Their Favorite Books…

Sweet and poignant By Shel Silverstein

Why would I be hesitant to recommend one of my favorite books? The Giving Tree is a beautiful, moving story of unconditional love. A tree loves someone so much it gives everything it has until there is nothing left to give. But controversy has always surrounded Shel Silverstein’s popular tome. Is the tree an overly generous parent? Is the boy a greedy, self-centered child who takes everything from the tree for his own pleasure? The book was written in 1964 and may be even more relevant today in that it asks us to question if we’ve gone too far from either the tree’s perspective or the child’s. Before I knew there was controversy, I loved this book and I still do. Shel Silverstein titled it The Giving Tree and that’s what it is to me - a tree whose love knows no limits and who is generous without bounds. How bad can that be? Read it to your child and decide for yourselves.