This story gave me so many emotions as a parent watching my kids anticipating what Lance was going to do. A story of trying your best, perseverance and celebration for goals accomplished. A cute tale with an even bigger message.

Love the art in this book and the message is great especially for kids. The colors really added to the story. A very sweet little book.

Nice book about being courageous and addressing ones fears. I enjoyed the illustrations and reading this book to my daughter.

Love the message and it’s accompanied by such adorable artwork. Perfect message for a child that’s worried about failing.

I received an eARC copy of this book from the publisher. Here is my honest review.

That cute little leaf on the cover made me request this book and I am so glad that I did. Jennifer Davison did a beautiful job illustrating this picture book; the first thing we see in picture books are the illustrations so it's important to get it right. There is a simplicity to her work that is deceiving as it is full of detail that keeps the focus on Lance and the other leaves.

A picture book can't rely solely on illustrations - it's got to have a strong message and skilled writing to convey the message. Truly great picture books are those that have something for young children to older children and even to adults. Wade skillfully weaves twists of phrases that are common in our speech but add humor to the book. Younger readers may miss these but what an excellent way to begin to introduce them to these phrases and concepts.

This book has both great illustrations and an empowering message that is true for anyone, no matter their age.

As an educator, this book has a lot to offer in the classroom. At first glance, it's a wonderful way to bring literacy into a science lesson on the life cycle of plants, specifically leaves, as well as how plants work including concepts such as photosynthesis and a simple explanation as to why leaves change their color. Wade uses rich vocabulary like jealous, sturdy and quivering to explore the growth and emotions that Lance has. Finally, this book is an excellent choice to strengthen social-emotional skills. Whether we are 4, 10, 15, 35 or 72, we all have moments of the unknown that can cause us to hesitate out of fear, which is where Lance finds himself when Autumn comes. I appreciate that Wade doesn't just send the message to "face your fear and jump" but to talk about your worry, prepare and then leap with confidence, all in a gentle, encouraging way. Certainly this is a great book to open the discussion for preschoolers as they are faced with so many new experiences in their world that can cause them concern. If we examine childhood in full, we will see that this is true for our middle grade students, our pre-teens, and our teenagers. I could see this book being used for all of those ages, with varying depth of discussion.

There is one element that I find slightly confusing in this book. The book begins with a reference to Lance's "first day of school in the Spring". This will be confusing to young readers as we start school in the fall here in the states. It makes perfect sense when you think about the life cycle of a leaf. I am not sure if this book would be great for fall when we talk about leaves changing color and falling or for spring when we talk about life cycles.

As I first began to read this book, I had a thought that this would be a wonderful graduation present for a high school senior, much in the way that Oh the Places You'll Go has been used. As much as we would like to think that life is smooth sailing, we know that there are bumps and potholes along the journey. What an inspiring message to send that you believe a graduate has done so well and will continue to do so.

I gave this book: ★★★★★
★★★★★ = I loved it

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This is an excellent book about excelling and being afraid too. There's a great message for kids to learn in this bright and fun picture book.

The illustrations of "The Very Last Leaf" truly make the book: the leafy characters are particularly cute, with warm and inviting colors. The story is sweet with an inspiring message about courage and taking chances. This book will appeal to teachers looking to integrate social and emotional learning into their curriculum, as well as to those looking for an introductory science book about seasons. Best suited for children 3 and up.

"The Very Last Leaf" allows children to discuss the changing of the leaves and accepting your fears and working beyond them. The writing is simple enough for children to grasp the scientific aspect of the book. The illustrations are great! I also love how the book discusses that it is ok to be afraid. In my opinion, this book would be more suitable for older (grades 2-5) elementary age children.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Coming from a school librarian perspective, this book touches on so many important topics that I can easily see being incorporated into multiple school lessons. It first touches on autumn's changing leaves and sprinkles a few advanced vocabulary words, like "photosynthesis", throughout. For this reason, I think that it is better suited as a read-aloud where you can discuss the meaning of these words as you come across them. It also has a Social Emotional Learning (SEL) ties because the leaf is worried about falling and wants to stay like his friend, an evergreen, even though he is meant to fall and his friend is not. The topic of worry, comparison, and confidence are all feelings my students can relate to in school and at home; I think this is a great way to incorporate SEL into science curriculum.

