Spotlights from the Shelf: Arbor Day
Posted in From the Library on April 24 2017, by Samantha D’Acunto
Samantha D’Acunto is the Reference Librarian at The New York Botanical Garden‘s LuEsther T. Mertz Library.
This Arbor Day the LuEsther T. Mertz Library is hoping you find friends, family, and neighbors to plant with! Today we are featuring some titles from our Children’s Collection that will help the youngest of readers understand the importance of trees and the celebration of Arbor Day. To learn more about Arbor Day celebrations near you, check out Arborday.org.
Arbor Day Square by Kathryn O. Galbraith (2010)
The townsfolk of this newly erected prairie town try to establish community, friendship, and home. Their plan for the town square is only missing one thing: trees! This story follows Katie and her father as they work together with friends and neighbors to plant trees throughout the town. After a successful Arbor Day, the townsfolk pledge to return each year to plant more trees. As the trees grow, so do the families. Katie celebrates Arbor Day each year with her father, her daughter, her husband, and the town. As more trees are planted and the others grow, the town has plenty of branches to climb, fruit to eat, and shade to find. Cyd Moore’s illustrations allow readers to experience the town coming to life as they turn each page. Arbor Day Square is a wonderful way to connect with family and friends before planting your own special tree.
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Trees! by Jim Pipe/Illustrated by Bergin (2017)
Trees are survivors and providers. They thrive in harsh environments against threatening weather conditions, they withstand predators such as insects, animals and humans, and yet trees give back so much. You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Trees! pays homage to the wooden giants by covering everything from trunk anatomy to the effects of climate change on trees. Detailed illustrations throughout provide readers with visual aids that explain the types of trees and offer a peek at what is going on inside of a tree. Readers can learn about all the wonderful things trees provide for humans such as oxygen, fruit, paper, and even lipstick! The glossary provided at the end of the book allows an opportunity to learn new vocabulary. This a perfect overview and introduction about trees for a comfortable reader to pick up this Arbor Day!
You Wouldn’t Want to Live Without Trees! is part of an extensive series created by David Salariya covering a range of subjects and topics. To find more topics under this title, just follow the link!
Who Will Plant A Tree? by Jerry Pallotta (2010)
Who Will Plant a Tree brings the reader on an adventure through various parts of nature featuring different animals who have all planted trees. Seeds end up being planted by animals, often without the animals realizing it. The forgetful squirrel leaves an acorn buried, the playful monkey drops a fig in a game of catch, and a wren loses a berry on the way to her nest—all resulting in a tree. The easy vocabulary and animated illustration is the perfect combination that makes this book an obvious option for reading aloud.
The Last Tree by Ingrid Chabbert and Guridi (2017)
Two friends discover a sapling among the rubble in a concrete city. They believe it could be the last tree. In order to ensure the trees safety from construction and development plans the two friends must find a place to replant the tree. The Last Tree offers a glimpse into a city and world where buildings and concrete overrun nature. Ingrid Chabbert and Guridi use texture and color in their illustrations to depict a bleak reality without trees.
