On the hot, dry savannahs of Africa stands the ancient and mysterious baobab. A tree of gargantuan proportions, it can measure up to forty feet across and sixty feet high, and it can live more than a thousand years. The branches of this venerated giant look so much like gnarled roots, legend has it the tree was originally planted upside down!

Leafless and bare for much of the year, the baobab might be mistaken for dead. But this fascinating tree, which the African people call "mother," is very much alive, providing shelter and food to an incredible variety of creatures — the yellow-collared lovebirds and orange-bellied parrots that make their homes in its hollows; the bushbabies and fruit bats that drink nectar from its large white flowers; the baboons that feast on it s fruit; the giraffes that nibble on its tender leaves. The African people also share in the baobab's wealth; they come to the tree to gather honey, to pick fruit for candy and drinks, to strip the bark for baskets and rope, and to use the roots for medicine.

Barbara Bash's engaging, easy-to-read text and stunning watercolor illustrations document the relationship between the ancient baobab tree and the many life forms it helps to support. Readers will be intrigued by this unique glimpse into the interconnection of life on the African savannah and will discover why the baobab truly deserves to be called "the tree of life."

From the dust jacket