'Lone Pine, a 650 year-old Norfolk Island pine, stands on a limestone cliff on Norfolk Island. At the base of its trunk a sapling – Piali – clings to the cliff as fierce storms threaten to destroy it.

'The island is waiting for Piali to grow strong enough to replace the old tree who has been the keeper of the island’s stories. These must be passed on so that the species will remain intact.

'Suddenly the Norfolk Island pines begin to shed their bark and drop their branches. The same is happening on the mainland of Australia. Their friends – fairy terns and green sea turtles – are desperate to halt the progress of the pines’ extinction.

'But Lone Pine’s memory is fading and time is running out for Piali to take in the stories that have occupied Lone Pine for centuries.' (Publication summary)