A beautiful story connecting the lives of trees with the lives of humans and communities. Diverse humans and lovely metaphor make this book a rich resource. ( )

Inspired by German forester Peter Wohlleben's The Hidden Life of Trees, American picture-book author Maria Gianferrari explores the communal life of our arboreal friends in this work of natural history for younger children. Her simple text describing the anatomy and behavior of trees, and comparing these arboreal beings with humans, is paired with beautiful artwork from Australian/Italian illustrator Felicita Sala. The book closes with an author's note, a list of suggestions for helping trees and helping fellow humans, a more detailed exploration of the anatomy of trees, and a list of further reading and viewing...

The seventh title I have read from Gianferrari and the third from Sala, Be a Tree! is a book I expected to thoroughly enjoy, given my love of trees and my previous enjoyment of both author and illustrator's work. Unfortunately, although I think its heart is in the right place, I just wasn't as impressed as I'd expected and hoped to be. I love the idea of trees as social beings - I need to track down that Wohlleben book! - and I don't necessarily object to the idea of comparing trees and people, if it will lead children to empathize more deeply with our arboreal friends, and value them more fully. That said, the didactic aim here was just a little too overt for my taste, and some of the comparisons - describing both bark and skin as "dead," the discussion of "immigrant" trees - felt a little muddled to me. The latter, in particular, was somewhat problematic, as the importation of non-native plant (and animal) species is often strictly forbidden in different countries worldwide, because of the ecological harm it can cause. Although human immigration can be similarly destructive - overpopulation in specific areas can put a strain on natural resources - I tend to think it was not the author's purpose to make that point. Some of the facts presented here were fascinating - trees sharing resources and even news with one another, through their roots - but there simply wasn't enough of an exploration of arboreal social life to be truly satisfying.

Despite my mixed reaction to the text here, I did find the book immensely pleasing, from an aesthetic perspective. Sala's artwork is gorgeous, and really increased my overall enjoyment. I loved her depiction of a diversity of trees, beginning with the baobab, and the diversity of people as well. I added a half star to my rating, to acknowledge the beauty of the artwork. I'm not sure I would strongly recommend this one, given its somewhat muddled and unsatisfying narrative, but young tree-lovers might enjoy it. Certainly, fans of Felicita Sala's artwork, and readers who enjoy beautiful picture-book illustrations, might want to take a look. ( )