Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree [Hardcover]

Jan Peck (Author), Valeria Petrone (Illustrator)

Book Description

Way up high

in a rain-forest tree,

there's lots and lots

for us to see.

It's right to the top!

Climb along with me!

Let's explore each branch

of this tall green tree!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1–Readers join a young girl for a rollicking climb up a tall green tree as she spies a variety of rainforest animals, from the well-known parrot to the exotic kinkajou. She greets each animal in turn, then says, See you later and climbs away. The repetitive, rhyming text invites young children to read along, as do the playful phrases like Yakity-yak, parrot and S-l-o-w M-o, hairy sloth. Bold, colorful, digitally rendered art captures the girl's adventure and the creative use of perspective emphasizes the googly eyes of the tree frog and the long, slithery body of the boa. In the end, the child says Nighty-night to each creature, then climbs down to meet her daddy, as the tall green tree transforms into a bunk bed strewn with plush-toy animals. This book is similar to Peck's Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea (S & S, 2004), in which a boy explores the ocean inside his bathtub. Green Tree promises to be a solid hit for storytimes and bedtime reading.–Suzanne Myers Harold, Multnomah County Library System, Portland, OR
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Review

In this sequel to Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea (2004), a little girl with a huge head and bulgy eyes climbs up a tree at night, greeting various rain forest animals. In this imaginative bedtime story, the author describes the unnamed girl's adventure through a short, patterned text of six lines, with the titular phrase as the introductory line. After meeting nine animals, she says good night, first to the moon and all the rainforest creatures, and then to her father as she returns to reality. The final page shows the little girl asleep in her bunk bed with all her stuffed animals around her, each one corresponding to the rainforest creatures. Petrone uses a bold touch in her digitally produced illustrations, placing bright animals and splashes of jungle-green leaves against a starry sky. (Picture book. 3-6) (Kirkus Reviews)

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers (June 21, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416900713
• ISBN-13: 978-1416900719
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #311,426 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jan Peck is an organic gardener and a former cook for Auntie Em's, a vegetarian, health-food restaurant in Cowtown, so she knows plenty about giant carrots.
Her published books include:
* Way out West on My Little Pony (Pelican Publishing Company 2010).
* Pirate Treasure Hunt! (Pelican Publishing Company 2008).
* Way Far Away on a Wild Safari
(Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers).
* Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree
(Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers).
* Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea
(Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers).
* The Giant Carrot (Dial Books for Young Readers).
* The Ballerina Princess, The First Christmas, and The Time Travelers (About You! Books).
* "The Perfect Dog" in the best-selling anthology:
Chicken Soup for the Kid's Soul.
* Also stories and articles in Highlights for Children, Boys' Life, Humpty Dumpty, and Turtle magazines.
* Short stories in the anthologies Distant Lights and The Neighborhood Nine, published by Boyds Mills Press.

Jan is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, the past Regional Advisor for the North Central/ Northeast Texas Chapter, and a past freelance editor for Boys' Life magazine. Jan has won awards for her writing, judged by Bruce Degan (of the Magic School Bus series), George Stanley (of the Scaredy-Cat series), and Betsy Haynes (of the Fabulous Five series and Bone Chillers series and TV show).

She is in big demand for her dynamic presentations, featuring her books and getting the kids excited about reading (presented with author, David R. Davis). They give one of the most interactive, encouraging, inspiring school programs ever seen or heard!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another fantastic book for babies!, April 23, 2006

By 

S. Cuarto (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree (Hardcover)

I bought this book after reading and reading Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea to my son, who is now nine months old. He likes this book just as much. I like the variety of animals, like an ocelot and a kinajou! My son's favorite is when I read as "sllllllooooooowwwww mooooooooo, haaaaaaiiiiirrrrryy slooooooottthhhhhh" as slow as I possible can. He laughs and laughs! This is a fantastic book that, along with Deep Blue Sea have successfully introduced my baby to reading, for which I will be forever grateful!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A parent has to love the book too!, January 31, 2006

By 

a claire mccardell fan (midwest) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree (Hardcover)

I bought this for my son, who was still too young to turn anything but board book pages (and certainly didn't understand a dang thing I read) when we got it. Maybe he got the vibe that Mommy was really into it because it was the first paper book he kept going to and now, at 1 1/2, it is one of his favorite books to read over and over. The illustrations are great; big, colorful and wonderful for both he and I to look at. We love the cadence and he is totally fascinated with smiling animals that you don't normally see in kid's books - like a kinkajou, sloth, gecko... He leans in on the girl's face and says "KISS!" every time.

The story line is clever. This is one book I don't get sick of reading and neither does he. It's just smart - definitely not a "baby" book and that's one of the things we love about it. I will buy every book the combination of this writer and illustrator will put out.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Way Up High In the Tall Green Tree is magic!, July 20, 2005

By 

D. R. Davis "D.R.D." (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree (Hardcover)

The rhyme and music of Way Up High In the Tall Green Tree will help any young child learn to read. Along the way each child will learn about animals that live in the rain forest. On top of it all is a droll humor that will delight parents and kids alike! I've written lots of children's books, and I know a good thing when I read it!