Lucy's Family Tree

by Karen Halvorsen Schreck, Stephen Gassler (Illustrator)

Lucy, an adopted child from Mexico, is convinced that her family background is too complicated for her to make the family tree she is supposed to create for a homework assignment.

Genres: Picture Books, Adoption, Realistic Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2003

About the author

Karen Halvorsen Schreck is the author of the historical novels Broken Ground (Simon & Schuster May 2016), called a “masterfully written . . . must-read” by USA Today, and Sing For Me, which Publisher's Weekly described as “an impressive debut…a well-wrought and edifying page-turner” in a Starred Review, along with two novels for young adults and a book for children. Her short stories, interviews, and essays have appeared in magazines and journals including The Rumpus, Belt, and Image. The recipient of a Pushcart Prize and an Illinois State Arts Council Grant, Karen received her doctorate in English and Creative Writing from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She lives with her husband, the photographer Greg Halvorsen Schreck, and their two children in Wheaton, Illinois, and is at work on her next novel.

For more information, please connect with Karen at: http://karenschreck.com
or Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Karen-...
or Twitter:
@KarenSchreck.
You can also find her on Instagram @khschreck.

Reviews

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stellar! I’ve always heard that short stories are more challenging to write well than novels, and this is a picture book short story (from the very worthy Tilbury House Publishers) that is perfect and complete as is, though it left me yearning for a novel length work that covers the same subject.

Last things first: There is a “Rethinking a Family Tree Project” note in the back of the book that’s exceedingly valuable. It addresses not only family tree projects, but also a variety of common school assignments and activities. It’s addressed primarily to teachers and is there to remind them to make assignments and projects sufficiently flexible to accommodate all children, many whose circumstances are other than typical. I know, from personal experience and from the experiences of children I’ve known, that many activities and assignments meant for all, can cause embarrassment, awkwardness, and even deep wounding, for children who can’t find a way to fit themselves into the parameters of the activity. The charts that accompany the note, and give examples of projects, are a useful addition.

This story is about Lucy, whose parents adopted her as an infant from Mexico, and how she’s first distressed by a family tree school assignment, and then with the encouragement of her parents, discovers not only how to skillfully do the assignment, but asks some questions of her friends, her parents’ friends, and herself, and discovers that everyone has commonalities and that “being different” is the norm. All children, even those who live in conventional and relatively trouble free families, will be able to identify with Lucy’s dilemma and with the other children and adults in this story.

I very much enjoyed the illustrations too, although between them and aspects of the story, I was a little confused as to how old Lucy is supposed to be; perhaps she’s supposed to be around eleven or twelve? But, my confusion about that did little to detract from my enjoyment and appreciation of this book.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Lucy's class is given the assignment of creating family trees, the young girl is forced to confront her feelings about being adopted, and the way that - in her mind - this sets her own family apart from other, more "typical" families. Insisting to her worried parents that she cannot do the assignment, because she is "different," Lucy is presented with a challenge in turn: if she can find three families, amongst all her friends and acquaintances, who are the same, her father will help her with the flower garden she's been wanting. Easy!, Lucy thinks. But is it? Just what is normal, and who qualifies...?

Although it seems to have gotten low marks from the professional reviewers, I found Lucy's Family Tree quite moving, and was even tearing up, from time to time, as I read it on my commute this morning. The idea that families are diverse - Lucy discovers that every family she knows is 'different' in some way, whether because they are Jewish, or have same-sex parents, or have lost a child - is a valuable one, and cannot be reinforced too much; while the realities of adoption, particularly cross-cultural and interracial adoption, are sensitively depicted here. I liked the eventual solution found, to Lucy's family tree dilemma, as well as the author's presentation of further resources about adoption, and ideas for adapting the "family tree" assignment so that it is relevant for more children.

All in all, this was an engaging book about an important topic, with a narrative that works well, and illustrations that are appealing (even if not exactly my cup of tea). Recommend to young adoptees who are asking questions, and to teachers who are considering assigning a family tree project.

[N_stefanie Akwa · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first found the book, Lucy’s Family Tree, I was happy to find a book that addressed a common, difficult experience for many children of creating a family tree for a class assignment. It is one thing to be comfortable with a family structure that is anything other than traditional; it is another to share that picture with young classmates. Elementary school-aged children are all about rules – knowing them, following them, and seeing what happens when someone breaks them. This book beautifully explores Lucy’s conflictual process of visually depicting her adoptive family for an audience of her peers.

