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Charlotte Zolotow
The
Beautiful
Christmas Tree
illustrated
by Ruth Robbins
up
THE
BEAUTIFUL CHRISTMAS TREE
by Charlotte Zolotow
illustrated
by
Ruth Robbins
On
the
first
potted
window compared
to the
bushy
ornamented Christmas
neighbors.
trees of his
And
shocked.
They
are even
more shocked
As
little
it
it
man
warming
in
summer.
the
winter and
more
later
and sing
need
love.
The
illustrations
of this gentle,
human
BOSTON
PUBLIC LIBRARY
&
<i
^m
The
Beautiful
*
by Charlotte Zolotow
illustrated
by
Ruth Robbins
PARNASSUS PRESS BERKELEY. CALIFORNIA
COPYRIGHT I972 BY CHARLOTTE ZOLOTOW FOR STORY COPYRIGHT I972 BY RUTH ROBBINS FOR ILLUSTRATIONS PUBLISHED BY PARNASSUS PRESS
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG CARD
ISBN O-87466-OO4-I
NUMBER 7O-182950
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row
of trees,
It
was
the stoops
and
sat there
joying the
one.
It
stars.
The
tract
with
its
trees
and
people.
These new
watch the
stars.
They were
and
sort, these
new
people, to buy a
as
rundown
as the lonely
brownstone.
Its
the
and the
tree that
"That place
is
said.
someone fashionable
and
in
fix
it it
over.
When Mr.
Crockett
moved
was plain
that
the dirty
windows
of
man," they
about
and
their lips
were tight
it
as they talked
win-
dows
little
windows
sheet of
and sparkled
clean.
like a
mountain
one knew
fresh and
No
one
much
who worked all week and scrubbed the white steps of his own brownstone on weekends. He
it
did
it,
if
u
a pocket knife
on the
step.
Sometimes he took
around
clucked
till
the dirt
came
loose.
The
his
neighbors
when
they saw
him on
hands and
i,,
i.i
id
JJiu
'
of the
One
little
fall
with a spading-fork.
He
died.
He dug
his spading-fork in
ground.
Then he
stooped
down and
let
some
of
"Good
fat
worm
squiggled
its
way back
into the
good
earth,
he said to himself.
The
dows frowned
brown-
like a sheet
of
mountain
'V
At
the
end of the
street
and
just
around the
Coming home
in
in.
That
fall
the
window was
leaves, like a
As
it
grew
closer to
IM
it?
'4 iB?'
*i&P
k %
*w
window,
ivy
and
Some
and
inside
on the
floor
and on the
there were
florist's
window,
forest far
from some
away. There
When
store
on the
he were walking
down
a cold
Long
boxes were
filled
and
mistletoe,
trees
who had
the trees
to be delivered.
windows
The
Crockett trudging
each night
The day
There were
still
pots of poinsettia
and dark
Jeru-
little
with
little
growing bushy
Mr. Crockett
air
The
was very
as
he
under
was almost
off in a
plant in
Its
it.
The
was
true,
as
the neighbors
said
of
Mr.
gnome
of a
man.
He was
grey and
beard.
short
He had
curly
brown
hair
Some
the
some man.
And
some
little
plant.
would
feel
all
to be
that small
misshapen
tree
amongst
green pines.
He
in.
to the
tinkled overhead.
The
the pines
folded him.
He
The
florist
came from
"Good
for
evening,
sir,"
he
said,
"What can
do
you?"
his
brown
curly beard
"A
gested.
nice
poinsettia
plant?"
the
florist
sug-
"We
"A
pot-
We
And
it
and held
"It's
want
is
that
little
one in the
<.&*#%?
"That one!"
never be
"That
will
little
much
the
good. Here
is
handsome
want," Mr.
his head.
This gnome
man must
The
flower-
man
He
touched them
Shaking
pot and put
his
it
lifted
the
into
It's
ugly."
want
I
to
pay for
it,"
he
said.
"You know
is still
when
true."
was
a boy, there
was
a saying that
"What's
flowerman count-
"Beauty
is
as
The
bell tinkled
to leave.
Alone in the
store the
flowerman shrugged.
if
he had
walked along.
"and
have
the
window
for you.
tree
said as
though the
**&?
a secret.
Living things
That night the snow began to fall. On Christmas day when the neighbors went to church
they glanced at each beautifully decorated tree
standing in the
window
of each brownstone.
When
was
a white
wooden pot
in the
window with
He
the tree.
