Chita's Christmas Tree

by Elizabeth Fitzgerald Howard, Floyd Cooper (Illustrator)

Christmas is coming! And all Chita can dream about is choosing her very own Christmas tree. "Mama!" Chita calls. "Mama! Is today the day?" "Yes," says Mama. "Papa is almost ready." And so Chita and her father set out into the deep, snowy woods to find Chita's very own Christmas tree. And when Christmas morning comes, Chita has many surprises, but none as beautiful as her tree -- with its full and graceful branches and her name carved in its trunk.

Genres: Picture Books, Christmas, Holiday, Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Ms. B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story of Christmas traditions from the bygone era of horse and buggies. I loved how this picture book was broken into chapters which makes it accessible to young readers who are still building reading stamina or only like to read a little bit at a time. Chapters include The Waffle Man, The Deep Deep Wood, Baking Cookies and more.

[Mother Goose Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chita selects the perfect Christmas tree and prepares and waits for Christmas Day.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming B'more in a different, more innocent time. We read this together at our holiday WIM party.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chita and her father went searching i the woods for the tree Chita would chooses for their Christmas tree. Her dad carved her name on it so that Santa Claus would know which one to bring to their house on Christmas Eve night. Even so, Chita worried that he wouldn't find the right one. Lovely illustrations.

[J-Lynn Van Pelt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The most interesting part of this book is found in the author's blurb. This book is written about the author's cousin who was the daughter of the first African American doctor in Baltimore.

But, the story itself shows a young girl experiencing the Christmas season and awaiting her special Christmas tree. The story has a lot of text, but is made up of simple sentences (sometimes fragments) which could make it a good independent chapter book for a transitional reader.

The illustrations are a mix of oil wash on board and mixed media in full color. Many of the pictures show wide shots of the characters' actions and it is hard to identify the characters as African American until the family dinner toward the end of the book.

[Keri · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a cute story of a girl and her family at Christmas. The part I liked best was actually the authors information about Chita, on the back cover. It is based on the author's cousin. I love seeing stories inspired by real people and events.

[Nakitah]

This is a look into one families Christmas tradition. This can be used for comparing different traditions, along with what different families do for different holidays

[Kelly Hargrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

The magic of the chosen Christmas Tree trumps all of Chita's gifts from Santa. The lovely, familiar beloved moments of a long ago family Christmas. Beautifully illustrated.