The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

[joepwow]

This was one of my favorite childhood books, but agree didn't fully understand it until I was older. It is always a sad read, seeing as the boy ages how he uses the tree and the tree gives and gives and not getting anything in return. It's a sad acknowledgement of how we as people often abuse the love that we receive.

[lemming]

I remember reading this as a young girl and always crying but never knowing why it was so sad. This was definitely and interesting interpretation of the meaning behind the book.

Thank you for the feedback!

-- 05 Jan 2014, 15:50 --

This was one of my favorite childhood books, but agree didn't fully understand it until I was older. It is always a sad read, seeing as the boy ages how he uses the tree and the tree gives and gives and not getting anything in return. It's a sad acknowledgement of how we as people often abuse the love that we receive.

Yeah perhaps it also shows how loving too much almost invites abuse and does both the giver and receiver harm

[Sweetirishleo7]

I just read this book to my kids, a 6 yr old boy and a 10 yr old girl, for the 1st time a few nights ago. My 6 yr old boy actually teared up and couldnt understand why the tree would give all of himself away and die. He also couldn't understand why the boy didnt show any concern for the tree. My 10 yr old tried to explain to her brother that the tree loved the boy so much and wanted to make him happy and thats why he gave all of himself to the boy. But he just couldn't get it. Personally, I wish I would have read the book to myself before reading it to them. I do not recommend reading this to any age child if they have a love for nature. I'm 34 yrs old and I hated the book. I hated it so much, I threw it away 10 minutes after finishing it.

[lemming]

I just read this book to my kids, a 6 yr old boy and a 10 yr old girl, for the 1st time a few nights ago. My 6 yr old boy actually teared up and couldnt understand why the tree would give all of himself away and die. He also couldn't understand why the boy didnt show any concern for the tree. My 10 yr old tried to explain to her brother that the tree loved the boy so much and wanted to make him happy and thats why he gave all of himself to the boy. But he just couldn't get it. Personally, I wish I would have read the book to myself before reading it to them. I do not recommend reading this to any age child if they have a love for nature. I'm 34 yrs old and I hated the book. I hated it so much, I threw it away 10 minutes after finishing it.

The book certainly evokes a strong emotional reaction in most who read it. I never thought of it as being unsuitable for children, mostly because it portrays the boy's selfishness in an unmistakably negative light, although the consequences are subtler than they might be in some children's stories. Your comment about it being disturbing to those with a love for nature is interesting - I never thought of the story as perhaps being an allegory about what men do the environment. Thank you for the feedback!

[jhollan2]

This is a book that my mom and I fight about. She loves it, and she read it to me all the time when I was growing up. She sees it as a story about unconditional love, where the tree loves the boy so much that she will do anything for him, and that's beautiful. I see it as a very clearly abusive relationship, where the boy demands and takes and completely destroys this self-less beautiful thing with his inability to look beyond his own desires. Needless to say, my mom thinks that I am a destroyer of childhoods.

[lemming]

This is a book that my mom and I fight about. She loves it, and she read it to me all the time when I was growing up. She sees it as a story about unconditional love, where the tree loves the boy so much that she will do anything for him, and that's beautiful. I see it as a very clearly abusive relationship, where the boy demands and takes and completely destroys this self-less beautiful thing with his inability to look beyond his own desires. Needless to say, my mom thinks that I am a destroyer of childhoods.

I think you're both right - the boy abuses the unconditional love.

[ALRyder]

All of Shel Siverstein's writing is perfect. I think however it's better appreciated by pre-teens and up to adults. "The Giving Tree" is like "Love You Forever"...the cycle of life, sad but true.

I don't know, my third grade teacher read his poetry books to us every day after lunch. While there are more serious ones like "No Difference" and "The Little Boy and Old Man", I think they both have valuable lessons that should be taught from a young age, and that can be understood and appreciated by young ones more than adults often think. As you can see those two have stuck with me even now, years and years later. I also recall his more fun poems like "Police man police man, help me please! Someone went and stole my knees! I'd chase them down, but i suspect my feet and legs just wont connect"...oh yes, that was from memory. I also have Mrs. Mctwitter the babysitter memorized lol. My point is, Silverstein did a good job of mixing serious poems with just plain silly ones, and making them intellectually accessible to children. Yet nothing ever felt dumbed down, as children often feel adults have a tendency to do when addressing serious topics.

Back on the topic of The Giving Tree, I loved this book as a child and still do today. It was one of those "must buy for my children" books. It's also interesting to see what so many other people have gotten out of it. Thanks for opening this line of discussion.

[lemming]

Back on the topic of The Giving Tree, I loved this book as a child and still do today. It was one of those "must buy for my children" books. It's also interesting to see what so many other people have gotten out of it. Thanks for opening this line of discussion.

It's good bookclub material cuz it's so open to interpretation, a part of many people's childhoods and such a quick read. I don't know much about silverstein and ended up reading the giving tree because it was mentioned in an episode of family guy. I'd really like to get hold of "now here's my plan" cuz it seems more geared at adults and to showcase more of his humour you mentioned, although according to the wiki some people see the titular cartoon as pessimistic, even though he says he didn't intend that at all.

[ALRyder]

That doesn't surprise me. I noticed his last book of poems had a darker feel to them as well. I thought they may have been some of his poems the publishers saw might work for a children's book and put them together themselves; especially because the book had been published after his death. I wondered if he never meant for some of those poems to go out into the world as they did.

[lemming]

That doesn't surprise me. I noticed his last book of poems had a darker feel to them as well. I thought they may have been some of his poems the publishers saw might work for a children's book and put them together themselves; especially because the book had been published after his death. I wondered if he never meant for some of those poems to go out into the world as they did.

Which book do you mean? I had a look at "runny babbit" which was published posthumously but that seemed light in tone

[ALRyder]

Every Thing On It. Don't get me wrong, there are still some great poems, but I probably had a funny look on my face the first time I read:

"The Game"
I'm glad you came.
Let's play a game.
Called Crook and Police Dog Rover.
I bite your eye,
And now you die,
And now the game is over.

[Lhall22]

I remember this book well. It was really sad but I've never actually thought about its meaning until I got older.

[standi69]

I loved this book and so did my girls. We thought that when the boy was little he gave the tree everything just like children do to everything. When he grows up life gets in the way, it is sad but in old age the boy and the tree found each other again as best friends and gave what they had.

[jhollan2]

I loved this book and so did my girls. We thought that when the boy was little he gave the tree everything just like children do to everything. When he grows up life gets in the way, it is sad but in old age the boy and the tree found each other again as best friends and gave what they had.

Standi69, in what ways do you see the little boy giving the tree everything? I'm curious to hear more of your thoughts on this.

[Winter]

I love Shel Silverstein's work, but I really did not like The Giving Tree as a kid. I remember my teacher reading it to us in school and thinking that it was sad and very unhealthy. As an adult, I appreciate it more, but it's still not going to make my top ten list.