Rise to the Sky

Thanks to Netgalley and Lerner Publishing Group for the ARC of this!

We love cute non-fiction books in our homeschool day and my 6 year old said this one was really great! There was not too much text but there was a decent amount of beginning information about plants. The artwork was pretty and the scaled images of very tall trees against humans, animals and other items were very helpful for picturing the scale that was being discussed.

One of those books that went immediately on my pre-order list. Just a gorgeously illustrated and wonderfully educational book. I learned a lot even as an adult and it was just very easy to take in the various facts and figures without it feeling even a little bit dry.

Beautiful, engaging, informative book! Let’s be honest: children’s non-fiction is often horrible. As a non-fiction enthusiast, I’m often really disappointed by the pandering, dry, and/or just plain ugly non-fiction available to children. I want children to love non-fiction as much as I do, but so many children’s books make that hard! This book truly stands out. Its design is beautiful. Its first part is lyrical and compelling. And its last section held my attention, down to the very last word. Kudos to Hirsch and thanks to the publisher and NetGalley.

Rise to the Sky by Rebecca E. Hirsch (illustrated by Mia Posada) is a perfect introduction to the study of trees, the water cycle, and photosynthesis for younger elementary students. The simple language and stunning artwork reminiscent of Ashley Bryan's papercut collages makes for an absolutely delightful picture book for children and adults alike. The more detailed information at the end of the book is perfect for young readers who are ready to dive deeper into the topic. For school librarians, this would be a perfect book to use with K-2 while the older students read Jason Chin's Redwoods. I will be recommending this book to our elementary teachers and librarians.

This is a lovely beginning reader book about trees. It has good illustrations and plenty of facts about how trees function but at a level that young readers can understand. For children interested in the world around them, this is a great introduction to how trees grow up, up, up!

The upcoming “Rise to the Sky” is another entry into the children’s non-fiction market featuring the natural environment. What sets this one apart from others is the accessible explanation of tree biology and the richly-textured collage illustrations.

I was surprised, but delighted, to read author Rebecca E. Hirsch’s descriptions of the trees. She makes complicated processes easy to understand. There are additional explanations for adults and older children in the back of the book accompanied by a list of books for further reading. Mia Posada’s collages are amazing and bring to life the texture of the living trees.

This book is great for children, and anyone else, interested in the natural world or trees. “Rise to the Sky” will be out next month.

Thanks to NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group’s Millbrook Press for an advance reader’s copy in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This book has it all! Beautiful pictures, the perfect balance of knowledge and fun. The author gives relevant comparisons and I love the last few pages that have activities, the map and pictures.

Beautiful way to teach children about trees, and how they grow tall. The text flows like a poem and the illustrations are just stunning. Brilliant non fiction.

Just which are the tallest trees? Where do they live? Just how old is old for a tree? How do these trees compare to things like the Statue of Liberty or even each other? What makes them grow?
This book answers these questions and a lot more! I want one!
The illustrations by Mia Posada are lovely, look like they're made with real bark, and fun!
Well suited for reading WITH someone of any age including ESL, and great for gifting to anyone, but especially to a school or your public library!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Lerner Publishing Group/Millbrook Press ™ via NetGalley. Thank you!

Thank you to NetGalley, Lerner Publishing Group, and Millbrook Press for the e-ARC to read and review. This was a beautiful love letter to the tallest trees on earth, and a great size comparison to other impossibly-tall things out there that can help contextualize them against. It's also a great scientific look at how plants live, grow, and function - perfect for little plant-lovers and budding gardeners! I particularly loved the collage-style illustrations, which bring so much texture to the rich and colorful pages.

I received an Advanced Reader copy from Netgalley for my honest review. I love nature and being in the forest. This picture book has great illustrations. It has comparisons between trees. Maps of trees around the world. A glossary of parts of a tree! This book is extremely well written. School and public libraries should definitely add this book to their collection!

Rise to the Sky is beautifully written and illustrated. With step-by-step visuals on the ways trees grow. This text is an ideal science text, especially when teaching photosynthesis and plant growth.

What is the tallest living thing and how did it get that way? This question and more are ably addressed in this delightful blend of science, botany, history, and nature.

Step into a world of arboreal splendor in Rebecca Hirsch’s Rise to the Sky. Learn how some of the world’s tallest trees such as Coast Redwood, Southern Blue Gum and Giant Sequoias grow from seed to root and beyond. How a tree stretches to “feed” itself sunlight. How leaves use sun, water, and carbon dioxide from the air to make sugar and oxygen. How trees are thirsty and how they “drink” and breathe.

Additional information on how fast tall trees grow, how tall can trees get, how long tall trees live, and how to measure a tall tree is included. Also included are photos and maps of specific tall trees and where they live, in case you want to find some for yourself.

Opening the pages of this book is like falling into a vast vat of verdure. You can almost hear the rustle of tree branches and breathe in their natural freshness. Young readers will discover a new respect for and understanding of these magnificent trees and their growing cycles through lyrical prose and vivid illustrations.

