The Red Tree



""Sometimes the day begins with nothing to look forward to.""

A sparsely-worded picture book by Shaun Tan, following a day in the life of a depressed young girl. In variously lush and nightmarish landscapes, she hangs onto a shred of hope -- which takes the form of a bright red leaf.

This story contains examples of

 * What Do You Mean It's Not for Kids? - Despite being a picture book, with few words, this book still deals with some pretty dark themes: depression, isolation, and identity loss.
 * Scenery Porn - Taken to the extreme with Tan's beautiful, creepy paintings.
 * The Woobie - the young protagonist.