'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.

Ages 10+

I fell in love with this book the first time it was read to me, and my feelings have never changed. As I 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 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 higly recommend this book to adult and child alike.


A CONTROVERSIAL Classic to promote family discussion   November 28, 2005
 56 out of 75 found this review helpful

There are two extreme ways to interpret this book, as shown by the multiple ratings of 1 and 5.

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 childrens' books that are much less controversial and intended only for entertainment.


Sweet, sad story of unconditional love   December 29, 2003
 51 out of 91 found this review helpful

I read this book to my two year old son for the first time a few years ago. The obvious metaphor, that of the tree being a mother whose son is destined to leave her someday, struck me right off. I was tearing up about halfway through. What mother of any child -- male or female -- doesn't secretly dread that far-off event, even while it signals a positive step in the natural order of things? That's a universal theme and part of nearly everybody's life at one time. So maybe it's a little manipulative on that level.

After I was done reading my boy bounced up and went into our back yard to play. In passing he actually stopped and hugged the big old pepper tree! At that point I realized a new metaphor for this story, and a deeper level of meaning to it that had touched me as well. You see, the tree also represents God. He loves us from the beginning of our lives and nurtures us with wholesome gifts (represented here by apples and leaves) and we accept this with joy that gives His love right back. Children have that universally satisfying relationship with God even while they may have no name for it. They are able to simply enjoy the truly important things in a way adults have trouble with.

You'll notice that when the boy gets a little older he spends less and less time with the Tree. His growing up signals the start of worldliness and materialism. He comes back as a teenager and asks for money. Then he comes back and asks for a house, and later a boat. The things of the world never truly satisfy him the way fellowship with the Tree did earlier, but it takes a while to realize this. In the end, he recognizes the truth and comes back to the only source of true love and peace he ever really had, and can accept the simple pleasure of sitting with the Tree once again. In the same way, we get distracted by worldly concerns and materialism as adults and tend to stray from God, only to realize after the best years of our life are spent that we should have spent more of them with Him.

God's selfless, unconditional love for His children (and the generally ungrateful attitude we throw right back most of the time) is so poignantly portrayed by this metaphor of the Giving Tree that I think it's better than any metaphor I've found in the bible! In the deepest sense, my tears were in recognition of my own ingratitude and selfishness as contrasted by the love of God. For one small minute, I was able to see the human condition from His perspective and weep for it. That was precious to me, and something I will always have Silverstein to thank for.

I can understand the interpretations of The Giving Tree from an environmental perspective and from a feminist perspective as well, and understand why so many people object to it. Truthfully, we don't really know which of these many messages Shel Silverstein intended, or if he even believed in God or not. But God does work in mysterious ways, and I truly believe He used Shel's work to send a message of His own to those of us who can receive it.
-Andrea, aka Merribelle