The story follows young Lance Cottonwood from his first day of school budding in the spring through his final examination performance stress in the autumn. He does very well in all his school subjects but is very fearful and anxious about falling to the ground from the branch where he's grown all year.
The story is engaging and the art is adorable, but there were a few concerns. The other leaves in his class made fun of him for not falling fast enough ("He's a scaredy-leaf", "He's too yellow", etc). I thought the teasing was somewhat inappropriate as well as the passive way their teacher seemed to handle the situation.
There are some useful science facts scattered throughout the text with definitions for concepts (like "deciduous") as they're introduced. This would make a nice reading circle selection or classroom read.
A cute and engaging story for younger kids (circa 5-7 years old). It would also make a nice bedtime or read-to-me story.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
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