This is a super cute Christmas book that my children loved. Not only did the kids enjoy it but I enjoyed it as well. It’s grate to get you into the Christmas spirit and really shows what Christmas is all about! We will definitely be reading it every year!

A Perfect Tree by Denise Dunham is a perfect story with perfect illustrations. Well, maybe not perfect, but it is pretty close. We enjoyed the story and the special message it presents. A little girl is sad and angry at Christmas. She just moved, her house is too small for a Christmas tree and she didn’t get the gift she expected at the school gift exchange. But, Christmas is a magical and special time as she will soon find out in this story. This is a wonderful read aloud story for the littlest to those learning to read. Then those early elementary age starting to read on their own will enjoy reading to their family. It is delightful story then when you learn it is a true story it shows how heartwarming life can be at Christmas, but amazing things can happen every day. What we think is perfect might not be perfect, but what we think isn’t is.

When a book is this overtly Christian, it has to be very strong for me to like it. Sadly, this is a very weak holiday offering with problems such as incorrect and inconsistent grammar, a poor layout, a confusing narrative timeline, and lacklustre illustrations.

DeeDee moves with her family into a new house (apparently sight unseen, as even her parents are surprised by its diminutive size). She looks forward to celebrating Christmas in their new home. One day at school, the kids have a gift exchange, but DeeDee doesn't get anything (except the emergency present her teacher kept on hand). Then she finds out that their house is too small for a Christmas tree. So she prays to God, and a tiny Christmas tree blows off the back of some guy's truck. Hallelujah!

Aside from the Christian propensity to attribute everything good to God, the story didn't impress me in other ways. When DeeDee and her family move in, we only see her and her parents. Then the book talks about a dining table that seats six, and I was confused. Turns out, DeeDee has three sisters! They're not even mentioned until the ninth page. The next confusing bit came with the tree. The book says that one of the family's traditions is to hunt for a perfect tree. The illustrations show them out in the woods, doing just that. Then DeeDee talks about her memories of decorating the tree, and there's an illustration of the family with their Christmas tree. So, naturally, I assumed that the tree had been acquired and decorated. But ten pages later, Dad tells the girls they don't have room for a Christmas tree that year! The other part that could cause some confusion is the gift exchange at school. It's not really explained how it works, so when Evelyn tells DeeDee she got her a Barbie, and then Santa hands out the presents, I assumed that every kid was assigned a giftee to buy for. But Evelyn didn't buy anything, leaving DeeDee to try to be grateful for the hat and scarf her teacher gives her. (A couple of problems I see here. Maybe this was based on what really happened, but what kind of clueless teacher buys a hat and scarf as an emergency present? And why was this gift exchange not monitored more closely so horrible little brats like Evelyn couldn't torment the kids they didn't like?) The story ends abruptly after a tiny tree is serendipitously gained, and the reader is tossed onto a page with an author's note about God and praying.

The layout of the book isn't very good. There's one page that has what looks like placeholder text layered under the actual text (hopefully, this has been corrected in other editions), and one page's background is so busy that it's difficult to read the text at all. The illustrations themselves are kind of rough, and the characters suffer from perspective issues.

This could have been a good story about a childhood incident if the narrative hadn't been so confusing. Events and characters needed to be mentioned earlier (or just mentioned, period) for the story to have a more cohesive flow. Right now, I just have too many questions about the story that are still bothering me: Why didn't the parents know that the house they were moving their family of six into was so tiny? Why wasn't the school's gift exchange monitored more closely by the teacher? Why didn't the teacher have an age-appropriate present on hand? Why was Dad so averse to cutting the branches off a little tree to make it fit in the house (he did know the whole trunk was cut, right)? These questions are distracting, and they didn't need to be. With some tighter storytelling, most of these issues could've been resolved to make the story flow more smoothly.

I had high expectations for this story, as I'm always ready for a feel-good Christmas story, but it unfortunately felt very disjointed and didn't flow as well as I'd like. The story jumped awkwardly from a house description, to Christmas, to a mean girl at school. I feel like it would have benefited so much from a few word choices, or adding in an extra sentence or two to change to passing of time or the change of scene.

The illustrations are lovely and the character's expressions are captured wonderfully.

A sweet story, but the writing was not edited in a style that I enjoy.

My kids didnt enjoy this. I felt the story was forced and awkward, didnt flow the way kids books should. I though this was going to be a cute story about the perfect tree, but it was just happy followed by disappointment, until something fell in their lap. Sends an odd message for me.

Cute story about a tree. Children would love this because the author wrote with a heartfelt voice. The cover art is absolutely beautiful. I love how it shows a tree that fits in perfectly with the story. Definitely a book you will want to read and share with your children!

