Such a cute story to share during the Halloween season. Not all trees are meant to be Christmas trees - some trees don't like the bright lights and attention from people - some trees need to be accepted for what they are - DIFFERENT. Such a fun story or acceptance and understanding. Add it to your Halloween library and classroom read-alouds!
Thank you NetGalley for this copy.

This is a fun story set on a Christmas tree farm, where a curmudgeonly needleless sapling grumbles that it does not wish to be uprooted: “I don’t like lights, I don’t like decorations, and I don’t like people.” After a housing development replaces the farm, the gnarled grumpy old tree ends up on a family’s lawn. The neighbourhood kids turn its knotty branches into a pirate ship, a hideout, a spaceship, and a dragon. Can this change tree’s grumpy demeanour?
The sweet story is full of vivid digital illustrations suggestive of animated cartoons, with clever tree’s facial expressions as tree morph ps from grumpy, due to the picky Christmas tree lookers, then to tolerant while providing a playground for the children, next to forlorn, when winter keeps the children he has come to enjoy indoors and then to distress, when the parents threaten to cut it down. At the end tree is finally satisfied, yet somewhat skeptical, when the youngsters decorate it for Halloween and exclaim, “Trick or tree!”
A fun addition to your holiday offerings.

The Halloween Tree by Susan Montanori is the story of a young fir sapling who has no interest in becoming a Christmas tree. He does not want lights or decorations, so he does everything he can not to gain lush needles, so he'll never be chosen. Years pass and he is never selected. He grows bigger and gnarly, but is still standing until the Christmas tree farm closes down. As the farm becomes a community, houses build up, and the grumpy tree is still lacking needles. He becomes a beloved part of the neighbourhood kids' games and play, but the parents decide they don't want the grumpy, gnarled tree in their neighbourhood so they want to cut it down. The children love the tree and come up with a wonderful idea to save him. We loved this story. It is full of positive messages about acceptance, embracing differences, and seeing value in everyone no matter their outward appearance, yet the book never feels preachy or overly worthy. The text was age appropriate with some repetition, yet the story was very entertaining. I loved the adorable, colourful, active illustrations. The expression on the tree was priceless. After reading we talked about these messages after reading the story and with some guided questions, my six year old grandson had some great insights and comparisons to things he had read, or learned. This is a great book to read for either Christmas or Halloween or just as part of a unit on acceptance. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book upon request. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.

Remember the phrase "be careful what you wish for because you just might get it?" In this story, by Susan Montanari, a tree is convinced it would hate being a Christmas tree because it hates lights, decorations, and people. However, life for the tree doesn't exactly turn out as expected. A charming story of a tree's physical and personal growth and the unconditional love of children who find the best in everything. #NetGalley #TheHalloweenTree

The Halloween Tree by Susan Montanori tells the story of a young fir sapling who has no interest in becoming a Christmas tree. He does everything he can not to gain lush for needles, so he'll never be chosen. Time passed, the Christmas tree farm closes, houses build up, and the grumpy tree grows massive and gnarled, still lacking needles. He becomes a beloved part of the neighbourhood kids' games and play, til the day comes when parents decide they don't want such a grumpy tree in their neighbourhood. Can the kids save their tree by making him part of a new holiday tradition? My cubs and I read this together, and we all loved it. The artwork is lovely and the story teaches creating new traditions. A perfect addition to any class or child's library!

***Many thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Jabberwocky for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Charmingly funny book. Love the illustrations. It is always wonderful to have holiday books to entertain kids as the seasons change.

Beautifully illustrated.

What a great book!! I highly recommend it for anyone. It was such a great story & will be enjoyed by all children & adults alike. The faces of the tree are great!

My next Halloween book this year is intended for a much younger audience. The Halloween Tree by Susan Montanari is an adorable picture book illustrated by Teresa Martinez. I have never identified so closely with a tree before in my life!

The story follows a little sapling growing up on a Christmas tree farm. Unlike their siblings who cannot wait to grow big enough to be taken home by a family and decorated with lights and baubles, this little sapling decides they do not like people and would rather be left in their spot. The tree’s wish comes true when eventually the tree farm closes down and a housing development springs up in its place. Now surrounded by families and at the center of the games played by local children, the tree begins to see what it has been missing out on. However, by now it has grown so gnarled that it will never be a beautiful Christmas tree no matter how hard it tries. When the adults in the neighborhood threaten to cut it down because of how ugly it looks, the children rally around their beloved tree and give it a new lease of life by turning it into the centerpiece of a totally different holiday.

I absolutely fell in love with this book and the positive message it brings. There are great lessons here about acceptance, embracing differences, and seeing value in everyone no matter their outward appearance, yet the book never feels preachy or overly worthy. Instead, it comes across as a simple and lovely story that could be read equally at Halloween or Christmas.

I will definitely be picking up some copies of this one to give to friends with young children this holiday season and I highly recommend it to everyone.

"The Halloween Tree" by Susan Montanari is a wonderfully engaging new Halloween picture book. The Little Tree doesn't want to become a decorated Christmas tree, but it does find its calling nonetheless. Unlike many other rhyming Halloween picture books, "The Halloween Tree" brings a story kids love and understand. We will surely have a Halloween Tree decorated in our classroom every fall.

Super sweet story about a tree that is meant to be a Christmas tree but thinks that it doesn't like all the lights, decorations, and people. By staying true to itself, and realizing that maybe it was wrong about some things, it becomes something even more special and unique.
Fun illustrations and a really great concept (I've never seen a Halloween tree but what a wonderful idea to do in your neighbour hood or school). Perfect for young Halloween enthusiasts!

