Bright Summaries - The Man Who Planted Trees by Jean Giono (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

From 1913 to 1945, the narrator evokes his meetings with Elzard Bouffier, an old shepherd who has been continually planting trees in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, so that this desert region is gradually reborn and life returns to it.

In 1913, the narrator is hiking in the north of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, in an arid and desolate landscape, across barren and desolate lands. He meets a taciturn old man named Elzard Bouffier, who allows him to drink from his flask and spend the night in his stone house which he restored himself. Intrigued by the meticulous work of the shepherd, who sorts and prepares acorns before going to bed, he accompanies him to take his sheep out to graze the following day. In fact, the man has dedicated himself to planting trees for the past three years with the aim of giving back life to this desert region dominated by death and desolation.

The following year the narrator is enlisted and leaves for the front. After the war, to breathe a little pure air, he goes decides to return to the solitude of the deserted country of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. He is surprised to notice that a forest has sprung up on the formerly bare heights and finds Elzard Bouffier in perfect health. The shepherd has become a beekeeper and is still diligently carrying out his planting task, unshakeable in spite of the years of war. After oaks, he has planted beech and birch trees. In a natural reaction, the presence of trees has brought water back to the soil, and this water has reached the dead village below.

From 1920 onwards, the narrator will regularly visit the old man who, in spite of the obstacles in his way, is tirelessly pursuing his project. Gradually, the forest which has sprung out of nowhere gets people talking. The administrative authorities, which think that it appeared naturally, decide to place the forest under the protection of the State. The narrator introduces Elzard Bouffier to a friend who is one of the chief foresters and reveals the truth to him so that the forest and the old mans work are protected from woodcutters and deforestation.

The narrator meets the shepherd for the last time in 1945. The region has been entirely transformed and he hardly recognises the place of his former trips: villages have been rebuilt and families have settled there, in particular in the village of Vergons, which is unrecognisable. The harshness of the climate and the savage character of the inhabitants have been replaced by easy living. Now, the whole country blossom[s] with splendor and ease: the roughly 10 000 inhabitants of the region have found happiness thanks to Elzard Bouffier, who dies in a hospice in Banon in 1947.