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The Giving Tree (Hardcover)
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. |
| If you want us to help you with the right titles you're looking for, or to make reading recommendations based on your needs, please contact our consultants. |
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Author: Shel Silverstein
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pub. in: October, 1964
ISBN: 0060256656
Pages: 64
Measurements: 10.3 x 7.8 x 0.5 inches
Origin of product: USA
Order code: BC00189
Other information: Re-issue edition
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- MSL Picks -
The Giving Tree is a book about friendship and devotion. In Shel Silverstein's popular tale of few words and simple line drawings, a tree starts out as a leafy playground, shade provider, and apple bearer for a rambunctious little boy. Making the boy happy makes the tree happy, but with time it becomes more challenging for the generous tree to meet his needs. When he asks for money, she suggests that he sell her apples. When he asks for a house, she offers her branches for lumber. When the boy is old, too old and sad to play in the tree, he asks the tree for a boat. She suggests that he cut her down to a stump so he can craft a boat out of her trunk. He unthinkingly does it. At this point in the story, the double-page spread shows a pathetic solitary stump, poignantly cut down to the heart the boy once carved into the tree as a child that said "M.E. + T." "And then the tree was happy... but not really." When there's nothing left of her, the boy returns again as an old man, needing a quiet place to sit and rest. The stump offers up her services, and he sits on it. "And the tree was happy."
It is a timeless book that when we're children, reminds us of the importance of sharing, giving and unconditional love. As adults, it reminds us that it might take a lifetime to realize what is truly important in life and that we always seem to return to where we belong. We recommend reading this book with your child and discussing the values it aims to teach. You will notice how your child's interpretations of it mature as they do. While the message of this book is unclear and arguable, Silverstein has perhaps deliberately left the book open to interpretation.
Target readers:
Kids aged 4-8
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Shel Silverstein is the author-artist of many books of prose and poetry. He was a cartoonist, playwright, and poet, performer, recording artist, and Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated songwriter.
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"Once there was a tree... and she loved a little boy." So begins a story of unforgettable perception, beautifully written and illustrated by the gifted and versatile Shel Silverstein. Every day the boy would come to the tree to eat her apples, swing from her branches, or slide down her trunk... and the tree was happy. But as the boy grew older he began to want more from the tree, and the tree gave and gave and gave. This is a tender story, touched with sadness, aglow with consolation. Shel Silverstein has created a moving parable for readers of all ages that offers an affecting interpretation of the gift of giving and a serene acceptance of another's capacity to love in return.
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| View all 11 comments |
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. |
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) |
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. |
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. |
View all 11 comments |
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