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The Giving Tree

4.37 of 5 stars 4.37 · rating details · 353,035 ratings · 9,194 reviews

Silverstein's simple yet enigmatic story is an American classic that has provoked many and often contradictory interpretations. The straightforward language in which the tale is told makes this an ideal beginning Latin reader. This hardcover edition features Silverstein's original artwork and a full vocabulary.

Hardcover, 72 pages

Published July 1st 2002 by Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers (first published 1964)

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Aug 11, 2011 David rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: low-calorie, brat-lit

HEY, KIDS AND SHEL SILVERSTEIN FANS! COME OVER HERE AND READ THIS!

Okay, this some motherfuckin' fucked-up shit right here. The Giving Tree is the straight-up wack story of how this selfish little ass-faced prick kicks it with this full-on saintly tree. Ever'thin' fine for a while, y'all, with the lil' prick all gettin' up in there an' sayin' to the tree, "Yeah, you know you mah bitch," but then all of a sudden, this jumped-up prick go through puberty, get his chia on or some such shit, and so he...more HEY, KIDS AND SHEL SILVERSTEIN FANS! COME OVER HERE AND READ THIS!

Okay, this some motherfuckin' fucked-up shit right here. The Giving Tree is the straight-up wack story of how this selfish little ass-faced prick kicks it with this full-on saintly tree. Ever'thin' fine for a while, y'all, with the lil' prick all gettin' up in there an' sayin' to the tree, "Yeah, you know you mah bitch," but then all of a sudden, this jumped-up prick go through puberty, get his chia on or some such shit, and so he's off screwin' the skank-ass bitches on the block all damn day and can't spare one motherfuckin' minute for this poor old tree who waitin' for him and lookin' all motherfuckin' sad an' droopy an' shit. So this little punk-ass bitch come up on the tree -- this is a motherfuckin' tree, hear? -- and ask her ['cuz she a sexy-ass lady-tree] fo' some g's. Well, the tree is all, like, "I ain't got no cash, bitch. What part o' me say ATM on it? Mmm-hmmm. I thought so..." And she shoulda held up there, but -- no -- this tree gets all fuckin' benevolent and be, like, "Well, I got mad apples you can go hustle on the streets." So this ass-faced prick just, like, boosts all these goddamn apples an' leaves this tree with, like, its weave all out an' shit. So next, after workin' the streets wit his crew, little bitch boy come back, lookin' all older an' jacked-up, and ask the motherfuckin' tree for a goddamn crib. So the tree like, "Hol' up. Do you even fuckin' see Coldwell Banker all up an' down in here? I think not." But then, being all kindly an' shit, the tree is, like, "But I got mad branches..." And what? She motherfuckin' takes it up back again fo' this fool. Later, another goddamn time, punk-ass bitch come back, lookin' all old an' saggy and wack now, and he like, "Bitch, what you got fo' me now?" "Awww, hell naw," tree says, but then she start gettin' all soft an' shit again an' say, "Why don' you cut down my trunk or some such shit and go 'head and whittle a pimped-out yacht, full-on Hamptons-style?" He, like, "Yeah, I thought so, bitch." And then -- guess the fuck what? -- little shriveled-up, played-out mack come on back wit his ass all hemorrhoided-up an' shit. He look straight-up nasty and old. Tree is, like, "I know you ain't come t'ask me. All's I got is a motherfuckin' stump, you ass-faced motherfucker. How you gon' come back at me like that?" This punk-ass bitch is all drooling and jacked-up and just wanna sit the hell down. What do the motherfuckin' tree do? She say, "Hell no! You motherfuckin' fucked-up fucker, get yo' motherfuckin' ass face out o' here fo' I cut you up good: give you some stank-ass mad tree fungus, motherfucker!" The motherfuckin' end, motherfuckers.

Okay, so that's not really the way The Giving Tree ends, but maybe it's the way it should. Some time ago, my ex-girlfriend and, afterward, long-time co-dependent friend gave me The Giving Tree as part of my birthday gift. I loved it, but I hated it, too, because I felt so bad for the tree who is endlessly shat upon by this worthless "Boy"--as he is always known, regardless of age; I longed to console the tree and, maybe a little, to condemn this book as yet another emotionally-scarring "children's" entertainment in the manner of Old Yeller. Don't give me any shit about learning valuable lessons. The only lesson I learned was that human beings are nothing but steaming piles of corn-freckled feces, and that I wanted to found a not-for-profit shelter for unloved trees and rabid dogs and any other nonhuman thing, living or not, which was either unwanted or despised.

