Are Trees Alive? By Debbie S. Miller

The story, Are Trees Alive by Debbie S. Miller would fall under the general non-fiction genre.  The reason for this is because the story describes the life process of a tree.  In the story we learn the life cycle of a tree.  The author uses facts and compares trees to humans through out the book.  For example, the author says that trees have short, tall and medium stumps just like humans have legs.  The book goes on to compare the veins in a hand to the veins on leaves, sap to blood, the ages of trees to the ages of humans, and the nutrients of trees to the nutrients of people.  The story ends with people having a picnic and the trees having their own picnic by getting sunlight, rain and wind.  The author explains that sunlight, rain and wind are the trees food, drinks and music.  I really enjoyed this book and I think it is a great book to use when first introducing the idea of trees to a student.  It helps students connect what they already know to new information by using the human vs. tree comparison.  This book also opens doors to having the students think out-side the box.  After reading this a student would be more likely to compare other aspects of their human world their natural world.  I would place this book in general non-fiction or keep it in a group with nature books. This way the students can have a different level to read at if need be.

Note:  This is a Non-Fiction book