A big thank-you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for giving me a copy of this book for an unbiased review.

5/5 - LOVED it.

Everything about this book was perfect - the storyline, the illustrations, the character arc of the grumpy Halloween tree coming into its own unique personality. The story was funny, sad, and ultimately heartwarming - I was surprised that the authors could pack so much vulnerability and emotion into a short childrens' book! (I may have teared up a bit at the end).

The book uses age-appropriate vocabulary, but does not talk down to the readers, which I think is great for a child's development. It also addresses the topics of not belonging to the group, of embracing the personality differences that make us special and unique, how important it is to feel loved and accepted, and why we should not change our colors (or our branches) just to be like everybody else.

On top of this, the story is perfect either for Christmas or Halloween. If I had children or a classroom, I would certainly be buying this book for the kids and making a tradition out of reading it. In fact, I might even gift this to some of my adult friends... it's a message we could all benefit from.

I loved this!!!!! A tale like no other about a tree that hates people, Christmas and everything that comes with. He lives his life from a sapling to a grown tree being grumpy and enjoying being alone. This Halloween, however, he may be having a change of heart. Such a wonderfully unique story, that warmed my heart with a little bit of creepy.
#Netgalley

Interest Level: K-3; Reading Level: 2.1

Doesn't every tree want to be a festive Christmas tree? The answer to that question is NO! As the Christmas tree farm sells tree after tree, there is one tree that is a grumpy tree and does not want lights and kids and Christmas. When the lot is gone and a neighborhood is built around the grumpy tree, the parents decide to cut down the eyesore, the neighborhood children want to rally around this spooky old tree. Will the children be able to save the old, gnarled tree or would it be better if it were gone?

This book is so precious! From the engaging text to the incredibly adorable illustrations. I will have several copies of this in my library and I will start a new Halloween tradition!! I loved this story!!

This is a super cute book about a tree at a Christmas tree farm who doesn't want to go home with a family and have lights and decorations. It is grumpy and wants to be a Halloween tree. I fully support this idea, I would want to be a Halloween tree too! This was a fun read that I may have to buy for my kids.

I LOVED this book. I loved how over time the tree changes his point of view of lights and being surrounded by people. This is a book that I am going to make sure my manger orders when it is released.

While all the other trees on the tree farm are excited to be purchased for Christmas, one gnarled and grumpy tree is relieved to be left behind. The tree doesn’t like lights. Doesn’t like decorations. Most certainly doesn’t like people. But as time passes, and a neighborhood sprouts up around the old farm, some children find that even a grumpy old tree has a special purpose.

Author Susan Montanari has crafted a charming twist on a classic Christmas tradition. Through snappy text and some minor repetition, she effectively presents a grouchy tree as an irresistible Scrooge. And, much like the Dickens classic, there’s a sweet, endearing message. Molinari keeps the adorable narrative feeling natural, with the Halloween Tree finding purpose in its uniqueness.

All of this is aided by the restrained yet playful illustrations from Teresa Martinez. Through digital artwork, she presents a seemingly normal neighborhood with muted backgrounds offset by attractive pops of color in the action. In the middle is the tree itself— an anthropomorphic anomaly in its own world that usually appears sour. And yet Martinez expertly captures its subtle changes in emotion and expression, particularly in a few spreads as the tree comes to understand what it truly wants. It’s illustrative storytelling at its finest.

Charming and heartwarming, The Halloween Tree just might inspire a new tradition for all of those unique trees that would like a little sprucing up on Halloween.

A great book that might start a new tradition of decorating trees at Halloween. It also has a good "Ebenezer Scrooge" feel to it.

The Halloween Tree by Susan Montanari melted my black-heart and I actually cried as the tree looked into the window at the glowing lights of the indoor Christmas tree but I'm getting ahead of myself.

I love Halloween, trees, and curmudgeons! The grumpy tree at the Christmas tree farm did not want to be surrounded by lights, decorations, or people. One day all the trees were gone and the property became a neighborhood. The local children loved playing on the spooky ol' tree but the adults considered it an eyesore and planned to cut it down. Completely predictable, the children come together to save the tree by dressing it up for Halloween. The grumpy tree learns that he does like lights and Halloween decorations; and, of course, he loves these children. How can you not love this? They save the tree.

What I love about this is that the children (and the families although we see the children more than other characters) are portrayed as a variety of races and skin colors all playing together. I love that they know that the tree is spooky but they love it because kids like spooky and weird. I also love that the neighborhood is a community. Children and families come together. Plus, Christmas isn't put down; The Halloween Tree shows another way of being.

I'm totally buying a hard copy for myself when this is released!

The Halloween Tree is such a cute holiday book for Halloween. I was pulling for this little grumpy tree that was passed over every year for Christmas to find its way somewhere in the world. Who would have thought that he would grow up in a neighborhood where in the end would bring lots of joy to the families around him! Really cute book, great illustrations, and an awesome story about being loved, taking a stance, and belonging! A must book to have for any collection!

I have received this book from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest opinion.

A great Halloween story that will be signed out of my school library for the whole month of October every year. I like how the tree started out as sapling in a tree farm, the tree farm closes, a subdivision is built around the tree, and the tree becomes a place for children to play in year after year. I don't want to guess how many hours my sister and I spend in numerous trees while growing up.