Rolling Stone Releases Children’s Book With a New Twist on an Old Tale
The Tree Farmer Educates Families About Environmental Stewardship

Washington, DC (October 24, 2005) – Children’s book author by day, rock and roller for the Rolling Stones by night, keyboardist Chuck Leavell brings his unique interests to a new children’s book, The Tree Farmer, which he coauthored with Nicholas Cravotta. The story aims to help children and parents understand the importance of forests and their contributions to daily life. By illustrating the lifecycle of forests, the book offers families a new way to think about environmental stewardship.

“My family, my trees and my music are the most important elements of my life,” Leavell says. “Now that I am about to become a grandfather for the first time, I want to put my passions about forestry into words for the next generation. I’ve always said that we don’t inherit the land from our parents – we borrow it from our children.”

Leavell points out there is no better way to communicate this important message than in a book, one of the most valued gifts from our forests. Books themselves are renewable resources and, like forests, are a vital part of the lifecycle that is critical to sustain.

The State of the Forests
Today, there are 10 million more acres of forest in the United States than 15 years ago, according to the U.S. Forest Service. And, some 4 million additional trees are planted each day. Private landowners, like Chuck Leavell, manage almost half of America’s forests. According to the USDA Forest Service, 49 percent of America’s forests are owned by non-industrial landowners. Of the remaining forestlands, 20 percent are part of the National Forest System, 10 percent are owned by states, 13 percent by other federal agencies and less than nine percent by industrial landowners.

The Tree Farmer ISBN: 1-893622-16-9
Library of Congress Control Number: 2005935407

Chuck Leavell, whom the Washington Post dubbed the "Bono of Trees," has anchored the legendary Rolling Stones on keyboard for more than two decades, and has performed with the Allman Brothers Band, Eric Clapton, George Harrison and on many other Grammy-winning recordings. He’s also a distinguished conservationist. Chuck and his wife Rose Lane both work on their Georgia plantation, and were named in 1999 as the nation’s outstanding Tree Farmers from among 50,000 eligible members. Chuck is the author of several books including, Between Rock and a Home Place.

Editor’s Note: Additional fact sheets and/or interviews with Chuck Leavell
are available upon request.

For more information, or to order the book please visit www.thetreefarmer.org.

For More Information Contact
Peter Barnes, VSP Books LLC: (703) 989-9881
Alyssa Oliveri, Porter Novelli: (202) 973.5872

7402-G Lockport PL
Lorton, Virginia 22079
www.vspbooks.com
Toll Free (800) 441-1949
Office (703) 684-8142
Fax (703) 684-7955