The Bee Tree [Paperback]

When Mary Ellen gets bored with her reading, Grandpa knows a hunt for a bee tree is just what she needs. Half the town joins the exciting chase, but it's not until everyone returns home that Mary Ellen makes a discovery of her own: Sometimes, even the sweetest of things must be worked for.

* Polacco has created another charming picture book featuring a child learning from a grandparent in an idyllic pastoral setting . . . Both the writing and artwork are fresh and inviting. --School Library Journal, starred review

The newest gem from Polacco's treasure chest of family stories extols the virtue of reading--and of taking a study break . . . Like Mary Ellen, readers will emerge refreshed from this respite, ready to seek out new adventures. --Publishers Weekly

Young readers will savor this. --The Horn Book I was born in Lansing, Michigan in 1944. Soon after my birth I lived in Williamston, Michigan and then moved onto my grandparents farm in Union City, Michigan.

I lived on the farm with my mom and Grandparents until 1949. That is when my Babushka (my grandmother) died and we prepared to move away from Michigan. I must say that living on that little farm with them was the most magical time of my life...and that my Babushka and other grandparents were some of the most inspirational people in my life.

My parents were divorced when I was 3, and both my father and mother moved back into the homes of their parents. I spent the school year with my mother, and the summers with my dad. In both households I was the apple of my grandparents' eyes! I would say that these relationships with my grandparents have most definitely influenced my life and my work. You probably have noticed that in almost every book that I write there is a very young person who is interacting with an elderly person. Personally, I feel that this is the most valuable experience of my life....having the wonder of knowing both children and elderly peoplE