The Wishing Leaf

As the seasons change from fall to winter, Bear eagerly waits for the last leaf to fall so that he can make a wish in this charming and cozy picture book from author Kallie George and illustrator Paola Zakimi

A story of patience, friendship, and awe, The Wishing Leaf is a picture book full of wonder for the changing seasons, with a perfectly cozy ending.

Bear knows that when the last leaf falls in the forest, whatever wish you make is sure to come true! Although it’s almost time to sleep, Mama allows Bear to watch and wait with his friends.

But it seems like the leaf is never going to fall, so one by one, the other animals grow impatient and start to head home. Bear, however, finds active ways to wait, all the while wondering what to wish for—until finally, he’s the only one left, and he’s growing tired.

Will Bear see the last leaf fall? And if so, what wish will he make?

Kallie George is an author, editor, and creative writing teacher living in Vancouver, British Columbia. She has written acclaimed books for children, including The Lost Gift; Secrets I Know; Duck, Duck, Dinosaur, and The Melancholic Mermaid, as well as The Magical Animal Adoption Agency series and The Heartwood Hotel series. She has also taught writing workshops for children and adults across Canada, as well as in South Korea, and she currently teaches at Emily Carr University. Paola Zakimi spent her childhood in cold Patagonia, Argentina. She studied arts and graphic design in Buenos Aires before moving to Villa Giardino, Cordoba, where she resides today. She is the illustrator of Estelle Laure’s Before the World Wakes, Meg Fleming’s Here Comes Ocean, Jacqueline Veissid’s Ruby’s Sword, as well as Newbery Medalist Cynthia Voigt’s Teddy & Co., among other picture books.