Rise to the Sky
How the World's Tallest Trees Grow Up
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Trees are the tallest living things on Earth. But how do they grow to be so tall? Science writer Rebecca E. Hirsch presents a poetic introduction to the tree life cycle in Rise to the Sky. Accompanied by Mia Posada's detailed collage illustrations, this book features the tallest tree species from around the world, including the coast redwood, the Sitka spruce, and the giant sequoia.
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Hirsch teaches basic plant biology through the example of the world's "tallest living thing"—trees—in this awe-inspiring text. Employing rhythmic repetition, careful prose first juxtaposes coast redwoods, giant sequoias, Sitka spruces, and the like with other entities, including the Statue of Liberty and a blue whale. Turning to trees' beginnings as "old stumps" or "seeds/ as small as a ladybug," Hirsch highlights the supporting role of air, food, sunlight, and water in the trees' lives, which are sometimes thousands of years long. Washed in earthy browns and vivid emerald greens, Posada's expertly rendered cut paper collage provide texture that feels touchable—an approach well suited to the close-up imagery (including detailed insets) of bark-covered trunks, jagged-edged leaves, and seedlings bursting from soil. A vertical spread offers an emblematic, energetic wow moment as the trees rise "up,/ up,/ up/ to the sky!" Extensive back matter includes activities. Ages 5–10.
