The Education of Little Tree

The Education of Little Tree has been embedded in controversy since the revelation that the autobiographical story told by Forrest Carter was a complete fabrication. The touching novel, which has entranced readers since it was first published in 1976, has since raised questions, many unanswered, about how this quaint and engaging tale of a young, orphaned boy could have been written by a man whose life was so overtly rooted in hatred. How can this story, now discovered to be fictitious, fill our hearts with so much emotion as we champion Little Tree's childhood lessons and future successes?

Because of its literary quality and ongoing success, The Education of Little Tree holds a unique position among faux memoirs. There is no definitive reason why the book has not met the same fate as other fictional memoirs. In any event, it is a book that collectors—collectors of children’s classics, first editions, Native-American related fiction, Forrest Carter, Tennessee related books, fiction about the Great Depression, movie themed books and literary hoaxes—should not ignore.