Lucy's Family Tree [Hardcover]

Karen Halvorsen Schreck (Author), Stephen, III Gassler (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2003 | Age Level: 8 and up

When Lucy comes home from school with a family tree assignment, she asks her parents to write her a note to excuse her from the task. Lucy's adoption from Mexico makes her feel as though her family is too "different," but her parents gently and wisely challenge Lucy to think some more about it and to find three families that are the "same."

As Lucy ponders her list of school and family friends who are "normal," she comes to realize that there are many different kinds of families. Her best friend Lucinda has a stay-at-home dad and a working mom. The twins next door look alike and their family matches perfectly, but she discovers that they feel different in their neighborhood because they are Jewish. Her friend Robert has two "moms" who both cheer him on at soccer games, and the parent who attends all of Dora's and Seth's school events is their stepfather. Although her friends the Malones certainly look like an "all-American family," Lucy knows they've suffered a loss that doesn't always show on the outside.

Lucy wins her bet with her parents in a surprising way and ends up creating a family tree that celebrates both her past and present. This is a wonderful book for exploring family diversity and what constitutes a family. Two pages at the back of the book offer further suggestions for parents and teachers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Schreck's long-winded, laborious story introduces Mexican-born Lucy, adopted in infancy by an American couple. When her teacher gives an assignment to make a family tree and Lucy insists that she can't do it because she is "different," her parents challenge her to make a list of three families who are "the same." Predictably, the girl learns that each family she initially considers "typical" is not: Lucinda's mother is the breadwinner while her father cares for the children, Robert has two mothers, Dora and Seth have a stepfather and another family's youngest child died after being hit by a car. Lucy, of course, eventually completes the project, shaping a traditional clay Mexican Tree of Life that includes images of her birth parents and of her adoptive parents. Readers may have a tough time navigating through Schreck's narrative, laden with circuitous sentences (e.g., "When hard stuff came up school stuff like grades, fickle friends, and boys; family stuff like rules, respect, and adoption Lucy's parents looked at her with concern and love"). The paintings, unfortunately, seem both undefined and static. An endnote entitled "Rethinking a Family Tree Project" offers suggestions for making such activities "a comfortable learning experience for more students." Ages 6-10.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

"...step by step journey into finding your own family roots...for slightly older reader...for wonderer who thinks family is not limited to a few." -- Courier Gazette, October 4, 2007

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Tilbury House Publishers (June 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0884482251
• ISBN-13: 978-0884482253
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #200,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #74 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Adoption

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Adoption Counselors Recomment Lucy's Feet, September 24, 2001

By 

Tracy Leach (Chicago, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lucy's Family Tree (Hardcover)

This book speaks to the thoughts and concerns of an adopted child and acknowledges the loss and feelings of being different that many adopted children experience at different points in their lives. These feelings are addressed in a way that helps childen to see that each family is different in some way and respects the variety and diversity of all families. While addressing those differences, it also reinforces the bond and love between Lucy and her adoptive parents.

This book gives practical advice about how to handle the family tree assignment that is common in many classrooms and can be challenging for adoptive families. This assignment is handled in a way that provides the child with a sense of self-esteem by recognizing and incorporating Lucy's cultural background and the importance of birthparents as a part of the identity of an adopted child.

Parents reading this book will be reminded of the importance of respecting a child's privacy, especially a young teen. Lucy's parents exhibit a parenting style that encourages self-esteem and empowers Lucy to solve her problem in a way that is right for her. They respond with respect, concern, and interest in their child's feelings and needs, but do not pretend to know all the answers or make excuses.

Lucy's family tree is very well written and provides life lessons for children and parents. As adoption professionals, we recommend this book for adoptive families, but more importantly, for all families who wnat to learn about dealing with feeling different and helping older children solve their problems.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lucy's Family Tree - an exceptional book, August 27, 2001

By 

Cheryl Hollatz-Wisely (Portland OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lucy's Family Tree (Hardcover)

Lucy's Family Tree is an excellent book for mid to older primary age children (8 - 11 year olds) who feel "different" for any reason. It is unique to find a picture book that speaks at an emotional level to older children. Lucy is adopted and through a homework assignment she learns about the wonderful breadth of what "family" can be. Specific activities are included at the end of the book that provide concrete ideas to support children who are adopted as well as children who feel their family is somehow different from everyone elses. This book addresses topics such as culture, ethnicity, and all sorts of nontraditional families. I believe this book is not only a tender story but is an educational experience as well. It would be useful for child therapists, children in adoptive and nontraditional families, and as a book read aloud in the classroom (because of the student discussions that will naturally emerge). Lucy's Family tree has a lot to teach us, and it reminds us how all children desire to simply be loved and belong. Halvorsen Schreck's story does just this.

3.0 out of 5 stars how do adopted children do a family tree?, December 21, 2010

By 

Wayne S. Walker "Home School Book Review" (Salem, IL) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lucy's Family Tree (Paperback)

Have you ever done a family tree? Lucy comes home from school with the assignment to make a family tree for class. However, there is a problem because she was an adopted child from Mexico and feels that her family background is too complicated for her to make a family tree because it makes her too "different." Her parents challenge her to find three families that are "the same." So Lucy investigates her friends and her parents' friends. Lucinda Knapp has a stay-at-home father and a bread-winning mother. Benjamin and Natalie's family is Jewish, which is not typical in that neighborhood. The Keaton children have a step-father. And the Malones are still dealing with the loss of a daughter who was hit by a car.
Can Lucy find a family that is "normal"? And what sort of family tree will she be able to devise? There is much to like about this book. As the parents of two adopted sons, one part Filipino and the other part Japanese, my wife and I have had to deal with some of the same issues raised by this story. It is true that in today's society families come in all shapes and sizes. It is also true that children simply have no control over what their families might look like. We should certainly strive to be sensitive to their needs. In the back there are a couple of pages on "Rethinking a Family Tree Project" with suggestions to teachers about different approaches in which no child will feel denigrated, denied, or overlooked in any way, along with some further resources on the subject.