Having said all this -- and although I don't approve of the treatment of the giving tree -- this book is very moving and very delicate. The delicacy is somewhat counteracted when the reader turns over the book and sees the author photograph of a thoroughly evil-looking Shel Silverstein. He looks like the sort of person who would burn down whole forests of rare giving trees just for kicks. Picture Othello just before he strangles Desdemona.

If you -- and, yes, I'm talking to you personally -- are not moved by the plight of the tree after reading this book, then perhaps it's time to go an' check yo'self: are you the givin' tree or are you the motherfuckin' takin' tree? Or are you the sneak-out-in-the-middle-of-the-night-an'-steal-all-my-shit tree?(less)

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Jan 08, 2008 Nathan rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Psychologists?

Shelves: young-folks

I know that many people have a sentimental love for this book, and I respect that -- you can't rationalize emotional connection. And generally, I like this author. But with this book, since it inspired no real emotional response in me, I am left with only the rational perspective, which in me was this:

This book troubles me deeply, because it enshrines self-destructive and self-pitying martyrdom as the paragon of love for others. And I think there is already far too much of this in our society....more I know that many people have a sentimental love for this book, and I respect that -- you can't rationalize emotional connection. And generally, I like this author. But with this book, since it inspired no real emotional response in me, I am left with only the rational perspective, which in me was this:

This book troubles me deeply, because it enshrines self-destructive and self-pitying martyrdom as the paragon of love for others. And I think there is already far too much of this in our society. This book seems to say that if you really love someone else, you will damage yourself, cripple yourself, tear down your boundaries, destroy yourself for them. And further, it implies that those who are loved must by nature use and devour those who love them. An incredibly unhealthy model for love and relationships, especially for a child's book.

I am a parent of two, and though many parents have offered up this book as representative of the true nature of parental love, I cannot agree. If I were to raise my children this way, I feel I would only be teaching them to take selfishly from those who love them, to use people up and always expect more -- and on the flip side, I would be teaching them that if they love someone then they have to give of themselves until it hurts, have to live without boundaries of any kind.

Instead of raising my kids this way, I feel it's important to teach them to respect those who love them and care for them, to not take from others so much that it damages; I feel it's important to teach them that even in love we all must maintain our boundaries, our integrity. I feel it's important that my kids, and all kids really, understand that real, healthy love does not demand destruction or diminishment of anyone involved in it, that in fact real and healthy love ultimately heals and builds up those who participate in it.

I suppose that this book may have been intended as an anti-lesson, an example of how NOT to behave -- but if so, then it was not made clear that this was the case, because most people who read this book seem to take it as an ideal example of love.

Certainly it's possible to not take it so seriously; but when the underlying message and philosophy is so concentrated and heavy-handed, it's hard to avoid tasting it in every passage.

It reminds me of that other beloved childhood book about love, where the young boy's mother is so obsessive about cuddling him and tucking him in at night that even as he gets older and older, she follows him around, sneaks into his college dorm, sneaks into his home as an adult, takes him from his bed with his wife still sleeping and reassures him (herself?) that he'll "always be my baby". *shudder*

Overall: Sweet, but to the point of being cloying, and a disturbing message. =/(less)

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Dec 09, 2012 Nilesh Kashyap rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Trees, that can read

Shelves: short-story

I try to steal books written for children, since I am no giving tree and I am not paying for what my child reads. But this book, each time I read this (at the bookshop itself), I thrust it back to the place from where I took it, angrily, if I may add. This book does not deserve to be stolen.

What makes me angry:
Each time I read this story, all I want to do is to insert my hand in bookcover, catch that falling fruit and saw the tree and take it home and make ~~bat for my child~~ a foot that my bed is...more

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Dec 30, 2007 Skylar Burris rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens

I was drawn to this book again and again as a child, and I discovered that my three-year-old daughter also wanted me to read it to her repeatedly. The book has given rise to numerous interpretations, and I myself have viewed it differently over time. Some people have a negative, visceral reaction to the book because they believe they are required to see it as a positive and uplifting tale of giving, something they cannot manage to do.

