The Gravity Tree

The True Story of a A Tree

That Inspired the World

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Harper (Harper Collins Publishers)

(pub.5.25.2021) 40 pages

Author: Anna Crowley Redding

Illustrator: Yas Imamura

Characters: Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein

and Stephen Hawking

Overview: "A tree may seem like a rather ordinary thing. But hundreds of years ago, a tree was about to embark on an extraordinary journey. And it all started with just a speck of a seed. . . .

It began in the 1600s with a seed that became the tree that grew the apple that fell right before Isaac Newton’s eyes. This seemingly simple event sparked one of the greatest scientific discoveries—Newton’s theory of gravity! A chain reaction of ideas and discoveries followed from the likes of Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking, who traveled to the place where these scientific journeys began—Isaac’s tree."

Tantalizing taste:

"The question-asking, truth-seeking, math-loving Isaac had grown up in the shadow of this tree. And now, the all-grown-up Isaac leaned against the trunk. His mind was full of questions. And the tree was full of apples.

Until - THWACK!

The THWACK sparked an explosion of questions in Isaac's mind!"

And something more: The back matter explains that: "You can visit the original Gravity Tree outside Isaac Newton's childhood home in England at Woolsthorpe Manor...In 2002, Isaac's Gravity Tree was declared a living part of English Heritage along with forty-nine other trees, in honor of the queen's Golden Jubilee. This declaration affords the tree special protection and extra care."

Saving American Beach

The Biography of African American Environmentalist MaVynee Betsch

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

G.P Putnam's Sons

(pub.4.13.2021) 40 pages

Author: Heidi Tyline King

Illustrator: Ekua Holmes

Character: MaVynee Betsch

Overview:

"MaVynee loved going to the beach. But in the days of Jim Crow, she couldn't just go to any beach--most of the beaches in Jacksonville were for whites only. Knowing something must be done, her grandfather bought a beach that African American families could enjoy without being reminded they were second class citizens; he called it American Beach. Artists like Zora Neale Hurston and Ray Charles vacationed on its sunny shores. It's here that MaVynee was first inspired to sing, propelling her to later become a widely acclaimed opera singer who routinely performed on an international stage. But her first love would always be American Beach.

After the Civil Rights Act desegregated public places, there was no longer a need for a place like American Beach and it slowly fell into disrepair. MaVynee remembered the importance of American Beach to her family and so many others. So determined to preserve this integral piece of American history, she began her second act as an activist and conservationist, ultimately saving the place that had always felt most like home." Tantalizing taste:

"MaVynee adored her beach.

At water's edge, the sandy shore became a stage.

For each performance,

the wind whispered an endless melody

of gull cries and laughter.

It made her heart sing.

When she grew up,

MaVynee discovered the same music in the opera.

She left her beloved beach to sing stories

around the world."

And something more: Ekua Holmes writes in the back of the book: "Many of the illustrations feature orange butterflies. Orange was MaVynee's favorite color, and she loved all the creatures of the air, especially birds, butterflies, and insects. MaVynee painted her lips and fingernails (which at one time she grew to over a foot long!) in orange as a reminder of the orange rope that was used to separate blacks and whites at beaches during the Jim Crow era... At her memorial service, hundreds of orange butterflies were released to fly over American Beach, honoring MaVAynee's tremendous and colorful spirit."

Mornings with Monet

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Knopf Books for Young Readers

Author: Barb Rosenstock

Illustrator: Mary Grandpre

Character: Claude Monet

Overview: "Claude Monet is one of the world's most beloved artists--and he became famous during his own lifetime. He rejected a traditional life laid out clean and smooth before him. Instead he chose a life of art. But not just any art: a new way of seeing that came to be called impressionism.

Monet loved to paint what he saw around him, particularly the Seine River. He was initially rejected for using bright colors, tangled brushstrokes--condemned for his impressions. But soon art dealers and collectors were lining up each morning to see as Monet saw. Monet, however, waited only for the light. The changing light...each morning he had a dozen canvases on hand to paint a dozen different moments. His brush moved back and forth, chasing sunlight--putting in the arduous work to create an image that seemed to contain no effort at all." Tantalizing taste:

"He picks up a dollop of deep purple on his brush. Swooping and spreading shadows from palette to canvas. Shaping without lines, seeing in patches of color. Cream linen under bright green under dusty blue with soft lavender smoothed on top.

Painting the river's colors, and the air around the colors. Monet wipes his brow; it is not easy to paint air."

And something more: Barb Rosenstock writes in the Author's Note: "Monet's work on this book's subject, the Mornings on the Seine series, did not go smoothly at first. In fall of 1896, it rained for forty-one days. He finished only a few canvases from le bateau atelier (the studio boat) and waited out the winter... Mornings on the Seine differs from Monet's earlier work - the paint surface is smoother and the colors more harmonized. Most of these canvases ware square and had to be custom ordered. Some are almost abstract - it is hard to tell up from down, or the real scene from its reflection."