Hundred Feet Tall

October 15, 2019
To reach full potential, living things as diverse as seeds and children need to be nurtured. When an anthropomorphic two-parent rabbit family with a bespectacled child finds a little brown seed under a tree, they bring it home with the "promise that [they will] help it to grow." With some good earth, water, light, and lots of love, the planted seed first grows invisibly, then a green stalk, leaves, and roots appear, and finally the tree is large enough to plant outside and grow to the titular height of 100 feet. As the seed develops, clear, full-color, cartoon illustrations show the rabbit family also nurturing the bespectacled child into a budding scientist, artist, and avid reader. Sharp-eyed young listeners will note that one parent's belly expands with the passage of time as well, and they'll be ready for a touching scene when the new baby arrives home to greet the newly minted older sibling. Once planted outside, the grateful tree, which addresses the young bunny directly throughout, thanks the child "for the love you've shown / to a little brown seed that you found in the fall. / I hope that you visit and climb in my boughs, / and together we'll stand at a hundred feet tall." Easy, well-metered rhyme, a repeating and expanding refrain, and words and musical notation on the rear endpapers combine to create a new storytime and music-circle favorite. A sweet paean to the nurturing power of love. (Picture book. 3-6)

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January 1, 2020

PreS-Gr 1-When walking through the forest with his family, a young rabbit finds a small brown seed under a dusting of snow. He picks it up and returns to his home in the city to plant it in a jar. The rabbit nurtures the seed, much as rabbit's parents nurture him. With the love and care it needs, the seed begins to flourish and grow. It grows to the point where it needs to be replanted outside, where it promises to grow to a hundred feet tall. This lyrical picture book for young readers tells two stories in one. It is the tale of a young rabbit helping a tree to grow, but also the story of the young rabbit and the growth and development of his family and community. There is a deliberate message of strength in the power of love and friendship. The book evokes feelings of togetherness, camaraderie, compassion, and kindness. The cartoon illustrations, rendered digitally and with watercolors, are joyful and light, adding to the feel-good nature of the tale. VERDICT Love emanates from every detail, right down to the heart-shaped noses of the rabbit family. An added bonus is that the author set the tale to music and it can be found at the end of the book. A melodic gift of love and caring.-Amy Shepherd, St. Anne's Episcopal School, Middleton, DE

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 20, 2020
On a snowy walk with their parents, one expecting, a young rabbit discovers a “little brown seed” and takes it back to their city home, where they plant it in a jar, promising “that you’ll help it to grow.” Over the course of the story, the slow growth that stems from both the child’s and expecting parent’s nurturing becomes apparent—the seedling begins to take root, “grows a little green stalk,” and sprouts into a sapling as the family prepares to welcome a newborn. When the young tree outgrows its vessel, the rabbit, along with grown family and a neighborhood community of various animals, plants it in a plot on the street to be enjoyed by all. Scheuer’s text communicates the sweetness of anticipation, as does Williams’s digitally rendered artwork—in most spreads, the young rabbit lovingly admires and tends to the jar while being tended to by loved ones. An affecting volume about the quiet, nourishing work of loving. Ages 4–8.

December 1, 2019
Preschool-K Drawing on his songwriting skills, Scheuer writes an endearing story about love and cultivation in the context of a new sibling. Told from the perspective of a tiny seed, the story follows a young bunny who finds the seed on an autumn day and takes it home to nurture it with soil, water, light, and patience. As it sprouts, the bunny is thrilled to watch it grow a hundred feet tall. Along the way, he shares his experience with family and friends and draws his neighborhood together to appreciate the process and its ultimate result. Williams' warm, playful illustrations in a loose, cartoon style focus on the rabbit family and nicely tie the message of patience and caring to both the plant and the bunny's soon-to-be sibling. Though the singsong lines don't always read aloud smoothly, the sheet music for the song is included at the end. Pair this sweet sibling story with Jamie L. B. Deenihan's When Grandma Gives You a Lemon Tree (2019) and Toni Yuly's The Whole Wide World and Me (2019).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)