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The Giving Tree (精装)
by Shel Silverstein
| Category:
Story, Unconditional mother love, Ages 4-8, Children's books |
| Market price: ¥ 198.00
MSL price:
¥ 168.00
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| Stock:
Pre-order item, lead time 3-7 weeks upon payment [ COD term does not apply to pre-order items ] |
MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
A touching story about sharing and happiness: a tree does its best to give pleasure and meaning to a young boy, teaching us unconditional love and the price of selfishness. |
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AllReviews |
1 2   | Total 2 pages 11 items |
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A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
I love this book even more now than I did as a child, but it is appropriate for any age. I read it to my 2 and 6 year old cousins and they adored it. I read it aloud for a college class and they loved it. I gave it to a very special friend as a birthday gift and he has always treasured it. Mr. Silverstein gave us a special treat when he wrote this book. I only wish that he was still here to give us more like it. |
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Chrissy (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
I recall reading this book to my son Nicholas when he was around the age of seven. When we got to where the tree had been cut down to a stump, he began crying because "there was hardly anything left of the tree." The meaning of this book may be different for each child, but it showed that my child possessed compassion, which made me very happy. The book definitely left an impression. (Chrissy K. McVay, North Carolina) |
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C. Quinn (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
I fell in love with this book the first time it was read to me, and my feelings have never changed. As a child I knew it was a sad book, but I didn't know why. Now that I am an adult, I can understand the cost of unconditional love and I know why the tree was sad. The fact that this book inspires so much debate is a testament to the power of Shel Silverstein's writing. There is a lesson in this book and a powerful message. For me, the key point is that in the end, the love the tree had for the boy was vindicated by his return-older, wiser, and more appreciative. My mother bought me this book when I was young because she thought it had a poignant lesson to teach. My mother tells me that the tree is every mother, and that the sadness felt by the tree is the sadness every mother feels when her child grows up and grows apart. She says every mother's hope is that her child will return someday, wanting nothing more than to sit together in silence and to be happy. Anyone who has ever loved someone enough to let them go will understand the painful choice highlighted in The Giving Tree. I love this book and I give it to special people in my life to celebrate our friendship. I highly recommend this book to adult and child alike. |
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A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
This book is excellent in the sense that it is eloquent and so complex it inspires discussion and self-reflection. This book is appropriate for a journal club or an adult poetry reading. However, in my opinion it is inappropriate for young children. I think children are drawn to children's stories, and parents read these stories to their children, because they describe our cultural norms with messages and symbols that are simple and compelling for their young minds. However, this book is far too subtle! Little children enjoy the book because they don't understand even that the man is sad and the tree is a sad! Thus, they are indeed far from understanding that the story is a negative reflection of what should be! I think real life is sad enough and we should focus on the joy of life with our children. Being jaded and complex is for adults! I would be especially careful not to give this book if there is a chance the mother is experiencing post-partum depression. |
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W. Siebenga (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
The book is very simple and thus very clear. Each page contains a drawing and some text. It is about a tree that gives a lot of pleasure and meaning to a young boy. This boy grows up and later, as an old man, he sits and rests on the stump of the tree. The tree that he used to hide in, to make fun with, to get to know his lover. And later he uses the tree and cuts it down. The book gives us an image of Life. Of coming into the world, growing, growing old, dying and leaving this world. Very moving. |
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Kalai (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
The Giving Tree should not be limited to children, I know a few "grown-ups" I plan on sending this book to. What a wake up call for selfishness. I, too, was unknowingly practicing a bit of Ayn Rand's individualism. What if we all loved, were selfless and sacrificed our petty wants for the happiness & well-being of others? Yeah, relationships wouldn't be crashing and burning at such a monumental rate and we'd actually be a part of what truly makes (true) love-love; the unconditional kind. The Giving Tree is an undemanding book about: unconditional love, narcissism (I think I dated the boy in this book), edacity for your own wants-apathy for the cost of the person giving, the price of selfishness, true selflessness & of loving someone until the end. We all should learn to be a Giving Tree. Go read it & cry-no one's watching. |