These days, we are accustomed to sanitized, upbeat children's...more I was drawn to this book again and again as a child, and I discovered that my three-year-old daughter also wanted me to read it to her repeatedly. The book has given rise to numerous interpretations, and I myself have viewed it differently over time. Some people have a negative, visceral reaction to the book because they believe they are required to see it as a positive and uplifting tale of giving, something they cannot manage to do.

These days, we are accustomed to sanitized, upbeat children's tales, but great children's literature has not always spared children the horrors of the world, and it has not always clearly stated its morals; more often, the morals are implied and are absorbed emotionally through the reading. We must not forget that Shel Silverstein was a biting satirist (consider such poems as "Almost Perfect But Not Quite.") It's just like Shel Silverstein to take the guise of a gentle little children's story to skewer the faults of humanity. Yes, "The Giving Tree" is a very disturbing book, but perhaps it's disturbing because it's _meant_ to be.

Many Christians (including myself initially) have thought of this as an allegory for Christ's sacrifice. I can certainly see why people think this is a Christian allegory: the tree, like Christ, gives itself entirely for the boy, even to the point of abject humiliation. If it is a Christian allegory, however, it is the disturbing tale of Christ's terrible, painful, continuous rejection by man, and _not_ the heart-warming tale of unconditional love and forgiveness many Christians take it to be. There is no repentance in "The Giving Tree," and therefore no real forgiveness.

Some take it as a tale of unconditional parental love, but if it is, it is again a painful tale: a tale of the child who never, his entire life, truly learns to appreciate his parents. Environmentalist read it as a tale of man's selfish exploitation of nature. Feminists regard it as a story of man's subjugation and abuse of woman and woman's failure to stand up for herself (the tree is a "she").

The fact that the book can speak to so many people on so many different levels is, I think, evidence of its subtlety and irony. It really can work on more than one level, if you _want_ it to. But we err, I think, if we assume this is a "sweet" and positive tale. It is sad, but this is almost cathartic, because life, too, is sad.

Few readers come to this book expecting the reality and complexity and vaguely drawn morals we get from the harsh Greek myths and the stark Bible stories and the creepy old fairy tales, which were the staples of past generations. Today we expect to encounter cleaned-up, upbeat, didactic stories where everyone learns his lesson: learns how to share or to tolerate or to be nice, a simplicity that is typical of so much children's literature today. But life does not always order itself according to neat storylines in which the bad guys suddenly become good by the third act.

Children's literature such as "The Giving Tree" plays a valuable role by helping children (and even the parents who read it to their children) to wrestle with the ugly, beautiful, and complex truths of the world. It helps children to begin processing, very early on, the powerful and often disturbing visceral emotions these truths awake.

---
Additional thought: Whenever we are doing a book purge at our house, my daughter tries to give this away, despite repeatedly asking me to read it to her when she was young. I insist on keeping it because the particular copy I have was given to me and signed inside by a childhood friend and because I love the book. When I asked her why she is always trying to give it away, she said, “Because I don’t like it.” She devours Shel Silverstein, and this is the only book to which she would give less than five stars (she gave it one). When I asked her why she doesn’t like it, she said, “Because the boy is so mean and it’s so sad.” And yet there was that part of her, in her younger years, that was fascinated with the sad reality it depicted, curious, and wanted to hear it again and again. (less)

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Apr 28, 2007 Mer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: enviornmentalists, nurturers, parents and children who want to discuss empathy and reciprocity

Shelves: childhood, nostalgia, alltimefavorites, seminal

Scrolling down, it seems several reviewers resent this book's apparently heavy-handed message about selfishness/selflessness. I can totally understand why they find it upsetting or sappy. Overbearing, even. But I don't agree.

Some fascinating theories have been put forth about The Giving Tree. It's deceptively simple on its surface, yes. But if this were truly just some hard and fast hippie dippy morality tale, would its two main characters (living natural tree, growing human boy) and their relat...more Scrolling down, it seems several reviewers resent this book's apparently heavy-handed message about selfishness/selflessness. I can totally understand why they find it upsetting or sappy. Overbearing, even. But I don't agree.

