Starred Review The original poems in this lovely, simple collection celebrate every aspect of trees in a variety of poetic forms including free verse, rhyme, and haiku. Using the voice of the trees themselves or of the people with whom they have contact, an appreciation for the majestic nature of these everyday things is conveyed throughout. The first poem has an old oak silently introducing itself to a boy, I've been waiting / watching you / grow taller. / I have grown too. Step closer. / Let's see / how high / you can / climb. Other poems have a child planting a tree for arbor day, siblings playing hide-and-seek, a traffic jam of squirrels, a fallen tree now serving as a bridge, a delightful look at a beaver dam (that architectural team / with another scheme / to redesign the stream), a fly-fishing boy who snags a pine, and a willow who, while admiring her reflection, is interrupted by a heron. As with her Great Frog Race and Other Poems (1997), George conveys a deep understanding of nature, here particularly of trees, in a way that is readily accessible to children. Kiesler's warm oil paintings beautifully complement the poems, making for a totally satisfying experience that is sure to be a favorite of anyone who's ever stopped to notice trees. (Reviewed September 1, 1998)

K-Gr 4-Trees in all seasons and used for many reasons are imaginatively captured in short poems and richly textured full-color oil paintings. The delightful use of language plays on the senses as it creates word pictures that are sure to entertain. The selections beg to be read-aloud and shared. Free verse, haiku, and bits of rhymes and rhythms reflect the joy children feel as they play in and about or observe all types of trees throughout the year. A celebration of these mighty living things and the people who love them.-Pamela K. Bomboy, Chesterfield County Public Schools, VA

This uneven collection offers a variety of perspectives on trees and how they touch our lives. Some poems describe trees as everyday objects for play (a stout limb becomes a tree horse for the young rider) while others aim for more ethereal imagery ("I hear its heartbeat. I breathe tree"). Keisler's soft oil paintings complement the introspective tone of the poetry.

In a paean to trees, George and Kiesler follow up on The Great Frog Race and Other Poems (1997), with a similar specialized collection of nature poetry, loosely organized around the four seasons. An astute beholder, George resists the obvious—acorns, apples, leaves falling—for tiny, honed observations on the knotholes in a fence, a hammock that "fills the empty space between two trees," or a jutting branch that doubles as "a tree horse" rather than a tree house. A dozen words or so are bound into small parcels; even as the contents are unwrapped, there is room for the imagination. Told from the point of view of an oak tree or a fisherman that snags a pine, this ode begs comparison to Janice May Udry's A Tree is Nice (1955). Kiesler has lightened her textured oil palette with the new greens of leaves and maple shoots, pale cream buds, and a bright wayward kite against a winter white snow sky. Her figures, particularly faces, are deliberately abstract compared to the portraits of her main characters—trees. A lovely, often luminous, collection. (Picture book/poetry. 5-9)