This book is amazing, both the story and the art. It enables you to discuss two things at once. The changing of the leaves and accepting your fears and working beyond it. They writing is simple enough for students to understand, but also uses enough scientific language to enable you to discuss the true science of what happens when the seasons change. All while also discussing that it is ok to be afraid.

Picture book told in the form of a tree that is in school and learning how to photosynthesize and grow. Mostly the story is about this leaf that is afraid to fall off the branch as his final test. Could work well for using to show kids to face their fears.

An adorable and educational book for kids about deciduous trees. Told through the views of a cottonwood leaf named Lance who is afraid to fall. Lesson also learned are that it’s okay to be afraid.

This book was nice, but ultimately forgettable. The art was better than average. I'm sure kids will enjoy this, but it's not a stand-out title.

Thanks to NetGalley and Capstone Editions for providing me with a free copy of this book. The following is my honest opinion. This is a very good book. It is a book for young readers and one that takes them through the life cycle of a cottonwood leaf. Lance Cottonwood excels in all his leafly studies except the final one - falling to the ground at the end of the season. The book helps teach children how to overcome fear, bur the hidden message for me is to overcome the fear of death. Truly, what is falling to the ground for a leaf - it is its death and Lance Cottonwood is afraid of this. While it is never discussed, it still was a predominant theme for me in this book and certainly can be used by adults to teach a multitude of lessons (at the right time) about fear of life and death. I felt this was a marvelous book with the only drawback being the rather simplistic illustrations.

It is impossible not to fall for this sweet little leaf. The Very Last Leaf is an unexpected story of having the confidence to let go. Even though the leap can be scary, this story goes through being hesitant and showing that it's ok. Children are drawn to the Leaf's sweet little face, but the story is easily relatable. Even very young children can understand the fear of jumping and can empathize with the leaf.

What a lovely story about the "turning of the leaves". I adored THE VERY LAST LEAF by Stef Wade. As the season's change, lower grade teachers often look for books to read to their class to supplement their unit. I appreciated how Wade broke down the stages into easy to follow lessons with a final exam at the end. Every student could relate to that.. Jennifer Davidson's illustrations are stunning..

THE VERY LAST LEAF will be a welcome addition not only for students to check out, but for teachers as well.

Suitable for 4-5 years of age.

I loved the cover and the illustration! Illustrations are so important for such books an this one did not disappoint. It is so beautiful that I was actually bit distracted by the text which felt somehow disconnected and with not a good flow. It feels that the red thread was somehow lost. I did enjoy the school report at the end though which elevated the book for me in the last minute!.

Thank you #NetGalley for providing me an arc of #TheVeryLastLeaf.

This is an adorable book with a big message. My daughter and I enjoyed reading the story before bedtime. She found the artwork beautiful and the story relatable. The story discusses a leaf on a journey to face its fear and fall. The leaf tries to muster excuses as to why the time isn't right or why he will never fall, but he soon discovers the right time to jump. Although he is the last one to jump, he doesn't feel less than. He conquered his fear, he still completed his goal, and that's what truly matters after all. Not comparing his timeline to the other leaves but celebrating the leap he took. It's a great conversation starter with children about conquering our fears and reaching our goals without comparing ourselves to others. I look forward to reading more by this author.

The Very Last Leaf! what a beautiful little Book, in it's words of encouragement to Children about choices we all have to make in life. Lance Cottonwood will help many children not only understand the life cycle of a Deciduous Tree, It talks about other issues we face & that by asking for help & receiving that help we can overcome most if not all of our fears. The Illustrations are simple yet beautiful, & I am going to purchase a copy of this for my youngest grandchildren who both have different levels of Autism as I feel it will be a great help to them both .

LOVED IT! Great story with awesome illustrations! Recommended that as we make this purchase through Friends of the library.