Michael Hall

Red's factory-applied label clearly says that he is red, but despite the best efforts of his teacher, fellow crayons and art supplies, and family members, he cannot seem to do anything right until a new friend offers a fresh perspective.

Depicts in rhyming text how love can be many different things, such as eager as a beaver, steady as a yak, or silly as a seal. Rhyming text and heart-shaped illustrations of zoo animals introduce a range of emotions from "snappy as a crab" to "peaceful as a portly walrus lounging on a towel."

Follows the story of a single tree through the changing of the seasons from fall to winter, as people, animals, and vehicles pass in front of the tree, celebrating holidays, playing in the leaves, and building nests. Includes blended words.

"Monkey tries to catch the brightly colored--and tasty-looking--minutes on the minute tree in his forest. Introduces basic concepts about time and how time passes and is measured"--

A carpenter ant drills a hole to see what is outside his stump, worrying his fellow ants, and when new holes reveal different colors they fabricate a story about the horrible beast that will soon attack.