Gia and I are tree-mendously excited to be part of the blog tour for Just One Oak written by Maria Gianferrari and illustrated by Diana Sudyka. This picture book celebrating the majestic oak tree celebrated its book birthday on April 7, 2026. Thanks to author Maria Gianferrari for sharing a copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
On the very first page spread, Gianferrari’s words and Sudyka’s art show readers that how an oak tree is an anchor to our environment from the teeny-tiny field mouse to the big and mighty black bear.
While Gianferrari’s melodic, concise text lauds the oak tree’s immense impact, her informational paragraphs located in the right corner of most page spreads provide greater detail to build content knowledge. Readers learn why an oak keeps its leaves in winter, serves as a home and a meal to many species of butterflies and moths, stores winter food for acorn woodpeckers, and how its fallen leaves or duff support small animals such as katydids, toads, and the blue-spotted salamander.
Like in Gianferrari’s other picture books, her love and respect for nature is unmistakable, for she gorgeously describes the importance of the oak in our ecosystem, Suduyka’s delicate and detailed artwork makes use of the entire page spread depicting the tree’s grandeur and utility.
Backmatter follows the story to provide additional information on the oak specifically its leaves and acorns as well as advice on supporting oak tree regeneration. A diagram of the oak tree life cycle along with books and websites for further research is also included. Descriptive and delightful, Just One Oak will give readers a new appreciation for the mighty oak.
About the Author:
Maria Gianferrari is a picture book reader/writer, animal-lover, and bird nerd. She writes books that honor our bonds with creatures both domestic and wild, and that celebrate urban ecosystems and the natural world around us. Maria’s newest releases are Just One Oak and Puffins!, both published in April 2026. Other recent titles include Rain and the Reading Horse, To Dogs, with Love, Fungi Grow (a Boston Globe Horn Book Honoree), Thank a Farmer, You and the Bowerbird as well as the companion books, Being a Cat & Being a Dog. Her book, Be A Tree! won a Massachusetts Book Award Honor and has been translated into 16 languages.She grew up in Keene, NH, and lives with her family in Worcester, MA, where coyotes, bobcats and bears traverse her backyard.
About the Illustrator:
Diana Sudyka is a Chicago based illustrator. Early in her career she created screen-printed posters for musicians including Andrew Bird, St. Vincent, and The Black Keys. She moved into the publishing world by illustrating several volumes of the best-selling series The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart. Working mainly in gouache, watercolor, and ink, subject matter and aesthetic choices for her paintings are inspired by a passion for nature and science, as well as various folk-art traditions. Diana’s author-illustrator debut, Little Land, published in 2023. Her children’s illustration book work includes Dear Treefrog by Joyce Sidman, Angela’s Glacier by Jordan Scott, How to Find a Bird by Jennifer Ward, as well as Fungi Grow and Just One Oak by Maria Gianferrari, among many others. Diana’s Instagram feed features her most current work, but a disproportionate number of pictures of lichens and moss as well. When not working in her studio, she gets outdoors as much as possible with her family. You can learn more at dianasudyka.com
Enter Beagles & Books Giveaway!
Thanks to the generosity of Beach Lane Books, we have one copy of Just One Oak for a lucky Beagles & Books reader. All you need to enter is a US mailing address. Leave a comment to enter.
Beagles & Books 