Customer Reviews

Tree-Ring Circus

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

What do you get when you mix a seed in the ground three miles out of town with nature, a runaway clown named Pogo, and thirty-three animals? Tree Ring Circus!

Lyrical and melodious with a splash of whimsy, Adam Rex artfully intensifies the action as one seed grows into a tree full of circus animals...until the elephant shows up. The illustrations are masterful and fun and they incorporate the text flawlessly--yet maintain the circus feel. Not only do the readers see the action corresponding to the text, they also get frames of what happens between the pages, adding dimension to the story.

This is a delightful read-aloud that will be accompanied with exclamations of, "Read it again, Mommy!" And Mommy will want to.

Armchair Interviews says: Tree Ring Circus is smash hit and an instant classic.

We discovered Adam Rex after seeing his illustrations in "Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich," a book of amusing rhymes about familiar but disarming movie monsters (and their moster children) in compromising everyday situations. The illustrations of that book were half the fun, and so it is with "Tree-Ring Circus." The story is simple -- a few small animals assemble in a tree; a runaway clown joined by his animal cohorts from the circus, surreptitiously set free, climb up as well until an elephant climbs to the top bringing everything down. No deep meanings or lessons here, just silly fun, and the story moves quickly. Counting the animals in the tree as they're referenced in the story adds to the giggles.

It all begins innocently enough, "a seed in the ground, two rain clouds, then three... surprisingly there appears a fast-growing tree". A series of rhymes builds to an improbable event, where the fast-growing tree is home to a few strays: a cat, three chipmunks, two sparrows, a bee, five mice and a raven. But when a traveling circus stops nearby, clever apes unlock the cage, releasing a bevy of animals onto the limbs of the tree, among them: one lion, three squirrels, a clown, a bear, an ostrich and an elephant. The empty circus wagons rumble away down the hill, while the circus animals clamor up the branches of the tree, the elephant perched on top of this unusual balancing act. Of course, it is impossible!

The poor tree collapses under the weight of too many creatures: "Thirty-three animals, counting the clown, get up off the ground, without making a sound." Where once grew a tree, tall and strong, nothing remains but a few twigs, trampled grass and the footprints of animals who fell back to earth. This imaginative and lively children's book is cleverly wrought, the illustrations also done by Adam Rex. Enchanting and whimsical, elaborate and colorful, the drawings are the backbone of this humorous tale, just as the tree gives shape to the nonsense rhymes. Any child will enjoy this laugh-out-loud fantasy journey again and again. Luan Gaines/2006.

My two-year-old son has hundreds of books and most of them are a chore to read. Tree Ring Circus is a genuine pleasure. It's not a very long book, so it's a good choice when it's already five minutes past bedtime. The illustrations are lively and the writing is clever. Most of the characters never speak, but they all have their own personalities and you can tell exactly what each one is thinking from the look on his face. The text has its own sense of comic timing. The author fills up the book with all kinds of little jokes. Just reading the copyright page is fun on its own. Buy this book and add it to your collection. You'll be glad you did.

Why I love this book (as a mom):

1) Adam Rex's details are so good -- it is worth it to really look at every page to see the expressions of the animals.

2) It rhymes.

3) It makes us all laugh -- even though my bigger kids are "too old" for this book, it is just a crack up.

4) The really big bumblebee.

See for yourself!

I first came across Adam Rex's humorous poetry with his book Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich. Tree Ring Circus is his first published work, and although not quite in the league of that book which was published later in the same year of 2006, this one is one poem stretched over a heap of pages with sensational illustrations of various animals, a clown and a very interesting looking circus land train vehicle. Basic plot is a seed in the ground is hit by a lightning storm and turns fast into a massive tree. The normal tree habitants such as a bee, birds and chipmunks make it their home. But more and more residents start to move in as well including a fugitive clown, and then other circus creatures as two of them organise an escape plan for all the animals and the frightened owners flee in terror. What happens next? You will have to read to find out.

Facial expressions, and minute details such as fur and feathers on each animal all contribute to a great reading experience. I didn't know what a lea was though, a word used to end the poem and keep it rhyming. I doubt a child would either, but this just adds to the learning experience as you get to look up this word.

My 4 and [...] boys absolutely love this book. We read it repeatedly and it never gets old to them. At this point, they finish the lines, particularly the "Whopping Big Bee" part. A fantastic book that parents will be glad to read over and over again.

I bought this book for my son and he absolutely loves it. We read it every night and he points and names all the animals and counts them. I think it's a great toddler book.

I am having a kid soon and stocking up on books I can read to the baby and books the baby will enjoy reading over and over again. This one fits that mold, by just having the best drawn pictures and simple to read text. Might be a little weird the concept of the book, but its for kids, and kids are inherently weird.

This is yet another book I bought by Adam Rex after "Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich." This book never really captured my three year old's attention. The illustrations are great, but there not much in the way of humor or plot. There's a lot of numbers in there, but the way it is written really doesn't help with counting or learning numbers.