The Green Ember (2015) is a middle-grade fantasy novel by S. D. Smith and the first installment in the best-selling series of the same name. Often described as “noblebright” or animal fantasy, the story is set in a world of anthropomorphic rabbits facing a tyrannical threat. The novel centers on siblings Heather and Picket Longtreader, whose peaceful life in the quiet community of Nick Hollow is shattered when their home is destroyed by a marauding wolf army. After their family is captured, the young rabbits are forced to flee and discover that their own story is intricately bound to the fate of a fallen kingdom, a legacy of betrayal, and a sacred object known as the Green Ember.

The book originated as a series of bedtime stories that Smith told his children, and it went on to become an independent publishing success, winning a Christy Award in young-adult fiction and selling over a million copies. As Heather and Picket navigate a world at war, they must confront their disgraced family history and find their own roles in a conflict far larger than themselves. The narrative explores themes of Hope as the Fuel of Moral Resistance, Family Legacy as a Moral Burden, and Sacrifice as the Foundation of Victory. Smith has expanded the world of The Green Ember through numerous sequels and prequel series, including the Green Ember: Archer and Green Ember: Old Natalia series.

This guide refers to the 2020 Story Warren Books trade paperback edition.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of death, graphic violence, physical abuse, and bullying.

Plot Summary

In the peaceful community of Nick Hollow, rabbit siblings Heather and Picket Longtreader live an idyllic life with their parents and their baby brother, Jacks. Their father, however, has forbidden them from venturing past an old maple tree into the ominous East Wood. Their quiet world is shaken when a fierce storm rolls in and lightning strikes the maple tree, nearly killing Picket and foreshadowing the end of their peace. Soon after, a mysterious visitor, Lady Glen, arrives, speaking with their parents in hushed tones about someone named Morbin who seeks the “Green Ember.” Heather and Picket’s parents send the two siblings to pick berries so that they won’t overhear the adults’ conversation. While they’re away, they see their home engulfed in flames and surrounded by wolves under the command of a formidable one-eyed captain, Redeye Garlackson. Their family is captured, and the siblings are forced to flee for their lives.

Heather creates a diversion to save her brother, drawing the wolves’ attention to herself. She leads them on a desperate chase through a thicket and into Evergreen Row, using her incredible speed and agility to leap from tree to tree, narrowly evading arrows and snapping jaws. Her flight ends at Seven Mounds, a series of hills with a hidden cave system, where Picket has taken refuge. She becomes stuck in the narrow cave entrance, trapped and exhausted, as Redeye closes in for the kill. At the last moment, the siblings are rescued by their uncle Wilfred Longtreader and a young white rabbit named Smalls. Wilfred pushes Heather into the cave, and he and Smalls fight off the wolves. The group escapes through the labyrinthine caves beneath Seven Mounds, with Picket’s keen sense of calculation helping them navigate the confusing passages. Pursued by creatures within the caves, they finally escape by taking a boat down a newly flooded stream and leaving Nick Hollow far behind.

On their journey down the Whitmer River, they discover that Decker’s Landing, a friendly outpost, has also been burned by wolves. They flee into the surrounding forest, where Picket injures his foot and nurses a growing resentment for the capable and confident Smalls, who rescues him from being spotted. They eventually arrive at Cloud Mountain, a secret community of rabbits who escaped the ruin of the Great Wood. They’re welcomed by its leader, Lord Rake, and meet new friends like Emma, an apprentice healer; the charming rogue Kyle; and the brooding, intimidating warrior Helmer the Black. Picket, feeling ashamed and useless, becomes increasingly sullen. Heather learns that the community focuses on preserving their culture and skills in anticipation of a time when the world will be healed from its current tyranny. Driven by a desire for revenge and a need to prove himself, Picket rashly apprentices himself to the brutal Helmer for warrior training.

Heather and Picket learn the destructive truth of their family’s past during an initiation ceremony. Through stories depicted in eight stained-glass windows, Lord Rake and Uncle Wilfred reveal the history of King Jupiter the Great, the heroic ruler of the Great Wood. The king’s reign was a golden age, but it ended in tragedy when he was betrayed by his most trusted ambassador, Heather and Picket’s eldest uncle, Garten Longtreader. Garten delivered the king to Morbin Blackhawk, the leader of the Lords of Prey, who murdered the king at a place now called Jupiter’s Crossing. This betrayal led to the destruction of the Great Wood and scattered its people. The name “Longtreader” is now synonymous with treason, which is why Heather and Picket’s father fled to the obscurity of Nick Hollow. This news shatters Heather but hardens Picket’s resolve to restore their family’s honor.

As tensions mount in Cloud Mountain with the arrival of lords from other secret citadels, a sudden wolf raid creates chaos. Amid the confusion, Heather discovers the community’s greatest secret: Smalls is actually Prince Jupiter Smalls, the murdered king’s heir and keeper of the Green Ember, an emerald that symbolizes his right to rule. She also learns that she has been complicit in a new betrayal; she vouched for Kyle, who has now lured the prince into a trap. Kyle confesses that he tricked Smalls into going to Jupiter’s Crossing, the very site of his father’s murder. The siblings decide on a desperate plan: Heather will find Uncle Wilfred and the citadel leaders to bring reinforcements, while Picket will race to intercept the prince alone.

Picket runs for miles, pushing past exhaustion and fear, driven by the need to save the prince and redeem his family’s name. He arrives at Jupiter’s Crossing to find Smalls captured, with Redeye poised to kill him. The traitorous Garten Longtreader is also there and seizes the Green Ember from Smalls’s satchel. As two large birds of prey descend, Picket’s fear threatens to overpower him. Instead, he channels his focus and launches a daring attack. He runs directly at a swooping eagle and uses its back as a springboard to kick a hawk out of the sky. As he falls, he draws his sword and lands a fatal blow on the shocked Redeye. He frees Prince Jupiter, but they’re immediately confronted by a massive force of wolves.

Resigned to a heroic last stand, Picket and the prince stand shoulder-to-shoulder, swords drawn. Just as the wolves charge, a horn blast signals the arrival of reinforcements. Uncle Wilfred, Helmer, Lord Rake, and a united force of rabbits from Cloud Mountain and the citadels crash into the clearing, routing the wolf army. In the aftermath, Prince Jupiter is revealed to all, and he publicly credits the Longtreaders with saving him, restoring their family’s honor. Back at Cloud Mountain, Heather finds her calling in the storyguild and tells the tale of their adventure. Picket, now a recognized hero, continues his training with Helmer. At the end of the story, he learns that his captive parents and brother may have been located, signaling that while one battle is won, the war has just begun.