The Looking-Glass Tree

by Cyan Abad-Jugo, J.C. Galag (Illustrator)

No one—not even his silly, overprotective aunt—can stop Enrico from turning his vacation into an adventure. But no one ever told him that an adventure also involved risk, remorse, resourcefulness, and responsibility. No one ever said he had to see through the eyes of a tree or a bird or a little girl before he could find his way, clear and deep, into the heart of all things.

63 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2016

About the author

Cyan Abad-Jugo took her master’s in Children’s Literature at Simmons College, Boston, and is currently pursuing a PhD in English Studies: Creative Writing at the University of the Philippines. Her first book, Father and Daughter: The Figures of Our Speech, was a joint project with father Gémino H. Abad (Anvil 1996). This was followed by a collection of short fiction called Sweet Summer and Other Stories (UP Press 2004). Her most recent book, Leaf and Shadow: Stories About Some Friendly Creatures (Anvil 2008), includes her children’s story “Behind The Old Aparador” which won second place at the Carlos Memorial Palanca Awards in 2003.

Reviews

[aina · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, simple story about a boy whose vacation turns into a wonderful adventure when his aunt brings back a mangrove tree from the forest island. The illustration was nice to look at. It'd be great if there's some kind of a follow-up story about the girl, Aninipot. Her character is worth exploring and expanding. And so does the forest and the magic it contains.

[Gae · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful short read about taking care of our environment especially the mangroves.

[Nescee Ann Silverio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cyan Abad-Jugo’s The Looking-Glass Tree is a middle-grade fantasy novel that beautifully highlights the importance of caring for nature, particularly mangroves, which help prevent floods and provide shelter for animals.

The story follows Enrico, who spends his vacation with his Aunt Henrietta. During his stay, he encounters Ani through a mysterious looking-glass tree—a magical gateway tied to Ani’s mission of saving her tree and restoring balance to nature

What makes this novel educational is its strong environmental message, emphasizing our responsibility to protect natural ecosystems. It also weaves in elements of local superstition, such as the belief that taking something from a plant can anger nature spirits or elementals, adding cultural depth to the narrative.

The story becomes even more impactful through Enrico’s personal journey. As a child longing for meaningful connection with his often-absent parents, his emotional experiences add a layer of tenderness and relatability to the story.

I read this as a palate cleanser, and it turned out to be both engaging and meaningful. This is definitely a book worth trying.

[Arli Pagaduan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw The Looking-Glass Tree somewhere online, but I can’t remember where. And then I saw one copy of it, hidden between other books in our local bookstore the other night. Without a second thought, I bought it. This afternoon, I got to finish it, and my lasting thoughts are these: “What a beautiful tale!” The Looking-Glass Tree is wonderfully woven and paced and illustrated, and its story greatly involves the mangrove forests and endemic birds which we have here in the Philippines. It expanded my views more on what is possible in writing books, and that is to use them to solve a problem or spread awareness about something relevant and significant in society. Or just something that resonates within like wanting to be with family or making a new friend.

[wanderinggene · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first new read this year and first Filipino author in my list, too. Granting this is a short one, I want to introduce my daughter to read books by Filipino authors. This book is just in time for the summer and it explores topic about the environment with a bit of fantasy in it. There is also a study guide at the end of the book which is good if this will be a study material in school as well.

So why not 5 stars? I think they could have explored and explained more about the nature aspect of the story. As a travel enthusiast such as our family, it would have been great if we learned where they went as well considering it's a vacation spot as well. That will make a wonderful reference when we travel.

[Lovely Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Looking-Tree Glass is a story about Enrico and his vacation with his Tita Henrietta- a fancy-looking madame who decorates rooms as if it's a town fiesta. Enrico was expecting an adventure— the kind where you swim in the ocean, build sandcastles, and get sunburnt but a different kind of adventure awaits.

The illustrations are superb. I finished reading this book in less than an hour. My younger self would've enjoyed this and looked at every mangrove as if Aninipot lived there.

[Leanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

rating this based on personal enjoyability, but this is such a great book for middle-schoolers to young adults who want to be more conscious of the inextricable connection between human and environment. maybe certain government officials who placed artificial sand on Manila bay need to read this ;)

[Jasmin Adviento]

Can you tell me what is the theme,plot,conclusion,summary, and moral lesson in this story?please?because were having a book review

[Vani · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Today, the whole world was his family." That's an awesome last line and this is a beautiful middle-grade, fantasy novel on the importance of protecting mangrove forests.

[Nivedita Dhar · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the beautiful bedtime story. Author has intended a strong and beautiful message through this story!

[Bambi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent way to introduce kids to the mangrove ecosystem and why they are important.

[Fourcyjackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great swift read about the importance of Mangroves in our country. In this short story, we get to see how greed can destroy nature. Very great story for kids and actually everyone 🥰🙂‍↕️

[Maria do Socorro Baptista · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uma bela história que nos leva ao centro de algumas lendas filipinas, com uma aventura rica que nos mostra a importância de cuidar bem de nossas florestas e do meio ambiente. Muito bom.

[Ice M.]

Reminds me of my childhood days when I used to watch "wansapanataym".

[bmo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is me trying to explore the amazing Philippine Literature. I hope that these kinds of books became more available in the bookstores in the Philippines because to be honest, our culture is so rich that if I was a writer I'll have so much writing promt just because there's so much stories to tell when it comes to Philippine culture.

This is a good middle school reads that talks about the importance of Mangroves forest, bird, and other animals that can be found in the Philippines. It was told as if the story-teller is our great ancestors, the way they told us their "alamat".

I really wish I can find more Philippine Literature because I enjoyed this short story. I hope more people will read such books to support our writers and promote the culture of the Philippines.

Rating 5stars out of 5