The core of the story centers on the "Greenwood boys," Harris and Everett, whose survival following a train wreck sets the family's history in motion. Major Themes
Christie emphasizes that no individual exists in isolation; like a forest, family members support and affect one another across time.
Jacinda "Jake" Greenwood is a forest guide on Greenwood Island, one of the world's last remaining old-growth forests during a global environmental disaster known as the Great Withering. Greenwood Michael Christiezip
A master carpenter whose life is defined by his relationship with wood.
The novel Greenwood by Michael Christie is a sweeping multigenerational saga that uses the structural metaphor of a tree's growth rings to explore the intertwined destinies of a family and the natural world. Set against a backdrop of environmental collapse, the narrative moves from a dystopian future back to the Great Depression and forward again, revealing how secrets, trauma, and resilience are passed down through generations like the layers of wood in a trunk. The Ring Structure The core of the story centers on the
An activist fighting against the very timber empire her father built.
The novel's unique structure mimics the cross-section of a tree. It begins and ends in 2038, with the middle sections spiraling backward to 1908 before returning to the future. A master carpenter whose life is defined by
These sections follow Liam, a carpenter struggling with his physical and emotional legacy, and Willow, an eco-warrior attempting to atone for her family's destructive past in the timber industry.