If I Were a Tree

March 15, 2021
Grades K-3 With lyrical text and lush illustrations, this story of two siblings on a family camping trip emphasizes a multisensory experience of the outdoors. As they hike and explore--parents reassuringly nearby--they imagine the surrounding trees' points of view: "If I were a tree, I know what I'd feel. / The warmth of the sun, and squirrels on the run . . . The climbing of boots, and worms by my roots." Others highlight taste, smell, hearing, and sight, and there's an impressive amount of things to discover. The poetic conclusion, "I'd know what I'd know," addresses the reliable, cyclical passage of time. Tsong's vibrant, textural, collage-like illustrations beautifully depict the multiracial family against backgrounds dense with detail, including various plants, wildlife, and the ever-present trees. Zimmerman's wide-ranging, idiosyncratic verses ("If I were a tree, I know what I'd taste . . . old, buried bones, and pebbles and stones") read aloud well with lilting rhythm and thoughtful rhyme. With enchanting visuals, this contemplative picture book demonstrates not only what nature can offer but also the reward of new perspectives.

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April 5, 2021
In this sensory rhyming narrative, two parents—one brown-skinned and one light-skinned—and their two children, who each take after one of the adults, pack their bags and head out of the city to a camping site. Through a first-person perspective, Zimmerman centers the children’s imaginations as they explore the outdoors, utilizing the refrain “if I were a tree” in evocative rhymes that follow each of the senses. For sight: “If I were a tree, I know what I’d see./ Hills misty with fog, the life in a log.” Tsong’s colorfully layered, stamped landscapes, created using traditional printmaking techniques and digital collage, enhance the appeal of this tree-focused venture that will encourage young readers to meditate upon nature. Back matter contains a brief guide to exploring trees with each of the five senses. Ages 4–8.

July 1, 2021
Two adults and two kids pack up their things and set out on a camping adventure. The children are fascinated by the sights Mother Nature has to offer, stopping to explore in wonder everything that they see and using all their senses to do so. Their enjoyment of nature, big spiders included, is palpable. Zimmerman's text is a set of conditional statements ("If I were a tree...") that imagines what a tree feels, tastes, smells, hears, and sees -- even what a tree might be, know, and love. The text's consistent rhymes ("I'd feel nests on my bark, bats hiding till dark") flow smoothly and capture the many details that the children observe -- from worms to "minerals in mud" to "the sneeze of a mole." The book's final rhymes incorporate lyrical metaphors that could apply easily to the socio-emotional side of human lives: "I'd know branches can bend, and cold spells will end, / That spring will renew, and life carries through." Tsong's illustrations center a happy multiracial family. The pictures, created via printmaking techniques and digitally assembled, are highly textured, some even appearing to incorporate oversized fingerprints. Lush, lively greens pop off the page. An appended spread provides tips about using "your five senses" to "get to know" trees. Julie Danielson

(Copyright 2021 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from March 15, 2021
Enjoy and observe nature with all your senses. A family of color embarks on an adventure in the great outdoors. On their way to the campsite and when they get there, the children repeatedly declare, "If I were a tree," then imagine exploring the world from the trees' perspectives. They imagine seeing ("a web draped with dew, the dawn turning blue"), touching ("nests on my bark, bats hiding till dark"), smelling ("sweet honey and bees, and skunk on the breeze"), tasting ("waters that flood, and minerals in mud"), and hearing ("snakes in a hole, the sneeze of a mole") their surroundings. As the children wander through the forest, the rhyming verses and simple text engage children in the fun. Readers will delight in the breathtaking illustrations. Double-page spreads are rich and vibrant, Tsong using the colors of nature to evoke a warm and inviting environment. The combination of printmaking and digital collage creates an abundance of depth and texture to each illustration. From an aerial view of a tiny tent in a vast forest to a close-up look at a dazzling spiderweb, the varying perspective reveals more and more with each page turn. Mom presents Asian, and Dad has brown skin, with one child taking after each; the book thus adds valuable representation to the nature genre. A concluding spread offers tree-related extension prompts. Young readers will want to experience this book over and over again. (Picture book. 5-8)

COPYRIGHT(2021) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 1, 2021
Two adults and two kids pack up their things and set out on a camping adventure. The children are fascinated by the sights Mother Nature has to offer, stopping to explore in wonder everything that they see and using all their senses to do so. Their enjoyment of nature, big spiders included, is palpable. Zimmerman's text is a set of conditional statements ("If I were a tree...") that imagines what a tree feels, tastes, smells, hears, and sees -- even what a tree might be, know, and love. The text's consistent rhymes ("I'd feel nests on my bark, bats hiding till dark") flow smoothly and capture the many details that the children observe -- from worms to "minerals in mud" to "the sneeze of a mole." The book's final rhymes incorporate lyrical metaphors that could apply easily to the socio-emotional side of human lives: "I'd know branches can bend, and cold spells will end, / That spring will renew, and life carries through." Tsong's illustrations center a happy multiracial family. The pictures, created via printmaking techniques and digitally assembled, are highly textured, some even appearing to incorporate oversized fingerprints. Lush, lively greens pop off the page. An appended spread provides tips about using "your five senses" to "get to know" trees.

(Copyright 2021 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)