This Is the Tree We Planted

A single deciduous tree is the focal point of the children who planted it and the creatures who interact within its canopy in this cumulative story with a "This Is the House That Jack Built" construction. McMullan's first-person narration skews declarative and conversational as children with varying skin tones remark upon the busy scene they observe: "Look at that squirrel with a thrashing tail/ race by the robin/ that laid the eggs/ inside the nest/ that rests in the tree we planted." Later observations spotlight birds, insects, mammals, and a reptile, all carefully depicted in Friend's soft-edged mixed-media illustrations, which largely look upward into the tree's green foliage. A final scene of the children picnicking beneath crimson leaves reveals that their arboreal adventures have taken place over multiple seasons in this rhythmic read that stresses the interconnectedness of nature. Ages 4-7. (Feb.)

PreS-K--Adopting the pattern of the song "There Was A Tree"/"The Green Grass Grows All Around," the young group of narrators--children who have a range of skin colors, as well as gender expression--observe all of the life (and death) occurring in the oak tree they planted. They see a nest with eggs, a squirrel and its kits, various birds, insects, and a lizard. Friend uses perspective creatively in her mixed media illustrations, sometimes taking the children's point of view, sometimes looking down at their upturned faces from the treetop. As the story builds, the leaves change from green to fall colors, and day turns to dusk; the final endpapers show more young trees beyond the original oak, suggesting that each is equally full of life. VERDICT Repetitive language with some rhyme, together with the nature theme, make this a good choice for story hours or for kindergarten classrooms.--Jenny Arch