A well-constructed tale with a worthy premise.
In Aubin’s debut picture book inspired by a true story, the 9/11 Survivor Tree is nursed back to life.
A badly damaged Callery pear tree is found in the rubble of the World Trade Center. Although she is scared, the tree is taken to a nursery where a city parks worker named Richie treats her with great care. As the tree recuperates, she recalls her experiences when she stood tall in New York City—watching ice skaters in the plaza during winter and seeing the budding romance of two people who ate lunch under her leaves. The tree’s resilience gives hope to those who are sad, including a New York City firefighter who thanks her for surviving. When the tree recovers, Richie tells her that she will return to New York City as part of the 9/11 memorial. She is introduced in a special ceremony and dubbed the “9/11 Survivor Tree.” The author anthropomorphizes the tree, giving the story an intimate, personal tone. The descriptions often illuminate the tree’s emotions during her healing process. Aubin writes: “As they gently tamped the soft, rich soil around her roots, the tree felt as if she were being wrapped in a warm blanket and started to feel a little safer.” Longer and denser than most picture books, this is a better pick for older readers. Harrington’s colorful, watercolor illustrations add a dreamy quality to the story. All profits from the sale of this book are donated to charity.
A well-constructed tale with a worthy premise.Pub Date: July 29, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-9838334-0-6
Page Count: 35
Publisher: Callery Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 4, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The seemingly ageless Seeger brings back his renowned giant for another go in a tuneful tale that, like the art, is a bit sketchy, but chockful of worthy messages. Faced with yearly floods and droughts since they’ve cut down all their trees, the townsfolk decide to build a dam—but the project is stymied by a boulder that is too huge to move. Call on Abiyoyo, suggests the granddaughter of the man with the magic wand, then just “Zoop Zoop” him away again. But the rock that Abiyoyo obligingly flings aside smashes the wand. How to avoid Abiyoyo’s destruction now? Sing the monster to sleep, then make it a peaceful, tree-planting member of the community, of course. Seeger sums it up in a postscript: “every community must learn to manage its giants.” Hays, who illustrated the original (1986), creates colorful, if unfinished-looking, scenes featuring a notably multicultural human cast and a towering Cubist fantasy of a giant. The song, based on a Xhosa lullaby, still has that hard-to-resist sing-along potential, and the themes of waging peace, collective action, and the benefits of sound ecological practices are presented in ways that children will both appreciate and enjoy. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-689-83271-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2001
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