The Horn Book Guide

PRESCHOOL

Blackall, Sophie

The Baby Tree

40 pp. | Penguin/Paulsen | May, 2014 | Trade ISBN 978-0-399-25718-6 $17.99

(1) PS After learning he's going to be a big brother, a boy asks various grownups (babysitter, teacher, grandfather) where babies come from. At bedtime, Mom and Dad provide a very basic, concise explanation. Blackall's text is straightforward, calm, and reassuring. Her Chinese-ink and watercolor illustrations feature cherubic, rosy-cheeked, cute-as-a-button babies of different ethnicities. An appended page provides suggestions for adults addressing the same question.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2014