THE ENCHANTED TREE

Delicate illustrations enliven this otherwise heavy-handed work. This entry in a new series called Flavia's Dream Maker Stories concerns the ``pinkest and the tallest giraffe in her entire village,'' who doesn't like being different. She sets off on a journey, hoping to find a way to make herself look like everyone else. One day, she is awakened by a talking, enchanted tree, who has ``watched many come to the forest in search of answers.'' The tree tells wordy stories of an owl who had to wear glasses, and of a turtle who was smaller than others in her village. Like them, the pink giraffe comes to understand the tree's ``message'': Her differences make her special. A noble effort that comes off preachy and predictable. (Picture book. 4-8)