This book is about the author Zora Neale Hurston. Zora and her mom's main source of bonding was through the chinaberry tree. Her mother later dies but she goes to the chinaberry tree and it reminds her of her mom. I think the pictures do a good job showing the scenery and everyones' emotions when her mother dies. This book could teach students that even if someone is physically gone that you'll always have reminders of them. ( )

This book details the early life of Zora Neal Hurston. Her mother taught her to reach for the stars because she could have anything she wanted. Others tried to convince her to tell her that only men could do certain things. But her mom reassured her that the world was hers and no one could stop her. After her mom passed, zora continued to do whatever her heart desires. ( )

When I began reading this book, I thought it would give more detail regarding her accomplishments and adult life. Luckily there was an author's note in the back that provided the main information I was looking for-- why she was famous. This short picture book, however, did give good background and context for the author's note. Zora Hurston was born in Florida at the turn of of the century in the first all-black town in America. I like how the author, William Miller, framed the book so that the chinaberry tree was a symbol of inspiration, freedom, and success for Zora. Before her untimely death, Zora's mom asked Zora to climb to the tip-top, where she regained her vigor and saw the beauty in the world. The author notes she graduated Howard and Barnard colleges with a degree in anthropology. She became famous for her African folktales, one collection aptly named "Mules and Men." Additionally, she published novels, and her most famous, "Their Eyes Were Watching God" is considered a classic in African American literature. ( )

Zora Hurston loved to climb to the top of her Chinaberry tree and see as far as the horizon. She wanted to fish, play checkers, and listen to stories around the campfire. Her father told her those were boy's activities, but she did them anyway because her mother taught her that the world belonged to her and she could do whatever she wanted. The biography talks about Zora Hurston's mother and the impact she had on her daughter's free spirit. It also tells about Zora's mother's death. This is a good book to read to/with future writers because it tells of Zora Hurston's early life that influenced her writing. ( )

The story of a young Zora Neal Hurston, and how she dealt with the death of her beloved mother. The love and encouragement that she received from her mother helped her to do many things that were not the social norm for young ladies in that time. ( )