if they stand still for long enough they can become trees. And the idea is spreading. Friends go missing and trees appear in unlikely places.
Ten years later, Caelyn is a renowned expert helping people around the world make sense of what’s happening. Bren is her support network but wonders if she needs him. As they drift further apart and the planet becomes greener, they must ask themselves what they’re prepared to give up – and if they are ready to stand still.
A powerful and very moving novel that explores the way we move through our relationships and the world, often not realising the harm we have done until it is almost too late. A story of love, damage and hope.
More details here: https://www.hachette.com.au/rhett-davis/arborescence