Rootless

"Rootless" introduces Banyan, a seventeen-year-old living in a future where real trees are extinct, replaced by his metal creations. His world is a desolate, post-apocalyptic landscape, and his father, who told him stories of the Old World, is gone. When Banyan discovers a clue to the last living trees, he embarks on a perilous quest. This journey forces him to confront dangerous elements like pirates, poachers, and terrifying human-eating locusts, all while navigating an uneasy alliance with a mysterious pirate named Alpha. The book explores themes of environmentalism, trust, family secrets, and the resilience of the human spirit, making it suitable for young adult readers aged 12-18. It's a thought-provoking adventure that will spark discussions about our relationship with nature.

Seventeen-year-old Banyan is a tree builder. Using scrap metal and salvaged junk, he creates forests for rich patrons who seek a reprieve from the desolate landscape. Although Banyan’s never seen a real tree—they were destroyed more than a century ago—his father used to tell him stories about the Old World. But that was before his father was taken . . . Everything changes when Banyan meets a mysterious woman with a strange tattoo—a clue to the whereabouts of the last living trees on earth, and he sets off across a wasteland from which few return. Those who make it past the pirates and poachers can’t escape the locusts—the locusts that now feed on human flesh. But Banyan isn't the only one looking for the trees, and he’s running out of time. Unsure of whom to trust, he’s forced to make an uneasy alliance with Alpha, an alluring, dangerous pirate with an agenda of her own. As they race towards a promised land that might only be a myth, Banyan makes shocking discoveries about his family, his past, and how far people will go to bring back the trees. In this dazzling debut, Howard presents a disturbing world with some uncanny similarities to our own. Like the forests Banyan seeks to rebuild, this visionary novel is both beautiful and haunting—full of stunning images that will take permanent root in your mind . . . and forever change the way you think about nature.