How to Grow a Family Tree

Can a family tree be found? A girl stresses over her heritage-mapping school assignment, until she realizes family is all around--her neighbors and friends.

All week, Emmylou's classmates get up and present their family trees. These trees are thick with branches, and there are stories to go with each face and name. Emmylou's tree is almost bare. There's her, Mama, and the names Mama won't say--the stories she doesn't tell.

By the end of the week, Emmylou wants the project to be over. She doesn't want to think about her family tree at all. After all, she only has one family recipe, the one she trades with Mrs. Patel for her mango chutney. She has no aunts or cousins--only Rosa next door to watch Emmylou after school. No siblings--only Rosa's baby twins for Emmylou to play peek-a-boo with. No zayde like Eli's to teach her to ride a bike--only Mr. Li, who doesn't complain when she runs over his foot.

Finally Emmylou knows what to tell her class. Her family isn't so small--she just had to look for it.

Bea Birdsong tells a tender story of found family and the bonds we choose, with art by Jasu Hu, illustrator of Howard Schwartz's All You Need and Janet Fox's Wintergarden.

A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

Author: Bea Birdsong
Publisher: Neal Porter Books
Published: 10/07/2025
Pages: 48
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.25lbs
ISBN: 9780823453962
Audience: Ages 4-8


Review Citation(s):
School Library Journal 07/01/2025 pg. 64
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 09/01/2025
Kirkus Reviews 08/15/2025

About the Author
Bea Birdsong is the author of I Will Be Fierce, Southern Book Prize Finalist Sam's First Word, How to Spot a Best Friend, and other books for children. She is also a writer for the education market and a former teacher who believes in the awesome power of books to educate, entertain, and empower. Bea lives in North Carolina with her husband, son, and rescue dog. She invites you to follow her on Twitter @BeaBirdsong and visit her online at beabirdsong.com.

Jasu Hu was born in Hunan, China. She has worked as an illustrator in China for six years while studying Visual Communication at Tsinghua University (Beijing). After finishing her MFA in Illustration at MICA (USA), she moved to New York and started working as a freelance illustrator. She also illustrated All You Need, by Howard Schwartz, and Wintergarden, by Janet Fox.