Some fascinating theories have been put forth about The Giving Tree. It's deceptively simple on its surface, yes. But if this were truly just some hard and fast hippie dippy morality tale, would its two main characters (living natural tree, growing human boy) and their relationship have weathered such extensive interpretation over the years?

Professor Timothy Jackson from Stanford University (found on Wiki):

Is this a sad tale? Well, it is sad in the same way that life is sad. We are all needy, and, if we are lucky and any good, we grow old using others and getting used up... Our finitude is not something to be regretted or despised, however; it is what makes giving (and receiving) possible. The more you blame the boy, the more you have to fault human existence. The more you blame the tree, the more you have to fault the very idea of parenting. Should the tree's giving be contingent on the boy's gratitude? If it were, if fathers and mothers waited on reciprocity before caring for their young, then we would all be doomed.

An admirable assessment from a theologian... although as a wee grub, my perception was different. My own folks, secular humanist scientists who taught me a "recycle, reduce, reuse" mantra at around age four, introduced me to The Giving Tree around the same time we started reading The Lorax. (Another seminal doozy!) Perhaps due to their influence on my early development, I came away from both books with a lot of very heavy, persistent questions concerning humanity's careless attitude towards ye olde Mother Earth.

Without question, we're a species that generally takes and takes from the environment, thanklessly and thoughtlessly. Sadly this seems to be a trend that will continue until both we and the earth's resources are completely exhausted. (That is, unless we can all somehow convince ourselves AND our kids to turn it around.)

Ever notice that throughout the course of the tale, the little boy just "wants" things from the tree? Only at the very end of his life does he actually "need" something from her... a place to rest for a moment, to be at peace.

Anyhoo. Aspects of human behavior introduced to me in this book continue to flummox and obsess me in adulthood. Rereading it now only reinforces my lifelong desire to give something back to our weary but still beautiful mother earth, who seems to have no choice but to submit to our endless taking.

Silverstein fable is empathetic and open-ended. At its core, it reflects humanity's short-sighted, often lifelong inability to distinguish want from need, but it does not damn us for it. (less)

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Dec 19, 2012 Gavin rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So it is Christmas time, and my wife likes to have all of us—my wife and I, and our three years old twins—do a different event each night during Advent as a family. I like this practice; it is little things like this that keep our family strong. Tonight’s event was reading Christmas themed books.

We decided to read THE GIVING TREE as well as three other Christmas books. Had I foreseen what was about to transpire I would have omitted THE GIVING TREE from my selection.

Allow me to replay said event:...more

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Nov 30, 2012 Morgan rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Horrific relationship between a selfish unappreciative child and an enabling self-sacrificing mother who has no purpose in life other than to give herself away. I keep expecting a missing page to show up where he pisses all over the tree stump at the end.

I think this is offensive and despicable.

It is a horrible lesson for children. I'd rather see more literature that honors and respects the sacrifices that parents make, rather than this book's actual focus: demonstrating the expectations that th...more

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Feb 11, 2013 Kira rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Giving trees

Recommended to Kira by: A giving tree

Shelves: lolwut, i-ll-try-again-some-day, made-no-sense, what-has-been-seen-cannot-be-unseen

I'm baffled by The Giving Tree. Completely baffled.

When people talk about it, they never tell you just how twisted it really is. There's this vague whiff of patriarchy surrounding it, as well as the running theme of "parents aren't really people. Use them whenever you feel like it. They haven't got anything better to do than serve your whims and desires anyway".

I get it, I do. When you have small children, they depend on you for pretty much everything, and you have to give, give, give. But if th...more I'm baffled by The Giving Tree. Completely baffled.

When people talk about it, they never tell you just how twisted it really is. There's this vague whiff of patriarchy surrounding it, as well as the running theme of "parents aren't really people. Use them whenever you feel like it. They haven't got anything better to do than serve your whims and desires anyway".

I get it, I do. When you have small children, they depend on you for pretty much everything, and you have to give, give, give. But if they're still taking advantage of you and asking you for the most random spontaneous shit like "I need a boat. I feel like sailing" when they have their own family, then there's something not quite right here. In fact, there's something very wrong with disappearing and leaving your parents broken and sad, then returning briefly to demand things from them. What a horrible, selfish dynamic.

