HOW TO GROW A MARSHMALLOW TREE

In this picture book, a little girl and a polar bear love marshmallows.

Amelia is a girl with light brown skin, big brown eyes, and wavy dark hair. Her best friend, Paco, is three times Amelia’s size, with white fur, a large black nose, and expressive eyes. On the story’s first page, readers see a drawing of the polar bear on Amelia’s bedroom rug. The pals are down to their last marshmallow, and Paco gives it to the girl to eat. Then Amelia has a brainstorm: “Paco, I have the best idea ever!…If you plant an apple seed, a tree full of apples will grow. So, let’s plant a marshmallow tree! I already know how to do it.” Paco is skeptical but he digs a hole; Amelia plants their last marshmallow, and they cover it with soil and wait. Nothing. They try watering the soil and giving it sugar. Finally, Amelia remembers that plants need love to grow, so the two friends sing to the marshmallow and tell jokes until suddenly it sprouts into a huge tree. Bertran’s full-page illustrations are bold and colorful and show the whole day, with stars filling the evening sky as Amelia and Paco hope their tree will materialize. Gamarra’s engaging story begins and ends in Amelia’s bedroom, so the sense of her fantasy world is bookended by tangible clues about her big imagination. Paco remains charming and lovable even when he gets “hangry” waiting for the tree to sprout.

A sweet tale about a child’s wild imagination.