Walking Trees

January 15, 2024
Take a tree for a walk, share some shade, and build a happy community. Lily and her father live in a gray city with lots of buildings but few trees. Remembering the lush and verdant forest she once visited, she asks her father for a tree for their tiny balcony. He obliges, and she names it George. One morning, she decides to show George around the neighborhood. Carting the potted tree about in a wagon, she meets Mrs. Lee, who feels hot and uncomfortable. George's leaves provide cool shade, and Mrs. Lee offers Lily an orange in thanks. Later, Lily's friends enjoy the shade so much that they get their own trees to take around the neighborhood. Soon, the ever increasing grove of trees is providing shade to folks throughout the community and transforming the once-gray city into a colorful, joyful forest. Gay's multimedia illustrations effectively and poignantly portray Lily's community-beautification project through vibrant washes of yellows, blues, greens, and pinks. A gatefold spread shows in glorious detail just how vibrant and alive the neighborhood has become. The prose is straightforward, and visual cues in the accompanying art will help kids hone their reading skills. In an author's note, Gay says that she was inspired by an art project in the Netherlands in which volunteers walked potted trees around the city. Lily, her father, and Mrs. Lee are light-skinned; the neighborhood is diverse. A lovely example of young people taking small steps toward sustainability. (Picture book. 4-8)

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February 12, 2024
Riffing on a Dutch art project in which participants created a “walking forest,” per a creator’s note, Gay crafts a likable tale of a city kid who takes a potted tree for a walk—and inspires others to follow suit. After a city-dwelling child named Lily receives a deciduous tree for her birthday, the pale-skinned girl seeks to show the arboreal being, dubbed “George,” that “the world was wider than her balcony.” Amid unusual heat, George—pulled along in a wheeled crate—offers a refuge for adults and kids alike, and others soon acquire their own shade-producing plants, resulting in a small mobile forest. Mixed-media illustrations have an airy quality as they depict both the color that trees bring to the city and the community of varying skin tones luxuriating in trees’ cooling shade. In a bright final fold-out, the walking forest’s transformative effect becomes evident. Beneath the leaves, “babies crawled, dogs slept and musicians played their liveliest tunes.” It’s an elysian vision grounded in real-world practicality. Ages 3–6.

March 15, 2024
Grades K-3 Lily lives in a smoggy city with little sign of nature inside her small, dark apartment. Nevertheless, she loves trees and requests one for her birthday. When it finally arrives, she names it George, and the sapling sits on her balcony, haloed by cheerful greens and yellows. Lily doesn't want George to be confined to the balcony, however, so she places him in her wagon and off they go. Anywhere they stop, George offers a nice amount of shade on hot summer days to anyone nearby. At first, kids poke fun at Lily for walking a tree instead of a dog, but soon they realize how cool trees are. Before long, lots of kids are wheeling trees around the city and becoming "a walking forest," providing cool relief from the blazing sun. Gay's cheerful story will help build appreciation for trees and encourage children to view them with care and affection. Gay's light watercolor brushstrokes, bringing lively color whenever a tree appears, nicely depict how trees can beautify any space. A perfect choice for Earth Day.

COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

May 1, 2024
Gay found inspiration for this winning story from reading about the residents of a Dutch city who transformed their streets into a "walking forest" by wheeling trees about in wooden containers. In this fictionalized telling, city girl Lily visits the woods and finds herself so enamored with trees that she asks her father for one for her birthday. She names her leafy new friend George. Gay deftly employs various shades of green in her playful mixed-media illustrations, which reflect the loving connection between child and tree. The tale takes an entertaining turn when Lily decides to show George the world beyond their tiny balcony. Lily pulls George about in a wagon and discovers that the tree provides shade and comfort to the people she meets along the way. Two boys tease her initially but learn that being in George's shadow keeps their Popsicles from melting. They ask for trees of their own, and treemania spreads as other residents follow suit. Gay captures the joy of a diverse urban community bonding over nature that brings beauty to their locale and lives. The finale depicts people enjoying a park scene filled with trees of many colors and shapes before bringing the narrative back to Lily and George and a triumphant hug. Brian E. Wilson

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2024
Gay found inspiration for this winning story from reading about the residents of a Dutch city who transformed their streets into a "walking forest" by wheeling trees about in wooden containers. In this fictionalized telling, city girl Lily visits the woods and finds herself so enamored with trees that she asks her father for one for her birthday. She names her leafy new friend George. Gay deftly employs various shades of green in her playful mixed-media illustrations, which reflect the loving connection between child and tree. The tale takes an entertaining turn when Lily decides to show George the world beyond their tiny balcony. Lily pulls George about in a wagon and discovers that the tree provides shade and comfort to the people she meets along the way. Two boys tease her initially but learn that being in George's shadow keeps their Popsicles from melting. They ask for trees of their own, and treemania spreads as other residents follow suit. Gay captures the joy of a diverse urban community bonding over nature that brings beauty to their locale and lives. The finale depicts people enjoying a park scene filled with trees of many colors and shapes before bringing the narrative back to Lily and George and a triumphant hug.

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)