It kind of reminds me of my mother. My brother, who is a lot older than me, has exactly the same attitude toward her as the boy in the story, and I've seen how that has completely and utterly destroyed her. I read this story online and the comment at the end, written by the poster, stated that "this is how we all treat our parents".

No. Sorry, no. I have never and will never treat my mother in this way. It's horrible and cruel and incredibly selfish. What a terrible lesson to teach children! That you should use and degrade those who love you and have provided for you! The story would have been at least bearable had the boy, in the end, planted some of the tree's seeds or something, and given something back, but no. He just takes and takes and takes. Look at Love You Forever - the mom comforts and loves the boy/man throughout his entire life, and she's always giving, but in the end, when she's dying, he switches their roles and takes it upon himself to look after her in her hour of need.

Look, I'm not going to go into Love You Forever, because I've already written a review for it. But really, look at the message it sends compared to The Giving Tree. At least with the former I wasn't half-expecting the boy to, in the end, pee all over the mother as a last insult.

Honestly, I could go on and on and on about this for hours, but I have better things to do. I think I've ruined enough Goodreads friendships as it is. For all those of you who love this book, I respect you. It's lovely to have these special childhood relics, like kid's books and songs. Hell, who doesn't love Raffi? What I'm saying is that I'm trashing this book, not those who love it. If you do, more power to you. I'm glad. I'm sure that if I read this book when I was a child, I'd probably be on the other side of the fence.

Ergo, I am too old to be reading this book.

How sad.(less)

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Aug 03, 2007 Jeremy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: children, gift

The book is impossible to wrap my mind around. Part of me wishes it ended thusly: the tree suggests the boy chop her down to make a boat, he takes her advice, and the tree falls on him, killing them both. The moral being a quote I've heard attributed to Bill Cosby: If you spend your whole life trying to make other people happy, YOU'LL never be happy. The boy is punished for all but raping the one who cares more for him than anyone in the world, and the tree pays the ultimate price for a lifetime...more

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Nov 13, 2011 K.D. Oliveros rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens, graphics, environment, quick-read

Not sure what's the fuss about my friends either really liking or really hating this book. I find this just good. Good message. Good illustration. Good easy read. Nothing spectacular to go crazy about. Nothing sad to really cry a bucket of tears.

The Giving Tree is a poignant story of friendship between the selfless apple tree and a boy. They used to enjoy each others' company when the boy was still little but when he grew up, his priorities changed and he had other needs. The tree tried to help...more Not sure what's the fuss about my friends either really liking or really hating this book. I find this just good. Good message. Good illustration. Good easy read. Nothing spectacular to go crazy about. Nothing sad to really cry a bucket of tears.

The Giving Tree is a poignant story of friendship between the selfless apple tree and a boy. They used to enjoy each others' company when the boy was still little but when he grew up, his priorities changed and he had other needs. The tree tried to help the boy until she (the tree) did not have anything to give as she was reduced to a stump. At the time, the boy was already an old man and so, upon the invitation of the tree, he restfully sat down and the tree was again happy.

I liked the story because, on the surface, it is about environmental protection. Trees give us life (oxygen, fruits, shelter and shade to protect us from sunlight). Trees hold water on the soil preventing soil erosion and floods. However, men have been cutting trees and destroying forests. Time will come that we will all be old and has nothing to rest on except decaying dead stumps.

Digging deeper, this could be about the unconditional love that parents (tree) give to their children. Did either the tree or the old man (used to be the boy) regret about what happened in the end? No. Why? Because that's how life goes. Parents provide for their kids and do everything to make them happy and to help them fulfill their dreams. The boy went to the tree to ask for help on several occasions. The tree helped by giving her fruit, her leaves and branches, her trunk even if she was reduced to a stump in the end. She was still alive and she invited the old man (the boy) to sit on her and it made her and presumably him, happy.

So, its a happy ending! Why did some of my friends cry reading this book? For all you know new sprouts will grow from the trunk and the tree will outlive the man and their will be another boy and another story and the book will have a second part. It's just that Shel Silverstein is already dead and he could not write a sequel for this book.

