Story Tree – reading together

Every week in a library community room, you’ll see a group of people sitting around a table reading a story together. You might notice intense discussion, bursts of laughter, occasionally tears. This is Story Tree, a safe, comfortable space where refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants gather to share reading and improve their English. Unlike most learning sessions, they’re free to bring along babies and children.

With funding from the Royal Literary Fund, I collaborated with the library to set up the group in autumn 2022, running it weekly. Local author Hannah Vincent joined in, as did other writers Jackie Wills and Sharon Duggal. Now, Story Tree is mostly facilitated by an enthusiastic participant from a migrant background, with support from Hopeful Solidarities’ funder Necessity.org.

Stories from across the globe

At Story Tree, we read stories and poems from the UK and around the world. Occasionally, members of the group select a tale. A Mauritian woman encouraged us to read a story about the dodo, which originated from her island. An El Salvadorean man recommended the wonderful legend of El Cipitío, a Central American Peter Pan with skin as white as the moon, a round stomach like a pumpkin, and feet that face backwards.

Story telling is of course common to every culture. We often discover that the story we’re reading has versions around the world. The southern African story, ‘The Chameleon and the Hare’, is like the European tale, ‘The Hare and the Tortoise’. The Syrian story of Fatima is similar to the European folk tale, ‘Little Red Riding Hood’. Hoping to be rid of her, Fatima’s stepmother sends Fatima into the dark, dangerous woods to borrow a sieve from a witch.

Looking at language

First, the facilitator reads the story to model expression and pronunciation. Then, we read it again slowly, with participants taking it in turns to read a paragraph if they’re happy to. We stop to discuss unfamiliar or intriguing words and phrases, and people find the words in their own language. We note similarities between different languages, such as Farsi, Turkish and Arabic. Pictures can help us to unpick the meaning. Imtiaz Dharker’s poem, ‘Living Space’, describes a rough shack, with lines including ‘Beams balance crookedly on supports thrust off the vertical’. The image accompanying the poem helpfully provides visual clues to the meaning.

Discussing the story

After looking at the language, we chat about the meaning of the piece. If we’re reading a traditional story, like ‘Two Sisters’, from Somalia, about a man seeking a young woman to marry, we might talk about how such stories are written from the male perspective and how marriage customs have changed in our countries. Occasionally, people who have experienced destructive relationships or even abuse may reveal details about what happened to them, and they are held by the group. If necessary, the facilitator can later signpost that person to support.

In the middle, we pause for refreshments. In the break, people practise speaking English or relax by communicating in their own languages. The group always welcomes new people, and the break is a good opportunity to get to know them. We share upcoming community events or details of English classes and support networks in the city.

The power of poetry

Some people might need to dash off for important appointments, but the rest stay to read a short poem. Poems are perfect for shared reading. A poet can say so much so efficiently in just a few words. Often, the poem elicits more discussion than the story. The participants bring fresh perspectives from their life experiences. Reading Robert Frost’s ‘The Road Not Taken’, I felt the poem was about different paths we could have taken in life and choosing to go down one road or another. Once, a participant commented that they never felt they had any option – except between life and death. The notion of a choice of paths felt alien. Another time, following the debate about selecting a path, one person said, ‘it would be easier if you just had Google maps!’, which made us all laugh.

A shared experience

Something special happens when we read together. For a while, we leave our problems outside the room and become absorbed in the tale, transported to another land and to other people’s lives. The national Reader Organisation says, ‘For many of our Readers [in health and social-care settings] Shared Reading helps to improve mental wellbeing and physical health’. People who come regularly form connections with the group and make friends.

In many societies, the oral story-telling tradition has faded. In the UK, we tend to only read stories to young children. My involvement with Story Tree has shown me that there’s a wonderful camaraderie in shared reading – for all ages.