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A squirrel decides to keep everyone in the forest away from a favorite tree (“It’s MY tree”), but hasn’t thought the plan all the way through! The squirrel loves a particular tree (“It’s MY tree”) and is happiest eating pinecones in its shade (“MY pinecones in the shade of MY tree”). But then the squirrel starts to worry. What if someone else decides it’s THEIR tree? What if that someone wants to eat THEIR pinecones in the shade of THEIR tree? Should the squirrel build a gate in front of the tree to keep the others out? Or maybe a wall? Yes, a wall. The squirrel will build a long and high wall that no one can get over or around. Only, now that there’s a wall, how can the squirrel know what’s on the other side of it? Maybe a better tree is out there, full of pinecones. Maybe even a whole forest of better trees … World-renowned author-illustrator Olivier Tallec has created a simple, funny, relevant fable for the modern age. The humor and exaggeration ensure that even the youngest children will recognize the greed, xenophobia and fear of missing out afflicting the poor squirrel. With tones of bright orange and yellow, the captivating illustrations bring the enormous-tailed squirrel’s rapid-fire range of emotions to vivid and hilarious life. This highly entertaining read-aloud would also make a perfect conversation starter for lessons on the importance of appreciating what one has.
