Twig Friends Stick Together – written by Andrew McDonald, illustrated by Ben Wood
Bright Light (Hardie Grant’s Children’s Publishing), 2025, (Australia, 2023)
Twig Friends Branch Out – written by Andrew McDonald, illustrated by Ben Wood
Bright Light, 2026, (Australia, 2024)
The Twig Friends series, which currently has four books, is a welcome excursion into the woods with four friends. Ziggy Twig, Noodle Twig, Red Twig, and Stump, like the residents of A.A. Milne’s Hundred Acre Woods, or, more recently, Ben Clanton’s Narwhal and Jelly or Salina Yoon’s Kat and Mouse, have different personalities, but their conflicts are quietly resolved. That is, after the kinds of silliness with an underlying layer of anxiety, that children understand, they are resolved in a reassuring way. The books’ humor may seem deceptively obvious to adults, but that is part of their charm. When Stump, the Eeyore-like character who is rounder and squatter than the Twigs, feels frightened by his own grumpiness, he learns that “everyone needs to yell at the ground sometimes.” Andrew McDonald and Ben Wood get their point across, no wood pun intended, without preaching to young readers.
The simplicity of each story is instantly appealing. In Twig Friends Stick Together’s “Treasure Hunt,” the friends undertake the exciting task of identifying valuable items. Stump suggests that “gold and diamonds” would meet that definition. The process of finding treasure is thrilling, involving climbing mountains and taming beasts. Stump never disappoints. His agreement with the plan is based on the fact that “I was going to feel sorry for myself today…But I can do that later.” The hunt involves risk and fear, as well as interesting discussions of the humble objects and the thoughts they inspire may, in fact, be treasure. (image) When friendship itself turns out to be a candidate for treasure status, the point of the Twig friends’ endeavor becomes clear.Back to Stump and his scary feelings. Feelings are not a moment, but an ongoing series of challenges. “I was having a feeling” he admits, and the all capital letters that define it as “GREAT SADNESS!” are gently balanced by the soft comedy of twig figures with curly eyelashes, their mouths open in shock.
In the latest volume, Twig Friends Branch Out, Stump’s loss of his favorite splinter of wood makes him grumpy. Once again, after sharing his thoughts and listening to his friends’ attempts to understand him, he learns that empathy can be key to recovery. In an almost wordless chapter, “Noodle and the Boulder,” McDonald and Wood present a kind of homage to classic Warner Brothers cartoons, as the well-intentioned and artistic Noodle, having fashioned a sculpture of his buddies using a power tool, learns about unintended consequences. Fortunately, he rescues them from a cascading boulder.
The books include instructions for drawing Noodle and Stump, and for crafting Ziggy with some pipe-cleaners, googly eyes, and, of course, a twig. The humor involved in providing instructions for drawing these simple figures is again, obvious to adults, but they really work! You can draw these characters, even without the talent of Ben Wood. These woods are worth exploring.
Imaginary Elevators 