I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the illustrations in this book...and that's it. The story wasn't quite my style.

This book is beautiful, between the message of how the environment, and getting out into is important for all of us to the illustrations. I think this book was written about my daughter and how she interacts with the environment!! I also love the little tidbits of facts and activities it gave at the bottom of the pages!

Underwhelming Story

While I appreciate the author and illustrator's intent, I'm not wild about either the “story” or illustrations in this book. In the book's description, the publishers call this a modern take on Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree, but other than the fact that a child and a tree are at the center of each, I don't see many parallels. Certainly, the language is not up to the same par as Silverstein’s; this is a translation, by the way. To truly qualify as a story, a book needs some sort of a plot. I'm actually surprised how often children's picture books are able to pull this off in such short books. But there's no sense of tension, conflict, rising action, resolution, or other elements that make up a good plot. Essentially, this little girl picks a tree out at her grandmother's place that she thinks is special—though she never really states why—and the bulk of the book is her visits and time spent with the tree. That's essentially it. I didn't like the illustrations from the first page. They are vivid, but most feel a little crude to me. The illustrator did the best with the special tree, but the rest of it just didn't work for me, including the little girl on most pages. There was one page I liked, the one with the wind blowing, but that was about it. All in all, I found this book underwhelming.

This is the type of book I would have begged my mom to buy as a kid. Near my childhood home there was a willow tree that my friends and I would play under. In 5th grade it was cut down (on Earth Day of all days), and we had a very sad "celebration of life" party for the tree. I totally forgot about this memory until reading Under My Tree.

This is the first book I've read by Muriel Tallandier and I'm absolutely in love with the writing style. I will definitely be picking up a hard copy for my classroom library. I love the prompts for children to question and discuss the story. The mood of the story is so uplifting, and the message is universal. Definitely one of my new favorites!

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This picture book's best part are the lovely illustrations. The story is just okay.

This will be a great book for any little explorer or those who are interested in learning more about nature. I love the bright illustrations and the nature facts that are included in the bottom corner of several of the pages.

I love that I can read this story to my boys, ensuring that they're learning not only about trees, but about the interconnectedness of all living things and the importance of preservation.

By the time I finished reading this book to my five year old, I knew that this was one that we need to buy for our own personal library. A little girl so in love with her tree, that she looks forward to seeing it every year when she visits her grandmother. I love this depiction of a child's relationship with nature! I loved the science sprinkled throughout, the thought provoking questions for children, the prompts to use their senses when thinking about the tree. I loved that the little girl loved her tree so much she shared it with her friends and her family. We are such a nature loving family, that this was a wonderful story to share with my son, to encourage his own relationship with our natural world, and engage his curiosity and senses. I loved this book, but even better, so did my five year old.

This book is compared to Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree, which is a wonderful book, although a sad one. I think this book has a different tone, one that respects the tree, which I enjoy much more.

This was just a lovely story with beautiful illustrations, and one I plan to buy for my son's shelves, to be read again and again.

Although, Under My Tree does not have the same tone, humor, or style of The Giving Tree, I do appreciate the publisher making the connection because one of the things I liked most about this picture book was that the relationship between the tree and child was not dependent on the complete destruction of the titular tree. But other than there being a tree and a kid, there is not much else that is the same in these two books. The tree is not given a personality and we don't see Susanne's whole lifespan.

What makes Under My Tree a worthwhile book, in my opinion, is not only the story teaching about trees and the seasons, but specifically all the interactive questions and activities that are included throughout the book.

Thank you to @netgalley and Blue Dot Kids Press for the free e-galley to review! This is a delightful little picture book with the most beautiful illustrations. A heartwarming story about a little girl who befriends a tree while on summer vacation at her grandmother's home, it has facts and activities about nature sprinkled throughout the book as well. This would be a perfect "read on your own" picture book for ages 7-8 and a good read-aloud for kids younger than that. Any nature lover would be happy to own this one as the language is clear, easy to understand and makes you want to go outside! A perfect pick for reading under your own tree in your neighborhood.

I will update my feedback with a link to my Instagram review when I post!

I've had the great honor to work with this title and this publisher. The illustrations and story make this a great story and one I love working with.

