Tree Song is a beautiful lyrical poem paired with soft but detailed illustrations of children in outdoor settings in every season and the lifecycle of trees, starting with a seed.

It begins with the wind blowing seeds (acorns) from the trees, and as the seasons pass, the seed sprouts and grows into a sapling and eventually an oak tree. The forest teems with life and the trees sing for those willing to listen.

This is a celebration of trees and their beauty throughout the seasons as well as the life cycle of trees and their importance to us.

I really enjoyed this as a read-aloud. It was calming and almost meditative in its rhythm and somehow made me feel like I was right in the middle of a magical season-changing forest listening to the wind blowing in the leaves!

Tree Song is a sweet, somewhat lyrical children’s book that walks the reader through the cycles of a tree, from the acorn that manages to survive potential predators, winter weather, and curious children to eventually sprout and then root, growing into a tree over many seasons - to the older trees that eventually give way to age and the ravages of nature and man. Along the way, we see all the beautiful things trees have to offer, why they are so precious. It is a great introduction to the ways of nature. And, naturally, I couldn’t go without commenting on the illustrations, which are unique and lovely. A wonderful book to share with little ones.

I love nature books but I didn't like this book at all. It tells the story of a seed who grows, lives and dies. I actually had to read someone's review to understand that it was the plot of the book. To me, it was more like a succession of pages, with kids playing in the forest as seasons passed, with trees either small or tall.

My least favorite part is when a tree suddenly cracked, and the illustration makes it feel like it's going to fall on us.. There were absolutely no sign, no storm, nothing, and it felt very sudden and unnecessary scary. Also, when the tree is in two pieces, the illustration is completely wrong: the tree is neatly cut in half, just like with a humane saw, which is illogical, as the tree broke on its own, which should have been reflected in the uneven pieces of the tree. If there were only that... the text was trying to be poetic, but I didn't feel any pleasure reading it.

Overall, I found this book illogical, with an unclear flow, and quite boring.

Wonderful story about the life cycle of a tree. The words have a lyrical quality and the rhyme is great for emerging readers as they anticipate the "sound" of the words that are coming next. The illustrations are very well done. This would be a great title to add to your collection and would work well for discussions of both plant life cycle and seasonal changes.

I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

My son and I loved this book documenting the life cycle of a tree. It's a sweet story from acorn to decay and around again. Definitely a great addition for talking about the cycle of life in the natural world. Loved the art work and the book was paced well.

This was a well-illustrated book. It also gave a lovely sense of the sweeping grand life of a tree, though sped up considerably. The pacing of the tree's life did feel slightly forced due to the constraints of the picture book genre.

Though my children did not seem to notice it, I thought that the point about unnecessary felling of trees made with the ax had the chance to upset children about even necessary felling, which concerned me a little. Robert MacFarlane's poem "Heartwood" about unnecessary tree felling is a much more balanced treatment of that topic. I also felt that the occasionally unnatural English sentences in the book were a detractor from the story.

My thoughts: I have mixed feelings about this book. The illustrations are delightfully detailed and truly beautiful while the text is simple enough to read to and with young readers. The rhythmic flow makes it a good book to read aloud with page turns adding pauses to the text at the right times (but a couple of pages seemed written a bit differently where that flow seems off). The words go between being brilliant (Quiet sparkles everywhere…..till springs rings through the frozen air) and bland. As the tree goes through it’s life cycle from a seed back to, well a seed again, the reader is taken through the same across the pages of the book with those wonderful illustrations and accompanying text.

Notes: This is perfect for teaching about the life cycle of a tree, as well about the changing seasons and their impact on life around us. Parents and teachers can have outdoor activities set around this book easily. And kids and parents can play I Spy games on each page of the book, given all the details in the illustrations.

Rating: B
Reading Level: Ages 4 to 8
Reread Level: 5/5 — definitely worth going back again to enjoy the illustrations and discover new details.

This is a beautifully illustrated book. It's a lovely introduction to the lifecycle of a tree. The poetic rhythm makes easy reading and makes it easier for children to follow. These are some of the nicest illustrations I have seen.

I think it would be a lovely addition to a nature study for homeschoolers, or to a classroom study. The text is not as rich as the illustrations deserve, in my opinion, but it is a sweet book and my 7-year-old enjoyed it.

I was thankful to NetGalley for the chance to review this book. The opinions expressed are my own.

