The Buckeye Tree: Rootedness, Resilience, and Reckoning in Patrick Ryan's Novel

Introduction

In Patrick Ryan's novel Buckeye, the buckeye tree growing in the Jenkins family's front yard on Taft Street serves as a quiet yet powerful symbol. More than just a source of childhood games, the tree becomes a silent witness to decades of joy, sorrow, and buried truth. It anchors the family's sense of place while also marking the moments when that place is tested by war, loss, and revelation. For readers and students, tracing the tree's appearances reveals how a concrete natural object can carry evolving meaning across a novel's timeline.

The Tree as a Physical Anchor

The buckeye tree is introduced when Cal and Becky Jenkins move into the house offered by Becky's father, Roman Hanover. The house sits on Taft Street in Bonhomie, and a buckeye tree grows in the yard. This tree becomes a permanent fixture of the Jenkinses' home life, providing shade, nuts for play, and a backdrop for family gatherings. The tree's physical presence—its roots deep in Ohio soil—mirrors the family's own rootedness in the town of Bonhomie, a place built on the drained swampland of the Last Ice Age. The tree is as much a part of the landscape as the family itself, surviving storms, seasons, and the passage of time.

The Tree and the Nickname "Buckeye"

The tree's most direct impact on the story is through the nickname it gives to Tom Salt. In a scene from Skip's childhood, the two boys collect buckeyes from under the tree and use them as ammunition for a slingshot. When Skip runs out of nuts, Tom reveals he has stashed more in his socks. This cleverness and humor prompts Skip to call him "Buckeye" from that day forward. The nickname endures, appearing in letters and conversations throughout the novel, even after Skip's death in Vietnam. For Tom, the nickname becomes a link to Skip, his half-brother and closest friend. It is both a term of affection and a reminder of the truth about his parentage that remains hidden for years. The tree thus gives rise to an identity that Tom carries through his anti-war activism and his eventual reckoning with family secrets.

The Tree as Witness to Family Joys and Sorrows

Across the decades, the buckeye tree stands as a silent observer. It sees Skip and Tom playing beneath its branches, collecting nuts, and forming a bond that transcends their blood relation. It witnesses Becky's séances, which draw strangers to the house seeking contact with the dead. The tree is present when Cal and Becky struggle with intimacy after Skip's birth, and when they later receive the terrible news of Skip's death in the Battle of Huế. It also stands when Tom learns the truth about his biological father, Cal, and when Felix Salt dies surrounded by loved ones. The tree does not intervene or judge, but its enduring presence emphasizes the continuity of life and memory. The family changes around it, but the tree remains, rooting them to that place and to each other.

Shifts in Meaning: From Play to Reflection

The meaning of the buckeye tree shifts over the course of the narrative. In the early chapters, it is simply a part of the yard, a source of entertainment for boys. After Skip's death, the tree becomes a site of memory and grief. Becky and Cal sometimes look at it and remember their son. For Tom, the tree triggers recollections of his friendship with Skip. In the final chapters, as the family reconciles and old secrets are aired, the tree stands for the resilience of the family itself—able to endure damage and still produce new growth. The tree's annual cycle of dropping nuts and regrowing leaves mirrors the characters' journeys through loss and renewal.

Character Connections

Tom Salt (Buckeye): The tree gives Tom his nickname and marks him as part of the Jenkins family even before he knows the biological truth. His relationship with the tree evolves from childhood play to adult reflection.

Skip Jenkins: Skip is the one who bestows the nickname and who shares many adventures around the tree. His death hangs over the symbol, making the tree a memorial of sorts.

Cal Jenkins: Cal tends the yard and lives with the tree as a daily reminder of his home and his family. The tree's rootedness contrasts with Cal's own feelings of displacement due to his disability and his inability to serve in WWII.

Becky Hanover Jenkins: Becky, a medium, might sense the tree as a grounding force amid her spiritual work. The tree is silent and natural, providing a counterpoint to the voices she hears.

Felix Salt: Felix, though not living in that house, becomes connected to the tree through Tom. The tree indirectly links the Salt and Jenkins families.

Themes Interwoven with the Tree

The buckeye tree touches several major themes of the novel:

• Rootedness and Belonging: The tree represents the family's deep roots in Bonhomie and the stability they seek.

• Resilience: The tree survives harsh winters and storms, echoing the characters' ability to endure trauma and grief.

• Secrecy and Family Lies: The tree stands as a silent witness to the lies about Tom's parentage. It is a keeper of secrets until they are finally revealed.

• War Trauma and Survival Guilt: The tree's peaceful presence contrasts with the violence of war, both the WWII that Cal misses and the Vietnam War that claims Skip.

• Mediumship and Grief: For Becky, the tree is a natural object in a world where she can also contact the supernatural. The tree is a place of life, while her séances deal with the dead.

• Forgiveness and Reconciliation: The tree is present at the novel's end, when Cal and Becky enjoy their birthday trip and when Tom begins to heal.

Four Study Questions

1. How does the buckeye tree's role change between the first half and the second half of the novel?
   Answer: Early on, the tree is a source of childhood adventure and the origin of Tom's nickname. After Skip's death, the tree becomes a site of memory and reflection, symbolizing both loss and the enduring love that outlasts death.

2. In what ways does the tree connect the characters of Skip and Tom?
   Answer: The tree is where they collect buckeyes and where Skip invents the nickname "Buckeye." It represents their friendship and brotherhood. Even after Skip's death, Tom carries the nickname, maintaining a bond that the tree anchors.

3. How does the buckeye tree relate to the theme of roots and belonging in the novel?
   Answer: The tree is physically rooted in the Jenkinses' yard in Bonhomie, a town founded on drained swampland. The family's stability is tied to this house and tree. When Tom learns Cal is his biological father, the tree becomes a symbol of a root he never knew he had.

4. Why is it significant that the buckeye tree remains standing through the novel's many tragedies?
   Answer: The tree's endurance reflects the resilience of the characters and their capacity to continue living after loss. It is a natural, unchanging witness to the family's history, offering continuity and a sense that life persists despite grief.

Conclusion

The buckeye tree in Patrick Ryan's Buckeye is more than a decorative detail. It is a living symbol of the Jenkins family's enduring presence in their community and their home. Through the nickname it gives Tom, the memories it holds, and the quiet constancy of its branches, the tree connects the novel's themes of rootedness, resilience, secrecy, and reconciliation. For any reader seeking to understand the novel's emotional landscape, the buckeye tree offers a path through the seasons of grief, love, and forgiveness that shape the story.

For further reading, explore the novel's themes of secrecy and family lies, war trauma and survival guilt, mediumship and grief, marital estrangement and hidden identities, and forgiveness and reconciliation. You can also learn more about the characters Cal Jenkins, Becky Jenkins, Margaret Salt, Felix Salt, Everett Jenkins, and Tom "Buckeye" Salt.