The book begins with Lucy making the comment, “I’m different.” One of Lucy’s classmates, Marco, teased Lucy on the bus by saying that she couldn’t make a family tree assigned for homework because Lucy is different than her parents. Marco, like Lucy, was born in Mexico, but unlike Lucy, Marco’s parents are also Mexican. Lucy is the only member of her family that was born in Mexico, and believes that her family background is too complicated for her to make the family tree. Lucy struggles emotionally with wanting to have a “typical” family rather than feel different. Lucy’s parents encourage her to find an example of a “typical” family among her classmates with a friendly wager. As Lucy searches, she finds a Jewish family in their Christian neighborhood, a family with two moms, a family in which the mother “brings home the bacon” and the father “fries it up in a pan,” and finally a family that struggled through the death of one of their children. None of Lucy’s friends felt that they had “typical” families.

In the story, Lucy’s parents explain that they needed advice on how to help Lucy with the family tree project. The parents contacted other parents, as well as the adoption agency, for suggestions. Lucy felt embarrassed by her parents letting other families know that she was uncomfortable with the assignment. Lucy wanted her parents to write her a note to “excuse” her from the assignment all together. Her parents did not write any such note, but did call Lucy’s teacher to explain the difficulties some of the students were having. The parents gave the teacher some suggestions for multiple alternatives to the format of the family tree, including a wheel, a drawing of different houses connected with lines and a flower garden designed to connect families with multiple roots, rather than a single-trunked tree. At the end of the book, there are examples of many different ways to interpret the assignment, with graphic organizers that would make it easier for any student to tackle the assignment with a little less anxiety.

This book was first published in 2001. The illustrations are done in water color (mostly autumn colors) and are not very clear. I would recommend this book to families or classrooms of children in fourth grade and up. I would also recommed the last couple pages of the book to any teacher that gives the assignment of creating a family tree for good ideas for multiple interpretations of the assignment.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a ton of info online, but the reviews sound good for an older elementary child working out that no two families are exactly alike. Also includes alternates to the family tree activity often assigned by teachers.

Amazon review:
Lucy's Family Tree is an excellent book for mid to older primary age children (8 - 11 year olds) who feel "different" for any reason. It is unique to find a picture book that speaks at an emotional level to older children. Lucy is adopted and through a homework assignment she learns about the wonderful breadth of what "family" can be. Specific activities are included at the end of the book that provide concrete ideas to support children who are adopted as well as children who feel their family is somehow different from everyone elses. This book addresses topics such as culture, ethnicity, and all sorts of nontraditional families. I believe this book is not only a tender story but is an educational experience as well. It would be useful for child therapists, children in adoptive and nontraditional families, and as a book read aloud in the classroom (because of the student discussions that will naturally emerge). Lucy's Family tree has a lot to teach us, and it reminds us how all children desire to simply be loved and belong. Halvorsen Schreck's story does just this.

[Zoraida Rivera Morales · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book deals with difficult topics like adoption and feeling different. I like how Lucy deals with her doubts, anger and frustration and tries to solve her problem in her own way. This a book about diversity and finding common ground. Helpful and informative for talking about the different types of families.

[Liuba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lucy's family was different which caused her some trouble in doing the school project on Family Tree. By the end of the book, the girl discovers many interesting facts about the neighbouring families, different in their special ways too. At last, she realizes a lot of important things.
At the back of the book, there are some suggestions and resources that can be implemented by parents and teachers in such kinds of projects .

[Victoria Kilcrease · Rating 4 out of 5]

This picture book is entitled Lucy's Family Tree and is by Karen Halvorsen Schreck. It is a realistic fiction which is geared toward younger children. However, it could be used in different ways in grades K-4. It presents the story of Lucy trying to make a family tree for a class project, but she doesn't have a normal family because she's adopted. I think this would be a great choice for teaching a lesson about family history, writing about families, and different people in a family.

[Becky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn't put my finger on the intended audience. The word choices were sophisticated, for maybe middle school, but it's written in picture book format. I also wasn't a fan of the illustrating style. Some of the people depicted looked a little creepy.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book discusses adoption and how every family if different. It has a lot of words probably more appropriate for an older grade.

[MJ]

odc this copy