04/05/2021
Beatrice, a pink-skinned child with faded indigo hair, conjures a verdant life in this faintly fantastical picture book by author-illustrator Hesselberth. Hanging upside down from a branch in a grove of trees, Beatrice frowns when an unidentified voice yells, “Beatrice, time for bed!” What follows is a seemingly Kafkaesque transformation as Beatrice’s arm stretches into a leafy branch, her face melds into bark, and she becomes a tall and bird-filled tree, then experiences the seasons. Beatrice’s narrative comprises descriptive prose and short sentences: “The air turned sweet and crisp./ Beatrice’s leaves put on a magic/ show as summer turned to fall.” Bright art done in watercolor, gouache, acrylic, and digital collage beguilingly trace the girl’s change, as well as the tree’s seasonal transformations. A surprising ending rounds out this informative tale. Back matter includes tree facts. Ages 4–8. (May)
Wanting to stay out all night, Beatrice wishes she were a tree . . . As the Beatrice tree changes through the seasons, the illustrations, done in watercolor, acrylic paint, gouache, and digital collage, use simple shapes and flickering colors to produce a dreamlike feel. . . . A lovely metamorphosis story.” — Booklist
“[Beatrice] climbs a tree, hangs upside down, and briefly tries to ignore the call to come in for the night. . . . As Beatrice dreams of her tree, each page brings the reader a new seasonal digital collage with watercolor, acrylic, and gouache, ending with brief simple sentences and the quiet of fallen snow. An infographic page emphasizes how animals use trees, including a labeled diagram of tree parts, the seasons, an explanation of photosynthesis, and encouragement to plant. . . . A lovely art tribute to the beauty of trees through Beatrice’s dream.” — School Library Journal
“As Beatrice stalls her bedtime, readers learn rudimentary facts about trees. . . . [Beatrice] imagines herself sprouting twigs and leaves. Soon, she is fantasizing about her life as a tree, first into the next day and then through the seasons. . . . Additional pages contribute a few more botanical facts, but the story itself naturally segues into naptime or bedtime.” — Kirkus Reviews
“A young girl’s ‘If I were a tree…’ conjecture opens the door for an informative and imaginative journey through the seasons of arboreal life. . . . Hesselberth’s watercolor, acrylic paint, gouache, and digital collage illustrations use texture, geometric shapes, and muted colors to show a tree’s many appearances throughout the cyclical year. . . . . Diagrams of photosynthesis and the life cycle of a tree and a list of animals that rely on trees for survival provide further information on the final spread. . . . A fantastical view of trees and their place in nature.” — Horn Book Magazine
Wanting to stay out all night, Beatrice wishes she were a tree . . . As the Beatrice tree changes through the seasons, the illustrations, done in watercolor, acrylic paint, gouache, and digital collage, use simple shapes and flickering colors to produce a dreamlike feel. . . . A lovely metamorphosis story.
A young girl’s ‘If I were a tree…’ conjecture opens the door for an informative and imaginative journey through the seasons of arboreal life. . . . Hesselberth’s watercolor, acrylic paint, gouache, and digital collage illustrations use texture, geometric shapes, and muted colors to show a tree’s many appearances throughout the cyclical year. . . . . Diagrams of photosynthesis and the life cycle of a tree and a list of animals that rely on trees for survival provide further information on the final spread. . . . A fantastical view of trees and their place in nature.
Wanting to stay out all night, Beatrice wishes she were a tree . . . As the Beatrice tree changes through the seasons, the illustrations, done in watercolor, acrylic paint, gouache, and digital collage, use simple shapes and flickering colors to produce a dreamlike feel. . . . A lovely metamorphosis story.
04/01/2021
K-Gr 2—Look at the trees. Beginning with labeled leaf shapes on end pages, the reader's eye moves on to stylized folk art images of trees and the fluid movements of fair-skinned, dark-haired Beatrice as she climbs a tree, hangs upside down, and briefly tries to ignore the call to come in for the night. She can easily visualize staying outside the full night: "If I were a tree…." Her arms grow into tree shape with trunk and bark, with branches and leaves that move with the breeze. Birds catch the morning sun, squirrels appear, followed by caterpillars, deer, spiders, and a sleepy owl. The tree then sends roots to burrow into soil with earthworms, chipmunks, vole, and mice. As Beatrice dreams of her tree, each page brings the reader a new seasonal digital collage with watercolor, acrylic, and gouache, ending with brief simple sentences and the quiet of fallen snow. An infographic page emphasizes how animals use trees, including a labeled diagram of tree parts, the seasons, an explanation of photosynthesis, and encouragement to plant. VERDICT A suggested general purchase for all libraries, the book is a lovely art tribute to the beauty of trees through Beatrice's dream—interrupted by a persistent voice and the annoying final call, "Beatrice, Bed! Now!"—Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano I.S.D., TX
2021-03-31
As Beatrice stalls her bedtime, readers learn rudimentary facts about trees.
In the opening double-page spread, the titular girl, clad in overalls, hangs upside down from a tree branch. Purplish hair hangs beneath her pale, oversized face; her blue-gray irises point across the page’s gutter. Beatrice is surrounded by a nighttime scene: stars in the dark blue sky, a yellow crescent moon hanging over a lit-from-within house in the recto’s background. In white capital letters, a sound balloon from the house exhorts, “Beatrice, time for bed!” After the page turn, Beatrice is on the ground, her disgruntled facial expression and body language humorously familiar to all. She mutters that if she were a tree, she could “stay outside all night long.” In the next double-page spread, her expression changes to wonder as she imagines herself sprouting twigs and leaves. Soon, she is fantasizing about her life as a tree, first into the next day and then through the seasons. Her face cleverly fades into a tree’s overstory as the pages of colorful artwork—punctuated with short bursts of text and plenty of endearing animals—move toward the inevitable conclusion to her fantasy. After Beatrice’s second warning, her expression is again fun to behold, and a hint of subversion in the final, wordless page adds satisfaction. Additional pages contribute a few more botanical facts, but the story itself naturally segues into naptime or bedtime. Bonus: endpapers with labeled leaves. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10.5-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Appealing arboreal fantasy. (Picture book. 3-6)