While a Tree Was Growing

by Jane Bosveld, Jane Bosveld

Here is the story of the oldest living sequoia -- possibly the oldest living thing on earth -- whose wondrous life spans the Trojan war (it was 150 years old and 75 feet high when the Greeks delivered their gift horse), the coming of the Buddha, Christ, and Mohammed (by then, two thousand years old, over 270 feet high), the settling of America, and the 1996 Presidential election. Yes, it's still growing, high up in California's Sierra Nevada mountains. Like a unique biological time-line, While a Tree Was Growing juxtaposes the life of a single tree with a chronology of world events to narrate 3,500 years of history, natural science, anthropology, and more. Large, generously illustrated two-page spreads are flanked by columns, with historic milestones on the left and a growth chart recording the treeís progress on the right. Stitched into the middle of the book is a fold-out 11O x 33O poster. Illustrated by Daniel O'Leary.

Genres: Nature, Environment

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 9, 1997

Reviews

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follows the growth of a sequoia tree over 3,000 years with stories of the tree, historical events at different stages, and a nice poster. But I found it a bit of a difficult read with all of the busy-ness. A great idea though.

[Gabby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great "living book," as Charlotte Mason would say, telling the story of a tree while making connections to nature, science, history/timeline, culture. My kids loved it. Great for reading one page at a time for "morning time."