The Giving Tree

redheadperson22 - Warning this review contains spoilers! Well, there's a tree and a boy. The tree and the boy love each other (according to the book). So the boy and the tree play together and are happy. But time goes by and something happens... What I thought of it: Well, this book made me kind of sad, but in a good way. I really liked the way the boy and the tree's relationship changed over the years. I also liked the way the books was realistic, but then again it wasn't. It was realistic in the way that, it portrayed the human race very accurately. But in was unrealistic because, obviously, trees and humans can't verbally communicate. I also liked how, in the end, even though the both the tree and the boy were pretty much dead, the tree was still happy, just because it was with the boy. But there's one I don't get. I mean this is obviously a book for small children, but small children won't get it. And I'm not even sure if they'll be entertained by it. But then again, there's a small chance that anyone older will bother to read it unless they're reading it to a small child. But I guess maybe the author meant for parents to read it too they're children, and as they're reading it, they'll get the message. Overall, this book was really good.

October 7, 1970
The Giving Tree, Shel Silverstein's classic parable of selfless love and devotion originally published in 1964, is now available in a larger-size edition.

January 1, 2015

K Up-Several classic tales from Silverstein are celebrating anniversaries, most notably The Giving Tree, still popular at 50. Though this spare but tender allegory for the parent/child relationship still occupies a celebrated place on bookshelves, it's a divisive title, with some critics finding the boy selfish and narcissistic and others even positing that the work represents our destructive relationship with nature. Other new releases employ Silverstein's trademark humor, such as Lafcadio, a laugh-out-loud tale of a sharpshooting lion, now in its 50th year. Dreamers, wishers, liars, hope-ers, pray-ers, and magic bean buyers are in for a treat: Where the Sidewalk Ends, Silverstein's funny, lyrical, and downright bizarre poetry collection, turns 40, and this newest edition contains 12 extra poems. At 50, A Giraffe and a Half and Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros? have yet to show their age; these picture books are ridiculous in all the best ways. Finally, meet the Wild Gazite, the Pointy-Peaked Pavarius, and the Long-Necked Preposterous, in Don't Bump the Glump!: And Other Fantasies, Silverstein's first poetry collection-and the only one in full color-whose arresting wordplay and images are wonderfully disconcerting.

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.