Customer Reviews

The Tree Farmer

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Tree Farmer is one of the most beautiful children's books I have ever read. Artist Rebecca Bleau creates "silk art"-dye on silk- to create brilliant colors on every page. Red, greens, blues-the colors jump off the paper. The text by Chuck Leavell and Nic Cravotta is touching, moving and poignant. It's a story about preservation of our most important resources, namely our great forests. Leavell's S.O.F (save our forests) calls for each generation to take this responsibility seriously...message received!

J Stafford

Based on Charlane Plantation, a historic 2,200-acre tree farm in Georgia cared for by one of the authors and his wife, The Tree Farmer is a picturebook about environmental stewards, who farm and harvest trees while being responsible to the land. The Tree Farmer opens as a grandson asks his grandfather why the family tends trees with so much love, only to cut them down. In response, the grandfather teaches the boy about the majesty of each tree, and how their contributions have a lasting destiny that goes far beyond the tree's death - one will become paper that holds great ideas, another the frame of a bed which will hold limitless dreams. A gentle story, warmly illustrated, about holding respect for the world around one, responsibly using gifts, and giving all one can to the rest of the world. "In what marvelous ways shall you give of your life, young one?"

THE TREE FARMER by CHUCK LEAVELL AND NICHOLAS CRAVOTTA and illustrated by Rebecca Bleau is a worthwhile children's picture book. The authors, themselves tree farmers, teach children about the value and uses of trees and why we should take care of them to preserve the earth. In the story form of a grandfather teaching his grandchild about the trees on his tree farm, the book is imaginatively illustrated with picturest that children will enjoy pondering. You can easily impart to your child important lessons in preserving our earth by enjoying this little book together.

My deceased father was a forester and a tree farmer. I gave this book to his four grandchildren and to my sister for Christmas. I especially liked that the book explained that the timber harvest produces consumer products we all need and use. It is the responsibility of landowners to be stewarts of the forest by following good forest management practices through encouraging wildlife habitats, control burns and insect/disease control. Many times environmentalists portray the landowner as the "bad guy". This book explained how seriously the landowner i.e. tree farmer takes his responsibility to grow a product over many years that contributes to the needs of our society. And who better to write this book than Chuck Leavell, a private landowner and distinguished Georgia tree farmer.
My only problem with the book was that one copy had pages that lacked enough ink when printed, leaving the script spotty/weak in places.

I thought this would be good for a nature lesson for our youth group of 6yr olds. They got a lot out of it. The message of the book helps weave the beauty and function of nature with our role as stewards of the land. It is a good way to introduce environmental responsibility.

I think this book is awesome. The illustrations are so colorful, almost magical, but realistic at the same time. The story is great, has an important message, and is brief enough to capture young ones attention. However, I have not had the pleasure of reading it with the children I gave it to, so I am not sure how it is received from their perspective.

I purchased this book for my grandson because I have recently told him about the wastefulness of using paper plates, bowls, etc, even if they are cute. It was my intent to reinforce this idea of not being frivolous with paper goods because they are manufactured from cut down trees. This book actually tells of the many products that are made from the trees and touches very little on the usefullness of the trees NOT being cut down for these products. Trees are such a valuable resource to our environment and I thought the book would talk about the trees usefullness as it pertains to our planet. It doesn't. It encourages the use of man-made products from the trees. Very disappointing.