"Awful!" they
said.
When
the carolers
who
sang on Christmas
He
as
"Beauty
as beauty does,"
he said sadly.
The
the trees
winter passed.
The
The
to
came back
and began,
who
weathered
the winter
on the
street, to
o
a
He
loosened the
He dug
Then
white
pine
its
filled
it
with water.
stick of a tree in
wooden
tub.
little
Then
it
so
down
its
all
around
until
new home.
The
"Look
they said.
"What
a disgrace!"
They
didn't
know
work
the
Mr. Crockett's
secret.
at
down warming
it.
little
pine planted in
sat
out
it
He would
He
smiled at
4m
them but
back. His
the children
had been
told to stay
little
way
boy smiled
liked the
way
He
cleaned his
windows and
his tree
stoop.
He
liked to see
him watering
and reach-
Mr. Crockett
after evening.
sat
He watched
the children.
He
watched
his fashionable
neighbors
inside
and
left
tree
The
his tree.
The
"He
acts like
an old farmer.
borhood."
He
runs
down
But
sign.
if
The
sun beat
summer and
the hot
down on
the
little tree.
>*,umma
little
it
pine,
sat
and
sprin-
and
out on his
went down.
Not only
as well
the
summer
to feed
came
under
its
The
its
display of gold
and
More
needles
fell off
the
little
down
hay in a
mound around
stuff,"
its
base to keep
it
warm
"Farmer
the neighbors
fumed when
little
man
he
white.
It
first
it
powdered the
street
It
pine.
tree's roots
warm.
It
was
trees
along the
The
Hay
was not
elegant.
their heads
They wagged
under
when
They
didn't
Most
of the songbirds
And Mr.
them.
his
rows came
pine.
PPM
On
too.
One
Sunday he saw
of blood in the the sparrows.
snow sharing
the
crumbs with
And
saw
It
under the
tree.
and pumpkin
stand at his
He would
window
house, and he
.t
last
the winter
stronger.
The
days
The
tice.
little
tree
clusters of
They
didn't notice
that
their
own
trees
and
that there
were not
trees.
so
many
birds in the
branches of their
the sparrows
They
came
iridescent grackles
and red
a large
and
all
Mr.
And
the
little
pine's blue-tipped
made
shadow
like
They
taller
was growing
and
own
liked.
away.
Some
tree.
Mr. Crockett's
stop
Especially David.
He would
on
his
way
home from
hopping around
Some
They'd
sit
when
.he
the hot
summer day
passed.
And fall came. And fall passed and winter came. And several years went by. Most of the birds came now to Mr. Crockett's
summer
tree.
They sang
in
its
branches
all
day.
They
slept in the
branches
at
for
them every
to
work.
Even
They were
understand that
for
they
still
didn't
tree
need
love.
The
was quite
tall
and
as the
summers
passed, the
made Mr.
and
stood green
when
lii
li-ij
birds
when
of a
strange looking
gnome
shaggy
as they
moved
at
to the street
frowned
him.
secret," the
neighbors
He
had
a Christmas
Eve
years after
Mr. Crockett
his tree,
it
had moved
began
to
and bought
all
snow.
snowed
Mr. Crockett's
house,
it
On
birds
noon
to
of Christmas
went out
put
down
The
cardinals, the
dees.
They
seeds
stood
on the
on nuts
and crumbs.
And when it stopped snowing the white world sparkled like crystal. Down the street came the
carolers.
their songs.
in the cold
air.
to
Mr. Crockett's
And
they
With
a lovely flacking
circled
and
as the carolers
them they
recircled lower
At
lit,
The
tree
carolers
watched spellbound.
It
was
like
trimmed with
"Ohhhhhhhhh," they
all,
and
their
his
shining
window
ers
and
birds together. It
was a chorus
is
of love
that this
what
Christ-
mas
is
meant
to be.
which
this
to the Library.
pMiaiiiinnnmwnnwnnfi
CHARLOTTE ZOLOTOW
young
children.
is
one of
Of her many
girls,
among the most well-known are The Bunny Who Found Easter, The S\y Was Blue, The White Marble,
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present,
Eyes.
The author
an old house
is
in Hastings-
on-Hudson and
and go
is
to the
and
at present
senior
Books Department
of
Among those
Fisherman
s
Indians Told,
and she
is
the author
and
illustrator
of Taliesin
Herman
am
Parnassus
tqss
Lithographed in U.S.A. by Kaiser Graphic Arts