Rise to the Sky is a skillful blend of education and awe. Enriching and engaging, Rise to the Sky will surely captivate its target audience of children ages five to ten.

What a neat child's book! It's a one-and-done - not something I'd add to the nightly rotation. But the illustrations are abstract and pretty cool, and the science-filled pages were fun to read and learn about. I also like that they had way more info in the back and even some activities for the kids.

Breathtaking. This book follows the life cycle of a tree, and it’s told in a way that makes science and nature fascinating and accessible, and not just for kids! I also loved the style of art they chose—I think it was a kind of paper collage—because it added texture to the page and made it seem more alive.
Thank you to NetGalley and Lerner Publishing Group for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start by telling you how unique and beautiful the illustrations in this little book are! The pictures and truly unique and I don’t think I have seen many books with illustrations made this way. So creative! The illustrations alone are worth it, I will be showing this book’s illustrations to my art-loving child and I am sure it will inspire her to try creating illustrations the same way.
Art aside, the words in this book are great also. This is a good introduction to finding out more about nature, about trees, and about plants in general. Read this book, go out in nature, look at the trees, talk about it, look for smaller, younger trees, look at older trees, look at all sorts of leaves. This book looks like a fun way to get a child more interested in nature.

What am amazing book to introduce kids to the biology of plants! My 5 year old was able to pronounce "photosynthesis" and have a general understanding of what that meant. It was fascinating to learn about the tallest tree around the world and how long many of them have been alive. The reading was easy and the illustrations were great. I particularly liked the illustrations showing the size scales of the trees vs the animals that my child already recognizes - like a giraffe or elephant - and the maps depicting where these various trees are located around Earth.

Learning how trees grow, what they need to survive and how they create their own sugars from sunlight and carbon dioxide, and how their roots grow was also very educational.

This book would be great not only for families but also for classrooms and educational programs, especially around Earth Day and Arbor Day or other similar type celebrations.

This beautiful paper collage art and informative text are a perfect combination. I’ll use this book as a science text for my students and to supplement our read aloud of Two Degrees. The level of vocabulary is perfect for my students and the illustrations will captivate them.

Filled with fun watercolor art, this picture book is one that is sure to stay on readers' shelves, well-loved, for many years. Hirsch breaks down the complex process of tree growth and reproduction into understandable parts for kids. She has also added extra content in the back and on some of the pages for older readers who are ready to dive deeper into the science and vocabulary. I especially appreciated how she drew familiar landmarks and animals next to trees so kids could compare them!

This is a very cute book about how tall trees grow. It is perfect for young kids. The text is simple but inspirational, and there is more information on the biology of trees and how one measures trees in the back. Not every kid will enjoy such additions (that's why it's in the back) but my kid loves that sort of thing.

The illustrations are what make this book really stand out. They're detailed and realistic and it took me a few pages to realize that they're not paintings but collage! Incredibly intricate and realistic collage. I'm very impressed. There is a lot of texture in the paper used for the collage and it really makes the illustrations unique.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Millbrook Press for providing an early copy for review.

Brilliant non-fiction picture book on the tallest trees in the world. The comparison to large animals and architecture like Big Ben was breathtaking. What a wonderful way to make the size of these trees real for children. The book also does a wonderful job of explaining the biology of trees in a really accessible, kid-friendly way. I think this would be an excellent read aloud for an elementary science unit or to launch an outdoor club or scouting meeting for a tree count and study. The choice of paper craft art for this subject is inspired and rendered beautifully. It feels stylized and childlike all at once. Again, this will lead perfectly to a paper cut out or tissue craft to tie-in with a lesson or project. Excellent factual and activity back matter. Highly recommend! Thanks so much to the publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this one. (I would love to add this review to Goodreads, but I can't find the book there)

My thoughts ~ I enjoyed reading this book with my daughger it was very informative definitely something I could picture being read to children in science class. Would be a Great book for homeschooling or if you just like books with information as we do in this household. Most of the book was fairly easy for my 7 year old to read with little help along the way. Interactive parts loved those.

My daughter~ the book was beautiful and full of color it almost looked like i could touch it and feel the trees. I learned some new things I didn't already know about trees I think everyone should read this book.

I’m a tree lover, tree hugger and tree planter. I’m on the town tree board (think Arbor Day Foundation, Tree City USA), plus I was a forestry volunteer in the Peace Corps so I’ve planted thousands of trees.

All this to say, when I saw this cover and title I had to read + review this book. ❤️

The illustrations are engaging and the differing tree comparisons, and wee forest creatures fascinating and relatable. They make the process and cycle interesting while explaining a little bit of science in a way younger children can comprehend. It’s actually a good reminder for all of us.

Great infographics and Q&A summary at the end — with further reading recs to keep the learning going! I can see this book inspiring young minds and I will definitely be recommending this to my preschool owner friends, local library, tutors and teachers.