The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree: An Appalachian Story - Softcover

Houston, Gloria

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0140558772 ISBN 13: 9780140558777

Publisher: Puffin Books, 1996

Synopsis

This unforgettable tale, illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Barbara Cooney, has become a seasonal classic-a touching and joyful story about courage and the power of family.

About this title

About the Author:

Gloria Houston is an internationally known educator and author of  several award-winning, best-selling books for young readers.

Barbara Cooney illustrated over 100 books for children.

From Publishers Weekly:

The Armistice has been declared, but still there is no sign of Ruthie's father in their little Appalachian town. So, in accordance with the traditions of Pine Grove, it falls to Ruthie and her mother to bring home the perfect Christmas tree to donate to the town. Ruthie had accompanied her father to the rocky cliff where he marked a tree in the spring, so she and her mother set out to find it again, and haul it home. Their trip becomes the basisovernightof a new town legend; Ruthie, chosen for the role of the heavenly angel in the the church Christmas play, finds herself outfitted in a madeover wedding dress of the finest silkanother "miracle" wrought by her hardworking mother. An accomplished, fluid telling garnishes this simple story, as do Cooney's moonlit paintings of wintry evenings and the welcoming glow of fire and lanterns. Ruthie is more or less an observer; her mother is the real heroine. But the way they work together to keep their family's duty is rendered in a harmonious blending of text and pictures. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Puffin Books
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 0140558772
• ISBN 13: 9780140558777
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Cooney Barbara