Saturday, October 22, 2011

Book Review: The Apple Pie Tree

Written by: Zoe Hall
Illustrated by: Shari Halpern
Published by: Blue Sky Press
Release Date: September 1, 1996
Age: 4-8
Source: Bought

Synopsis: The changing seasons bring a tasty surprise in this bright picture book from the author/illustrator team of It's Pumpkin Time!. Two young sisters watch in fascination as their apple tree changes, from bare in winter to bursting with pink blossoms in spring, and as robins build a nest. When autumn comes, the small green apples have grown big enough for picking--and for pie!

I adore well illustrated picture books and Shari Halpern's gorgeous paintings make Zoe Hall's story literally come to life. I know that my three kids spent a lot of their preschool, Kindergarten and first grade years learning about seasons and how they affect everything around us -- plants, animals and humans. This book is a wonderful companion to those lessons.

It starts off with a great first sentence: "My sister and I have a tree that grows the best part of apple pie. Can you guess what that is?"

Oh, I think every three year old up can guess and guess correctly. The story follows two sisters through the seasons as they watch an apple tree in their back yard grow and provide a home for birds, a place for a little waterplay and food for the nearby deer.

My kids read this every year as we head out to the orchard to pick apples and more importantly, they read it when that apple pie is in the oven. This serves as a great reminder that no, our food doesn't come from the store.
I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves. ~ Anna Quindlen

Good children's literature appeals not only to
the child in the adult, but to the adult in the child.
~ Anonymous ~