It is Katrina's favorite time of year. A foot of snow has just fallen up north, and all the apples have to be picked from the old tree. Mama will make a big batch of apple butter, and the bare branches of the tree will become Katrina's studio, a place to dream and draw each afternoon until sunset.

But winter strikes hard and an ice storm leaves Katrina's tree in ruins. Though she knows they need the firewood, she can hardly bear the sound of Papa hacking away at her tree. How can he chop up her studio? Doesn't he know she can't draw unless she's in the apple tree? Christmas is coming, but this year Katrina wants no part of it.

Trinka Hakes Noble's moving and nostalgic story, illustrated with glowing watercolor paintings, reveals the joy of a very special present and the love that a father and daughter share.

The inspiration for Apple Tree Christmas comes from Trinka Hakes Noble's memories of growing up in rural Michigan. "So much of this story—the vine swing, the old apple tree, Mrs. Wooly, the drawing board, and the little girl who dreams of becoming an artist—is from my childhood."

From the dust jacket