Guest Review: The Giving Tree
(I’m still on vacation, so here is a book review from Guest Reviewer JM of Fiction Scribe. Enjoy!)
The Giving Tree
By Shel Silverstein
Shel Silverstein was one of my favorite poets to read when I was a child. I would check out his books over and over from the school library, delving into the pages with delight and wishing I could write poetry like he did. At that age, though, I wasn’t all that familiar with the word “poetry�.
I gave the book The Giving Tree to my brother and now sister-in-law as a wedding present, hoping they would appreciate the simple, yet often overlooked messages it could provide.
The Giving Tree, simply put, is a book about unconditional love. We see a tree who loves a boy giving everything she can throughout the boy’s life with her only with being to see him happy. And, just when she feels she’s given everything she can give and has nothing left, her mere presence is all that is needed to fulfill his needs.
You may find yourself not liking the boy as he grows into a man because he never once thanks the tree. I certainly didn’t when I first read this book when I was a teenager and my great-grandmother gave me a copy. It took a few reads to see what the book, and my great-grandmother, was trying to say to me…but I’ll let you find your own message.
Read this book – no matter what your age – then give it to someone you love unconditionally.
Fiction Scribe, The Giving Tree, Shel Silverstein
July 6th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
WONDERFUL pick! Both kids have loved this book as much as the Tour Manager (I’d never read it until we bought it for #1).
July 7th, 2007 at 11:01 pm
My younger students love The Giving Tree. Good pick for The Book Stacks.
July 10th, 2007 at 11:13 am
I’ve even seen this book done as a play.