ONCE I WAS A TREE

With help from a human author, a book retraces its journey from seed to codex.

“I was a pine tree,” the proud narrator proclaims. “I was tall, green, and handsome.” Before that it was a pine nut that was eaten by a hungry squirrel named Derek, then passed on to an industrious dung beetle named Barbara before ending up in just the right woodland spot to sprout and grow to towering size. Then it was chopped down (“I KNOW. I was fuming”), fed into a series of machines to be made into paper, and transformed into a book—which is amazing because, of course, “books are magic. And stories are forever.” Switching occasionally to a vertical orientation for retro-style illustrations, Karsten carries the effusive explainer from forest floor through Derek’s intestines and on to a set of complex but generic factory machines and finally to a library where a racially diverse set of children are happily poring over and sharing their bookish finds. McLaughlin skips a few steps along the way—those interested in the nuts and bolts of book manufacturing may be disappointed—but in conjunction with Aliki’s outdated but still useful How a Book Is Made (1986), he does provide a broad picture of the process, and the earnest message about the value of books and stories is a lovely bonus.

Enlightening and affirmative, if a bit skimpy on details.