The world of The Wizard in the Tree is deliberately vague about details like dates and physical locations. Alexander creates a setting where the remarkable can easily happen as part of everyday life by placing the story in a land that blends characteristics from different countries and time periods. The technology is that of the early nineteenth century: there are steam engines, single-shot pistols, and coal mines, but horses still rule the roads and telephones are not to be found. The culture of The Wizard in the Tree is primarily Alexander's own invention, though it resembles that of European rural areas until relatively recent times. Mallory's village is dominated by a squire who controls the local society with wealth acquired by leasing the land he owns to tenant farmers. However, the world is not an entirely feudal one in which a squire can do anything he pleases; the...