This simple story tells the tale of DeeDee and her family who move to a new, smaller house. As they prepare for Christmas, DeeDee reminisces about Christmas in their old house and wonders what it will be like this year. After a bad day at school, her dad tells her that they won't have room for a Christmas tree this year. As the family gather for devotions DeeDee struggles to be thankful for the things she has and says her own prayer. As she heads to bed, there is a knock at the door. Will the visitor bring an answer to her heartfelt prayer?

I liked that this story acknowledges to young readers that sometimes it can be hard to show gratitude for the things we have when we suffer disappointment. This is recognised out loud by her parents and in the prayer that she expresses silently.
The bright, simple pictures would quickly engage young readers and the accessible language used can be understood by all.
Although aimed at a Christian audience, I think this story could easily be used with children from other faiths and none to encourage them to be thankful for the things they have, even when they are disappointed.

I would not hesitate to use this story in school with a class of primary children when exploring the value of thankfulness and inviting children to think about the things they are grateful for.

I received an eARC of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a sweet cute little book, but with holiday sadness. It's hard to read about others that don't have even a tree for Christmas, but it does help you feel like you should be more grateful for what you have, This book teaches that your prayers are sometimes answered.

I guess my issue with it is when you have that many kids you somehow get a tree. I know my family goes and gets the perfect tree each year from the woods.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.
#AperfectTree #NetGalley

A Perfect Tree was a wonderful story about faith and belief. About being thankful what you have even if it's not what you want. There is a Christian aspect to the book but it is not preachy.
Great for small ones to read alone or together.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#Netgalley #APerfectTree

This is an adorable Christmas story that teaches children thankfulness. The story is sweet and easy to understand for children. While there isn't really much to do with a tree in the book it does fit into the end. The pictures are simple and colorful. Overall, I think this would be a good fit for anyone wanting them or their children to have a nice Christian Christmas story.

This is a very Christian centered book so if that is not something you are into this book wouldn't be good for you.

It's a lovely book, although you really need to be Christian for it and I am not. The cover doesn't give you a hint of this. If I was a Christian, definitely a book I would read to my children, as the story is nice and it has a happy, family centric, Christmas message, away from presents and materialism.
The writing... I feel like there is a rhythm to it, as if they were attempting to write in verse but then don't. So you are reading in a this rhythm and are interrupted quite often, making it a less smooth read than it should be.
I'm glad I had the chance to read it, though.

A beautiful story that reminds us to be grateful for what we do have and to not be bitter about what we don't have in our lives. It also reminds us that prayers can be answered when you're least expecting them to be. My daughter and I both enjoyed this short story with a big message. We are grateful to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read an ARC of this in exchange for a honest review.

Apologies, but I really didn't enjoy this one. I felt it was a bit choppy and it didn't really feel much like a Christmas story. I didn't care much for the story line and I wasn't overly keen on the illustrations either. I liked the ending with the tree, but that's about it unfortunately.

What a wonderful story about faith and belief, about learning to do the best with what we have and about the beauty of the love of God and family.

A Perfect Tree was a really sweet story of a family moving into a very small house. The parents sleep on a fold out couch. The kitchen table has to be expanded only for meal times and they cannot get a tree this year. There is not room. The little girl prays for a tree and that night a truck passes their home and a tree falls off the truck. The driver offers them the tree and it is just the size to fit on a table in their home. This book was a well-written story for children. I wasn't a huge fan of the illustrations, but they fit the book well.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The illustrations are lovely, simple and clear.

The book explores the theme of being content with what’s given to you, even if it isn’t what you asked for.. The ending seems a little abrupt and there were fewer mentions of the tree than I expected.

A Christmas story with some strong Christian undertones

This is an adorable Christmas story about hope and thanks, friendship and love. Artwork is beautiful. My only negative is it ends a little abruptly. It would have been nice to see the family reaction to the surprise.

Sweet little religious book about a family that has to downsize and they ended up finding the perfect tree for their little home. I expected a bit more about the tree though.

DeeDee and her family move into a new home. It is too small, but they make due and are happy. Until Christmas rolls around and DeeDeed doesn't get the gift she was expecting at her school Christmas party. To make matters worse, Dad tells DeeDee that they don't have room for a Christmas tree in their new home.

This book teaches a good lesson, to be grateful for what we have, even if it isn't what we wished for. It also has a strong family that makes the most of a less than perfect living situation.

I am a bit confused by the title of this book, because the story has very little to do with a Christmas tree. In fact, I feel like the tree was an afterthought, and the conclusion was very anti climactic. I also thought the several instances of prayer and devotions was too much for a casual reader. This is a book I would only recommend to families looking for Christmas stories with a strong Christian message.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sharing an e-copy in exchange for my honest review.*

A very sweet book about a family going through hardship. The book teaches children to appreciate what they have and those around them. Personally I’m not religious but this book does touch on god but it doesn’t feel like religion is being forced on you.
Good moral to the story with great images to go alongside.