In this story, a little girl named Susanne has a special tree at her grandparents' house that she loves to spend time with. Susanne describes how she gets to know and love her tree by using her senses to explore all of its wonders. The illustrations in this book are gorgeous, containing vivid colors that draw the reader into the text. The story is fictional but is infused with factual tidbits. Stopping points with questions and activities to engage the reader are also included throughout. This makes it ideal for both classroom use and diving deeper into the natural world around you with a parent or a friend. #UnderMyTree #NetGalley

Under My Tree is a sweet little picture book from Blue Dot Kids Press, written by Muriel Tallandier and illustrated by Mizuho Fujisawa. Blue Dot is a very small press, publishing only ten books a year and focusing on fiction and narrative nonfiction for ages 0-8. Under My Tree is firmly in the fiction category, though some pages include side-bars with factual tidbits. The illustrations are very soft and will read as nostalgic for some adult readers. The story is simple and follows a young girl as she visits her favorite tree during the warm months, observing and learning about the tree. There's a bit of disconnect in the young tone of the narrative and the apparent age of the main character, who seems older. All characters present white. Under My Tree doesn't add much to the wealth of tree picture books available, but for the right reader it might be just the right one.

Inspired by her own daughter, Under My Tree is Tallendier’s first foray into picture books. The book was originally written in French.

Quick Rating: Do Not Buy

Summary
Susanne, who lives in the city, spends many vacations with her Grandparents who live near the woods. During one such vacation she discovers a tree while walking with her Grandmother in the forest. Susanne gets to know the tree over many visits, their relationship strengthening with each one.

Illustrations
Fujisaway’s illustrations of nature are lyrical. She delineates the special tree from the rest of the forest by providing more graceful, less symmetrical arcs. The special tree’s uniqueness comes through and it teems with life. The natural surroundings are inspired and add depth to the book.

Fujisaway’s illustrations of humans, however, are less inspired. I cannot figure out whether this was on purpose or not. But, the humans are not rendered with the same attention as the rest of the elements in the book. This proves distracting.

No Space on My Bookshelf
I’ve seen the book advertised as “[a] modern take on Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree that celebrates the friendship between a curious child and her favorite tree.” If that was the aim of the book, I don’t think it quite hits its mark; at least not in this translation. Silverstein’s prose in The Giving Tree is simple and consistent. His words are sparse and carefully chosen to evoke reaction and symbiosis. There is definitely a relationship in the Silverstein book–whether or not it’s a healthy one is left to the reader. Indeed the boy and the tree in The Giving Tree speak to each other.

The language in Under My Tree, however, is more descriptive, consisting mainly of Susanne’s admiration for the tree. Yes, she likes the tree; even loves it. But why is this tree different from all the other ones? That, is not so clear.

Moreover, the prose in Under My Tree, perhaps as translated, is problematic. It is sometimes inspired, sometimes clumsy. Let’s take a look at the following passage:

"The second visit, I decided to climb my tree. I had to get to know her! I found out that she is very complicated. As I climbed up, each branch split again and again like a labyrinth. When I reached the top, I got my reward: a spectacular view stretching beyond the forest’s edge. It was wonderful."

Start. Stop. Start. Stop. Reading like a bad translation, we are left with a list of things Susane did with the tree that day. So what? Uninspired prose does not hold attention; no matter how pretty the pictures. Compare that paragraph with the following one a few pages later:

"Thanks to my tree, I could tell that summer was ending. Her leaves started to drop off, the air cooled, and the sunset came earlier."

Much better. Much more lyrical. Perhaps a better translation. The words dance in the mind along with the pictures on the page. Uneven writing (or translation, or indeed editing) lends itself to confusion and a wandering mind.

One last note, the book also contains factoids in the form of “leaves” that appear on certain pages provind reading prompts and things to do. These are distracting and take away from the story. They should have been placed in an activity section at the end of the book.

Uneven illustrations, writing and editing don’t lend themselves to good storytelling. In short, there are too many distractions to keep this book on my bookshelf.

My thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for providing an Advance Copy of this book. The views expressed herein are my own.

No, sorry, no matter what the publisher wanted us to believe, this is not a modern take on Shel Silverstein's book "The Giving Tree".

True, the tree is lovely, and doesn't get chopped down in the end, so that part is nice, but no, this is simply a story about a little girl that loves a tree at her grandmother's house and wants to spend all her time with it.