I think readers interpret this too much when the whole point is that Silverstein just wanted this to be a children's book depicting the reality of life: that parents sacrifice themselves for their kids and that's because parents love their kids unconditionally and that's how normally life goes.(less)

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Oct 07, 2007 Laura rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: not terribly bright hippies

Shelves: children

Easily the most vile children's book ever written, for reasons eloquently stated by about a zillion other posters here. I remember my grandmother, whom I disliked (yeah, some kids don't like their grandparents, it's true) used to push this book on me as terribly DEEP and BEAUTIFUL and something I should really THINK ABOUT. And you wonder why I didn't like my grandmother? (My mother thought it was a piece of shit, too.) Anyway, it's a vomitous book, always has been, and I'm glad there are other p...more

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Mar 14, 2009 David added it · review of another edition

Sorry, Mr Silverstein. This kind of tripe is inexcusable. And exposing children to it? I'm no child psychologist, but what would be the point? I'd hazard a guess that Bernie Madoff read this book, and look how he turned out. In fact there's a whole generation of bwankers who took it as their bible. Thanks a bunch, Shelly boy.

My real reaction to this piece of morally ambiguous reprehensible mawkishness is best expressed by the kind of interpretative dance that was Molly Shannon's forte (one sylla...more

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Nov 28, 2007 Sava Hecht rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Co-dependent tree needs to set some fucking boundaries.

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Aug 29, 2007 Merrin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone

Shelves: childrens-books, favorites

Reading the other reviews on this book, I'm really surprised that there's such a level of hatred for this book. But then I thought everyone else in the world loved my fourth grade teacher too. We have to grow up sometime.

I can't imagine not loving this book. I can imagine berating the attitude of the boy, of the tree, but I can't imagine not coming away from this book with a deeper understanding of human nature, of reciprocity, of a parent's love for a child and the nature of servanthood.

Maybe...more

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Apr 28, 2013 UniquelyMoi *Dhestiny* BlithelyBookish rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed-by-me, 5-stars, 2013-reads, keepers, for-kids-and-adults, must-read-author, must-reread

Simply one of the best books ever written. It's a story about growing up, life, love, and pulling your head out of your butt long enough to appreciate and respect what you already have, before it's too late.

Though I might revise this review when I'm feeling less cynical, it truly is one of the greatest books of all time, and should be required reading for, or read to, all kindergarten bound children, then again when heading to high school and yet again before marriage.

The truth is, it's written...more

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Feb 09, 2010 Carol rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My 5-year-old daughter had this read to her in preschool and burst into uncontrollable sobs at the end. "It's not fair! The tree is DEAD and the little boy was so mean to it!"

Exactly, honey. This book reeks of the patriarchy. Keep it away from your kids--especially your daughters.

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Nov 03, 2012 Kirk rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anti-environmentalists, republicans, loggers, assholes

Recommended to Kirk by: Only Jesus can suggest books worthy of my scorn

What happens when a male slut with commitment issues hooks up with an insecure lover who can’t move on, or can’t move at all, for that matter? You get Shel Silverstein’s petrified piece of shit (that must be what folks mean when they call this book “classic”) The Giving Tree.

The Giving Tree is a capitalist fantasy with erotic undertones, if you can call the boy’s sadistic inclinations erotic at all. There is mention of love, a minor implication that perhaps the boy’s torture of the tree is lace...more

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Apr 18, 2008 Siobhan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I don't think I have ever read a book that has pissed me off more then the giving tree.

I read this book when I was 6 maybe 7 and I have yet to forgive that little punk of a kid on the cover in his oh so innocent red overalls! I can still vividly remember my outrage upon first reading this book over how the kid just kept taking and taking from the poor, kind, senseless tree. That little money grubbing, self involved, brat, took everything until all that was left of his dear friend the tree was a...more

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Jan 30, 2008 Rebecca Grace rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: NOT children!

Recommended to Rebecca Grace by: My mother

Shelves: children-s-books

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Sep 03, 2007 Jan Bednarczuk rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: nobody

Shelves: childrens

I can't stand this book. Someone gave it to my children as a gift, and I'm very close to hiding it or giving it away so that I don't have to read it to them at bedtime anymore. The selfish, uncaring boy who takes and takes and takes from the tree until the tree literally has nothing more to give, just makes me want to reach through the pages and throttle him. What's the message here? Is it "When someone loves you, it's okay to just take advantage of them endlessly because they will always be the...more

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Oct 01, 2008 Amy rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: People who want to raise rotten spoiled brats and their children.