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A reader (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
The Giving Tree is a book about giving, and giving too much. This book is about a boy who loves to do things in and around a tree. The tree loves the boy back. The boy starts to grow up and not be with the tree as much and the tree still misses and loves the boy. I thought this book was pretty cool because it taught giving in an easy to understand way. Kids may see the lesson in the boy, but those who really understand see it in the tree. This is also a good book because it has very cool pictures. You can read it to kids a couple of times and they will have it memorized and be able to read it to you. Shel Silverstein is a great author of free verse poetry books. He has some larger poetry books. One of his other books is called Falling Up. Any of his books would be good gifts to give. |
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Roxanne (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
I think what bothers so many people about this book is that the boy does not "get his" at the end of the story. Yes, he was inadvertently cruel to the tree. She gave and gave and he did not give in return. That's wrong. But just because the boy doesn't have to pay for his cruelty at the end of the story doesn't mean that the book is condoning his actions. We are so used to everything being spelled out for us that some people don't know what to do when a moral isn't thrust in their faces. Would the book be better if the tree gave the boy a lecture about being a selfish pig and sent him on his way? How boring. How expected. That she doesn't is partially what makes this book a classic. It's a shame that so many people don't know how to think anymore. You can dislike this book because it is "sad" but that's doesn't make it a bad book. Life is sad too sometimes. I do see the similarities to parenting in this book, but I think that what a child takes out of it is simple. It feels good to receive, but don't forget to give as well. |
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L'lee (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
There are two extreme ways to interpret this book. The first: This is a beautiful and sad story of unconditional love between a tree and a boy, in which the tree is generous and gives of itself to help the boy whenever he is in trouble. The metaphor in this case is that of a mother and a child, or God and a human. The second: This is a story of a very selfish boy and a tree who loves him. Whenever he is in trouble, he returns to the tree who gives him another part of her self without ever setting limits, even though it makes her sad (and physically damages her) to do so. In this case, you can compare the story to a metaphor of an abusive, codependent relationship. I can understand both views of this story, but the fact that the second interpretation is just as valid as the first makes me hesitate to recommend this book. Personally, I would NOT buy this book as a gift, or for my own children. If I had this book, I would wait to read it to my children until they reach the recommended 10 years old (or at least 8), and then I would discuss the book and its concepts (selfishness, limit setting/saying NO) with them. "What did you think of this book?" "Do you think that the tree/the boy did the right thing?" "What would you have done differently if you were the tree/the boy?" "If you were the tree, would you have said 'NO' to the boy at any point?" A story that may be complementary to this one and more appropriate for younger audiences is "Ladies First", also by Shel Silverstein (found in "A Light in the Attic" or "Free to Be, You and Me"), which is about a girl who always gets to be first to do everything, but in the end that is not to her advantage. At least in that book the message is clear that selfishness is not OK. If you prefer to avoid this type of discussion, you might be better off sticking to one of the MANY children’s' books that are much less controversial and intended only for entertainment. |
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Charlotte (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-25 00:00>
The great debate: Did Shel hate kids or respect the sacrifice of parenting?
Like a loving parent, the tree gives all it has to give. Much of what is offered can be replaced, regrown, and replenished. Then it gives more to meet the ever-growing demands of the one it loves most. The tree is later cut down, the ultimate sacrifice. The boy uses the heart of the tree to leave. When the boy is finally grown all that is left of the tree at the end of its long, sacrificial life, is a stump that proves useful as a seat. Read to me by my father, who was considerably older than most, The Giving Tree had a resonating quality. Like a typical child, I was selfish and insistent and didn't appreciate my parents for all they gave to me, and gave up for me. Like the greedy little boy I grew up taking branches and leaves from them, never quite returning to the love and need I once was so unashamed to display. So to my parents and to that tree, thank you. Whether or not Shel hates children is anyone's guess and many a critic's long drawn out theory. In this story in particular, the boy as an older adult still doesn't seem as grateful as he should. It seems the great irony if the hatred does exist, is that his works have brought joy to children around the world and will continue to do so generation after generation. |
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1 2 | Total 2 pages 11 items |
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