Rise to the Sky: How the World's Tallest Trees Grow Up

A well-focused, beautiful, and informative introduction to the arboreal world.

Varied composition and realistic textures heighten the appeal of Posada's attractive illustrations. Created with cut-paper collage and watercolor, they capture the trees' soaring height and dignity . . . Written with clarity and illustrated to help viewers understand the ideas discussed, this handsome book offers an appealing, informative introduction to trees.

Hirsch teaches basic plant biology through the example of the world's "tallest living thing"--trees--in this awe-inspiring text. Employing rhythmic repetition, careful prose first juxtaposes coast redwoods, giant sequoias, Sitka spruces, and the like with other entities, including the Statue of Liberty and a blue whale. Turning to trees' beginnings as "old stumps" or "seeds/ as small as a ladybug," Hirsch highlights the supporting role of air, food, sunlight, and water in the trees' lives, which are sometimes thousands of years long. Washed in earthy browns and vivid emerald greens, Posada's expertly rendered cut paper collage provide texture that feels touchable--an approach well suited to the close-up imagery (including detailed insets) of bark-covered trunks, jagged-edged leaves, and seedlings bursting from soil. A vertical spread offers an emblematic, energetic wow moment as the trees rise "up,/ up,/ up/ to the sky!" Extensive back matter includes activities. Ages 5-10. (Apr.)

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