Gratitude, Book Spotlight, Best of Best Award, Holiday Promo / November 2021
The holiday season is upon us! Thankfully, this year's celebrations will look different from last year's. We'll see friends and family more easily, and perhaps even host or attend in-person gatherings. As "normal" as this sounds, we appreciate it so much more having gone without.

It's often written that gratitude is one of the most difficult values to teach a child. There is debate about this, but no one debates that gratitude is one of the most important values.

To bring the theme of gratitude to this year's holiday season, choose stories of traditions, simple gifts, and expressions of thankfulness, such as those spotlighted below. We can be thankful for books, time to read together, the ability to read, teachers who teach us how, people who write, illustrate, and print books, for bookstores, and for libraries. Wishing you a holiday season filled with gratitude and joy!

- Kathy Balch, BookTree Founder
Book Spotlight: Gratitude
We Give Thanks, by Cynthia Rylant and illustrator Sergio Ruzzier. Playfully illustrated, rhyming story of two friends spreading a message of gratitude and inclusion around their countryside community; for ages 2 and up.

Gracias / Thanks, by Pat Mora and illustrator John Parra. In this bilingual, humorous, poetic, and colorfully illustrated narrative, a biracial boy celebrates simple, everyday things for which he is thankful; for ages 3 and up.

We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga, by Traci Sorell and illustrator Frane Lessac. Rich folk-art illustrations and seasonal change provide a framework to learn about Cherokee culture and modern life, and to appreciate the importance of gratitude; for ages 4 and up.

Thank You, Omu!, by Oge Mora. Omu shares her delicious stew with the neighborhood in this Caldecott medal-winning tale with vibrant collage illustrations and themes of Nigerian-American culture, diversity, and community; for ages 4 and up.

Those Shoes, by Marybeth Boelts and illustrator Noah Z. Jones. Jeremy longs for a pair of fad shoes that almost everyone else in his school is wearing but his family cannot afford, and eventually gains renewed appreciation for what he has; for ages 5 and up.
BookTree Wins Bay Area Parent's "Best of the Best" 2021 Gold Medal!
BookTree has consistently won recognition in Bay Area Parent's Best of the Best Awards in the Education Support Category. BookTree came out on top for the second year in a row (listed for the peninsula because we're based in Daly City). Thank you for voting for us and for continuing to spread the word!
Holiday Promotion at Partner Locations!
Special Offer: Email us a photo of a receipt for $30 or more from a BookTree partner retail location, and we will email you back a gift certificate for 3 free months of BookTree*. Great gift for a family who might enjoy trying out BookTree!
This promotion is valid for the following neighborhood shops where BookTree members can pick up and return book totes: Chloe's Closet (SF Bernal Hts, SF Inner Sunset), Fiddlesticks (SF Hayes Valley), Small Frys (SF Noe Valley), Sprout SF (Palo Alto & SF Cow Hollow), A Child's Delight (Corte Madera), Rims & Goggles (Mill Valley), Secret Garden (Greenbrae), Toy Crazy (Larkspur), Paper Caper (Burlingame), Adventure Toys (Los Altos), and Cheeky Monkey Toys (Menlo Park). Although the promotion doesn't apply to these non-retail partners, we want to convey our gratitude and encourage you to take advantage of their wonderful services: Pet Camp (SF Presidio Hts & Bayview), Sylvan Learning (SF West Portal), My Gym (San Carlos), Pacifica Athletic Center, The Right Approach to Education (San Mateo).

*Limitations: This is a 3-month free trial, redeemable by families who have never received a BookTree tote and are not currently signed up for BookTree. Limit one redemption per household. Receipt must be for purchase of $30 or more and show a November or December 2021 date. Cannot be combined with other BookTree offers. Offer expires 12/31/21.