And that is it.

The pictures are very colorful. But there is no story there. There are little facts thrown into every page though. So I supposed that is useful.

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

Under My Tree is a sweet book about the relationship of a girl and her tree. It also has some fun facts about trees and all’s the reader some important questions.

"Under My Tree" is a new children's book that encourages eco stewardship through a fun story about a little girl who loves a tree. Author Muriel Tallandier tells the story of the child who finds the tree while walking with her grandmother through the forest. The book details the different seasons of the year and how those seasons change the interactions between the girl and the tree.

The book is great because it highlights the different things that kids normally learn about in science class. Concepts like the seasons, different parts of the tree and others are explained and explored in the book. This makes this book both educational while still being fun to read. The best part of the book are the colorful and vibrant illustrations. This is clearly no ordinary tree!

The only issue that I had with the book is that at the end of the book, the girl picks a leaf to remember the tree by. This act goes against the entire environmental stewardship premise of the book. I wish that the author would have written that portion a different way. Other than that, the book is great and has a lot of useful information for children and adults alike!

The illustrations are really really lovely in this book. I did like the story, the girl's time spent with family and with the tree and learning about trees and nature. I just feel like maybe it could have had a better setup. I liked the facts but I think maybe they would be better compiled at the end? I am not sure what exactly it needs, but I think it will be a good book for teachers and to use in schools.

Thank you NetGalley.

I received an electronic ARC from Myrick Marketing & Media, LLC through NetGalley.
Short read aloud for families. The child connects with a tree in the forest near her grandparents' home. She finds it on a walk with her grandmother. Every day she goes back and discovers more about the tree and the environment. Soft color illustrations enhance the sense of comfort and peace in the story. Don't miss the facts and challenges included on several pages.
A delightful story to share and then explore nature together.

5 Stars for the illustrations

While the illustrations are quite lovely and colourful, the story itself comes across like a teacher’s copy, with little “comments / facts” that the reader, I suppose, is meant to direct to the child, which stops any flow to this story. If this were meant to be a non-fiction book, it would be appropriate. I found them to be an unnecessary disruption, and would be better suited at the end of the book, if at all.

A young girl is walking through the forest with her grandmother, whom she is visiting, when she first meets ‘her’ tree, which has noises coming from it. An owl and her babies. She returns every day of her visit, and likes to run her fingers over the bark, and hug the tree. She hopes it doesn’t hurt the tree, and decides that the first secret is that ’you have to touch a tree if you really want to talk to it.’
On her second visit she climbs the tree, finding out as she climbed that ’each branch split again and again like a labyrinth.’ And then she climbs to the top where she is rewarded with ’a spectacular view stretching beyond the forest’s edge.’

Soon the end of summer arrives, and it’s time for her to return home with her mother.

This story was a disappointment even without the comparison to Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree, which it is said to be a “modern take” of. I’m not opposed to books with a message for children, but it should be part of the story. When a story lacks fluidity, I can’t imagine a child wanting to hear it again, or a parent wanting to read it to them again, even with such beautiful illustrations.

Pub Date: 21 April 2020

Many thanks for the ARC from Myrick Marketing & Media, LLC / Blue Dot Kids Press

This book explores a child's relationship with a tree. The pages have sidebars with fun facts about trees and ideas for tree-related activities, but I found that looking at these notes disrupted the experience of reading the story. If I were reading this to a child, I would read the main text first and then go back to the facts and suggestions.

What I found even more strange about this book is the focus on how the little girl spends so much time with this tree while she is visiting her grandmother. If this were a tree that was in her backyard, or at a local park, the story would make more sense, but instead, we're supposed to believe that a tree, not her grandmother, was the focus of the visit. It's an odd choice for the narrative, because it's distracting to think about Grandma being rejected when poor Grandma didn't even need to be in the story at all, and this could have just been about a girl and a tree.

Still, this book has a nice illustrations, is educational, and encourages children to explore nature. There are many children's books about nature that view trees in a mystical and fantastical way, and even though this imagination can be fun, it's also important for there to also be matter-of-fact books about botany. Despite the weird elements of this book, I am rating it three stars for filling this gap in the picture books available to families and educators. This isn't going to be anyone's favorite storybook to return to again and again, but it fulfills its purpose as an educating tool.