Recommended to Amy by: Everyone on earth.

This is my worst favorite children's book EVER. I normally love Shel Silverstein.

However, this boy is just a complete and utter brat, and uses up everything the tree has to give, and the tree is completely codependent.

The tree should have rained apples on this boy's head and spanked him with her branches until he learned some respect.

This is a story of a very bad boy.

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Apr 14, 2013 Jack rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: march-2013, 2013, green

My Book Blog: YA Bookstop

Rating: 7/10
The Giving Tree. What can I say? I didn't know how serious some people took a little children's tale. I personally think it's a cute story. We'll see how this goes.

'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.

This is a tender story, touched with sadness, aglow with consolation. Shel Silverstein has created a moving parable...more

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Dec 31, 2007 Jon rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My wife and I had a debate about this book:

VONNIE: I’m not sure at what age a person discovers the joy of giving. Maybe, for me, it was that first Christmas when I had saved up enough of my allowance to actually buy something for my parents. I remember the anticipation of watching them unwrap the gift and then the big smiles that spread across their faces as they said “Vonnie, you shouldn’t have.” I think The Giving Tree is really a story about parenthood, and the lengths to which moms and dads...more

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Sep 29, 2007 E rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

it's not so much that i hate this story, i'm not aware of what shel silverstein's intentions were when writing it, but i find it disgusting that people think this is a story of love and relationships and selflessness. the boy takes and takes and takes from the tree until he can take no more, and then when he can literally take no more from the tree, he sits on her like a chair. it's ridiculous that people think this story is beautiful! please! read more books!

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Apr 04, 2013 Pippi Bluestocking rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Pippi Bluestocking by: a good friend that happens to love it

Shelves: misc

As seen on The Cynical Bookworm.

A post-colonial view

If you haven't read this book, I don't believe you. It's everywhere. In every bookcase, in every library. You might have read it at school, received it as a gift as an adult, heard it mentioned by a friend at the very least. Perhaps you read it in your sleep! It is the quintessential pair of The Little Prince for all idealistic/romantic readers. It's a story about a tree that keeps giving everything to a boy, until nothing's left. And the boy r...more

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Aug 19, 2007 Meredith rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have always loved this book, so I was surprised at how many reviewers hated it. As a child I wondered how the tree could give so much. Now that I am older, I know that parents/caregivers do give that much to their children/charges (if metaphorically). So are all parents saps? Certainly they do not literally give house and home, but the sacrifices we make for the ones we love have no quantifiable limit. This book isn't supposed to teach children the value of sharing so much as it shows that som...more

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Apr 09, 2007 Shannon Moore rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: christian martyrs

We read this book in Sunday School. This is the kind of book that everyone thinks is just great to read to children because it teaches unselfish giving. I think this book is dangerous because it teaches people that giving to others should drain them until they have nothing left to offer but a tired stump. Let me just file a formal protest about this type of giving. Whether you are a tree or a person, sacrificing yourself to others that are selfish does not make you good. It makes you miserable a...more

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Dec 07, 2007 Greg rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: trees

There's this kid and he's a total asshole and he keeps taking stuff from this clueless tree. The tree's all, "i giev u applez yes?" and the kid's all, "You betta or I smack u!"

And then like after 100 years when the kid's all old and has Alzheimer's and he's more or less killed the damn tree because he's taken everything from it, he's got the nerve to desecrate the tree's sacred burial ground by sitting his ass down on it.

I don't know. If I had to choose between this book and "Journals of Two Exp...more

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Aug 17, 2008 Alice Shechter rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I always thought this book was a little creepy--a little too much giving, not enough on the boundaries side.

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Nov 26, 2007 Benjermin rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: all human beings

Yes, the boy is a selfish bastard, who doesn't deserve the love and generosity he gets time and again. Anyone who read this book as a child is well aware of this fact.

Nonetheless, I'm shocked to see how many disliked it. My only thought is that many readers allow their hatred for the boy to be confused with hatred for the book. Does the book condone the boy's behavior, or simply seek to tell a narrative? Does the quality of a book suffer when the moral quality of its characters flags?

It is the j...more

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“Once there was a tree, and she loved a little boy.” — 387 people liked it

“... and she loved a boy very, very much-- even more than she loved herself.” — 177 people liked it

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