THE BALLOON TREE Phoebe Gilman. Richmond Hill, ON: Scholastic-Tab Publications, 1984. unpaged, cloth, $14.95. ISBN 0-590-71410-4. CIP. Kindergarten-grade 4 / Ages 5-9 Reviewed by Enid Dorward. Volume 13 Number 3 1985 May Balloons! They were the favourite playthings of Princess Leora, whose father was the king. When he went to a neighbouring kingdom to participate in a tournament, the kind told the princess to signal with her balloons if anything went wrong. The archduke, a very mean man, promptly had the princess locked in her room and ordered all the balloons in the kingdom to be broken. A wizard told Princess Leora that she could solve her dilemma if she had just one balloon. She searched throughout the night, and at last found one that a boy had hidden from the archduke's men. Using the wizard's spell, she planted it beside a tree, and the tress blossomed with thousands of balloons. When he saw all the balloons in the air, the king came home immediately. His knights locked up the archduke and his followers, and the kingdom was restored to happiness. Phoebe Gilman has written and illustrated a very attractive book with an appealing story about a very capable and spirited girl. The illustrations are full of life and colour; each page has a border or outline in a style similar to an illuminated medieval manuscript. They are also quite detailed, and young readers will discover additional details each time they examine the pictures. Highly recommended! Enid Dorward, Winnipeg, MB.