the alphabet tree

Lionni, L. (1968) the alphabet tree. Dragonfly Books: New york.

At one time there was a tree full of letters that hopped around. A strong wind blew some of the letters away and the remaining letters were scared. They huddled together until a word-bug came along and taught them that they will be stronger if they become words. Each letter became a three or four letter word. One day a caterpillar came along. He said they were confusing as a bunch of words, so they had to make sentences. They made sentences about the wind and trees; however, the caterpillar told them they had to say something important. The letters thought the most important thing they could say would be about peace. They said, "Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all Men." The caterpillar loaded them on his back and they began their trip to visit the President.
An interesting discussion to have with children about this book would be about why the president would need to see this message. Why did the caterpillar think he would be a good person to show?