On a night in December someone is telling you a story in front of a warm fire about a beautiful forest. You soon realise this story has a secret. A secret so large that if it escaped it would put in danger the great forest itself and everything the speaker holds dear. What happens in the forest when nobody is looking? And what does Christmas look like outside in the forest under under the stars?On a night in December someone is telling you a story in front of a warm fire about a beautiful forest at Christmastime. It begins like many others but soon you realise this story has a secret. A secret so large that, if it escaped, it would put in danger the great forest itself and everything the speaker holds dear.And then you realise that most of the characters the speaker talks about are behaving strangely for people, snuffling about the forest for food or standing tall and proud as people walk under them. Who are all these characters in the forest who talk with a little awe and fear of "humankind"? And why have they all heard of Gerald Jr?Suddenly the speaker himself sounds strange. Clever and polite but strange. He lives in a burrow and talks of paws instead of hands but he likes you and wants to tell you a story. So as the fire crackles he tells you the Secret Story of Gerald Jr the Christmas Tree and what Christmas looks like from outside in the forest under the stars.Welcome to the world of the Fantastic Forest where the tree next to you may have as much to say as the (well travelled) mouse by your foot. You would do well to listen to them: they have wonderful stories to tell, some ancient, some new and not a few secrets to share if you become their friend.