TREE SONG describes nature’s life cycle through the growth of a seedling into a full-fledged tree. Delightful illustrations depict children playing under the branches at each stage. And each season is characterized by different birdsongs or leaves falling or hues, until the tree dies, leaving an acorn to restart the life cycle. Charming details capture young readers’ imaginations as they learn about the magnificence of nature through the life of a tree. 5/5

Thank you to the author, Annick Press Ltd. and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

#TreeSong #NetGalley

Tree Song by Tiffany Stone is a joyful book follows the life cycle of a tree as it grows from seedling to mature tree, and finally gives way to a new sapling. At every stage of the tree’s life, children are seen playing under its branches. Each season brings with it new sounds, whether it’s the chirping of birds in the spring or the flitter flutter of leaves in the fall. As well as a home for animals, the tree provides a canopy for a summer picnic, and a perfect place to hang a swing. Most important of all, when old age fells the tree, it provides an acorn from which a new tree will grow. Colorful illustrations with lots of small details will capture the attention of young readers, while the lyrical text makes this an ideal read-aloud book. It can also serve as the perfect introduction to nature’s life cycles.

The message to me is conservation, getting out in nature and learning about the seasons and their affect on trees. There is so much to see in each illustration that this book could take a long time to get through if you encourage conversation. The text is written in a rhyming form that has a singsong cadence to it. A great book for use in classrooms to teach about a variety of things.

An absolutely wonderful book that has a lovely story and wonderful drawings.

I give this book 4/5 stars. 

I received an e-book ARC from Netgalley via Annick Press Ltd. in exchange for an honest review.

Lovely illustrations of a tree throughout the seasons and its life cycle. I will obtain a copy to share with my granddaughter, almost age three.

Simple book that takes readers through the seasons and describes the cycle of a tree. The illustrations were bright and vivid with complimentary text.

Lovely rhymes accompanied by beautiful pictures show the lifecycle of a tree. Unfortunately, I will not be posting this title as an Ecobook of the Month on the Authors for Earth Day Facebook page because a similar title (The Acorn) has already been posted. Thanks for sharing! I will be recommending this to teachers, librarians and parents of young children.

Tree Song is a beautifully written book depicting a tree's life through the seasons. Rich sentences brim with descriptive words and appropriate onomatopoeias. This book would be a great choice for a read aloud to launch students desire to learn more about trees, seasons or poetry.

Using poetic text and the sounds of nature, this book follows the life cycle of an oak tree. The illustrations have many details to make the reader pause and ponder. An enjoyable introduction to how trees grow and change.

From starting as just a seed and growing into a strong tree, Tree Song shows the life cycle of a tree paired with playful text that changes with the seasons and over the years. Tree Song is a great book to pair with units or explorations of spring or fall. Kids will enjoy the rhyming text and colorful pictures.

This is a really beautiful picture book with not a lot of words but a wonderful message. Kids will follow the life of an acorn into an oak tree and see nature (and people) growing up with the tree. I really liked the images of the animals hidden under the ground and in the tree. The artwork is wonderful and the message is really great too. The tree dies at the end but another acorn is sprouting and children will see the cycle of life continuing.

"Listen to the music of the trees.
Hushhhhhhh goes the wind.
Flitter Flutter go the falling leaves.
The forest changes its song every season."

Thus begins a triumphant book celebrating the life cycle of a tree. It starts out as a seedling and matures into a giant wonder then passes the baton to a brand new sapling to start the cycle once again.

The tree gives the reader a glimpse of its life as one season turns into the next. With each new season comes new sounds and activities featuring the actual physical changes that are occurring, how it provides homes and shelter for birds and animals, how it spreads a welcome canopy of shade for a picnic or to read a book under on a hot summer day, just to name a few. On each page children are happily playing and enjoying its presence.

Sadly the magnificent tree finally expires. As it lays dormant and lifeless on the ground a true miracle of nature happens. The tree provides an acorn which starts to sprout and a brand new tree eventually replaces its predecessor.

The illustrations enrich the text greatly by painting portraits of time, adding wonderful details to explore with activities and weather, and even giving the reader a glimpse of animals underground... very clever indeed.

The story lends itself very well to a read-aloud and would be perfect to introduce nature's life cycles in a classroom setting. I highly recommend this book.

Interesting concept providing a trees life cycle but not quite something that I feel would hold a child's attention, Perhaps a much older child. The illustrations are beautiful, however.

This is a book about the life cycle of an oak tree.

It goes through the months and years as the acorn comes to life, and grows into a mighty oak.

The text is not all that fun, though the picture are nice, as evidence below. It makes me think that some picture books would be better without text.

<img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-341" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Screen-Shot-2018-03-27-at-11.31.13-PM.png" alt="the tree song" />

<img class="alignnone wp-image-332 size-full" src="http://www.reyes-sinclair.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/tree-song.jpg" alt="The Tree" />

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.