The Carpenter's Gift is a beautiful Christmas tale of the how far will the spirit of giving go. Henry and his father are harvesting Christmas trees. They do not have a lot of money, but selling trees is the way that they provide for the bare necessities. Call it a fluke of luck, but Henry and his father were in the right place at the right time. Men who were carpenters helped them with the trees in town. Just through conversation, they found out that Henry's home needed a lot of work. It seems that giving and helping is infectious. Those carpenters were joined by the locals who also came and helped to build Henry and his family a whole other house. One of the carpenters left Henry with a gift: a hammer. Henry kept that hammer for a long time. Until it was time to pass it on, as it was passed on to him. ( )

Henry is a little boy and he lives in a shack with his mom and his dad. They are poor and do not have heat in the cold winters. Henry is very humble and does not complain. One day Henry's father takes him to cut down Christmas trees and they sell them in New York near Rockefeller Center. When they've made enough money they give the rest of the trees to the other men that worked with them. Henry finds a pine cone on the ground and decides to take it home with him. Henry wishes for a warm house to live in for Christmas. On Christmas day the workers come to their little shack with all the lumber from their trees and build them a house. Henry's wish came true and he plants his pine cone which grows into a huge Christmas tree that he eventually donates to Rockefeller Center and they use it to build another family in need a home after Christmas. I really like this story because it shows the power of community. I like that he makes a Christmas wish and its not Santa who just magically makes his wish come true, its his community, its the people giving back to him after he offered what he could to them (the trees). In the back of the book it tells about Rockefellar Center and more of its history, it also teaches about Habitat for Humanity for people who might not have known about it. ( )

Super wholesome story that shows the power of generosity and helping people, along with the beautiful story of a Rockefeller Tree. The main character goes through his entire life, recounting the time when him and his dad were working hard, some generous and kind people helping to build them a new house, to growing this beautiful pine tree for like 60-70 years and giving it up to be the Rockefeller tree, and allowing the wood to be used to build a family in need home. The way the story wraps up at the end with the main character giving the little girl his hand-me-down hammer was so satisfying and made me so happy. ( )

Henry was a little boy during the time of the Great Depression. His parents were out of work and his family was beginning to struggle. One day, Henry and his father cut down spruce trees and went to Midtown Manhattan to sell them. After the day was over, the workers gathered together for a party and decorated one of the trees. Henry made a wish by the Christmas tree. On Christmas morning, workers from the Rockefeller center showed up at Henry's house. The workers found extra wood lying around and wanted to help build a new home for Henry's family. This is how the tradition of the Rockefeller Center Tree began. After Christmas is over and the tree is cut down, Habitat for Humanity uses lumber from the tree to build a new home for a family in need. I think this is a great story because it teaches children about helping others. Also, Habitat for Humanity is still helping families in need today. ( )

A heartwarming story of the first Rockefeller Christmas tree. It is definitely going to be an every Christmas tradition to read aloud this book to my class, because it is about giving. David Rubel dedicated it to " those who give back and those who receive without forgetting", and there is so much wisdom in that.
A struggling New York father who lost his job in the choking grip of Great Depression decides to make some money by cutting down and selling Christmas trees. The main character of the story, his son, takes the trip. Together they make profit and new friends at the midtown construction site, so the last few trees they give to the kind worked who helped them set up. They all decorate the tallest tree by the Rockefeller center, and the little boy, mesmerized by the beauty if the tree, the company, the night, makes a wish to live in a real, warm house one day. Well, the next day, Christmas morning, the workers show up at his parents' shack and start building them a new home! It is now a tradition that the lumber from every Christmas tree at Rockefeller center is used to build a house for a family in need. The little boy grows up and becomes old, and the beautiful spruce he planted when his house was built gets to be the new Rockefeller Christmas tree, and struggling family gets a new house. This book is truly about giving and helping. The illustrations by Jim LaMarche capture the wonders of giving, kindness, and Christmas like I have never seen before! I couldn’t help but to cry like a baby when I was reading this incredible book. Thank you, David Rubel and Jim LaMarche. ( )