My Father Is a Tree

This is a picture book for preschoolers that is suitable for parent-child play and shared reading. One morning, Madeline stands up straight in the yard, spreads her arms wide and tells her dad that she is pretending to be a tree, and invites him to play pretend with her. But she didn't realize that her father, who had only agreed to play for a minute at first, would play with Madeleine for a whole day! Their two trees, one big and one small, attracted birds to build nests on their heads, squirrels to stuff acorns into their pockets, and spiders to make webs in their armpits! The trees weren't afraid of getting tired, or of the rain, or of the dark, and to this evening, Madeline still couldn't get enough: "Daddy, what are we going to pretend to be tomorrow?" This is a story that will resonate with many parents and children, where children get a kick out of the book and adults gain a new perspective on the parent-child relationship.