Responsibility and Self-Confidence
Standing up against the establishment is a daunting task that Willa our young protagonist chooses to do. Initially, she played by the rule and assumed the role of a thief as per the rules set by the leader of the clan. Fortunately, she wanders into the human world and gets a unique perspective on their reality back home. Alongside other Faeran people, the leader is exploiting Willa, a discovery that makes her an outcast. She has to defend the natural world that is under threat due to corporate greed and neglect by the padaran rule. Self-assurance is the only weapon the young girl has to rally up the troops to ensure the protection of the environment. She assumes the responsibility that her clan abandoned by believing in herself and pursuing what is right.
Cultural Survival
The narrative highlights the native clans that occupied the lands before the arrival of the settler societies. As such delves into the conflict that arises from the cultural differences between the two or three societies. The Faeran people have been there since the beginning of time and then the Cherokee tribes followed. Though they lived together in harmony the arrival of the white settlers came with constant clashes. The Faeran clan lost their connection to the natural world because of the damage the settlers did to tree forests. Similarly, the Cherokee tribes had their lands stolen and forced into assimilation. The Faeran leader also forces assimilation within their society which leads to cultural suicide. Willa takes the helm to ensure that their cultural identity is not ancient history before it is too late.
Greed
Though every civilization in the narrative has its own way of life they all exhibit some level of greediness. The settler society exploits the forests and natural resources for capitalist purposes without considering sustainability. Willa observes the extreme destruction of their woods as the also animals lose their natural habitats. Within the native clan, the leader encourages pillaging rather than carrying on the tradition of environmental sustainability. The corporate greed of the settlers influences the other societies to behave in the same way since they view it as a means of retaliation.
