Rating:  Summary: A Goldmine!! Review: An incredible sensitive book covering the subject of unperishable love. So inspiring that it makes one wonder what this world would be like without love. A love so great that it makes one wonder if the human race is capable of loving at this level. It is so well written that it is not only be meant for a child, but also for the adult who hence learns the most important lesson of giving love. The Giving Tree is so significant that it inevitably makes people want to weep, mourn, cry, and give all at the same time. A Truly inspirational book for all ages. "It is better to have loved and lost, then to not have loved at all" Anonymous
Rating:  Summary: Fantastic! Review: I read this book and immediately went out to buy all the other Silverstein books I could lay my hands on! This is a book that should be read over and over again as each reading brings a deeper level of understanding. This is a book I would suggest to be a required reading for people of all ages
Rating:  Summary: Love is the lesson Review: In the end it matters not what you accomplish or how many material possessions you have, only how deeply you have loved. This book should be required reading for everyone.
Rating:  Summary: The ultimate gift for those who need the lesson inside Review: A perenial favorite, The Giving Tree is the perfect gift for people who don't know how to give of themselves. I've given it as a wedding gift, to former lovers and people who have transgressed me. The receivers reactions vary but universally they all thank me heartily, sometimes years later. As a giver of "thought provoking books" this one ranks at the top of my list along with Where the Wild Things Are and The Joy of Sex (my all time favorite "I don't know what to get these people for their wedding" gift)
Rating:  Summary: Isn't the giving a bit one-sided? Review: I remembered loving this before, but when I recently heard it read again at As You Like It, a local literary symposium, I was struck by how sexist it is!
The tree is stereotypically giving *everything* she has, giving up her essence, to please the boy.
Shel, stick with the silly stuff, you do it much better.
Rating:  Summary: Required reading for living Review: The answers to all of life's questions and problems can be found in children's books. But to classify books of this sort as "children's books" is already a gross misservice to the author and his text. The Giving Tree is a narrative reflection on the art of living--of transforming the task of everyday living into an art. In its verbal and thematic simplicity, it exposes and lays bare the root of every human relationship imaginable and, in the character of the tree (perhaps Shelverstein's ironic commentary), teaches humans of all ages what "being human" means. Parents should read this book to their children; children should read it to their parents; teachers should share it with their classes. It belongs on every bookshelf and on the required reading list for living, for it has something to teach us all
Rating:  Summary: A Moving Life Lesson, told with Silversteinian simplicity Review: I didn't discover this book until I was in college (I was already past it's "suggested reading age" when it was first published). Which was fine, as there is simply NO right age to experience this book. It is a book for every age. This past Christmas, I bought a copy for my four year old nephew who, although he may not glean all that the book has to offer immediately, will, I hope, come to love this story as much as I have. We should all heed it's lessons about giving and, more importantly, I think, receiving
Rating:  Summary: Great Book!! Review: Dear Shel Silverstien,
I know you may not read this, but i would like to say that
the giving Tree is my favorite book in the world. It expresses
the value and rewards of giving to others, and you should
be commended for it. I have many of your books and all of them inspire me. My friend and I have written various poems ourselves.
I hope you read this
Krista Rompolski, PA
Rating:  Summary: A children's story for all ages. Review: This book is among my favorites from my personal collection of children's books. The tree is always there, generous and supportive for the child. It makes me want to be the tree for my family. (If anyone out there wants to be the tree for me I'm taking applications.) The only reason I don't read The Giving Tree more often is that I can't without choking up. The story has all kinds of lessons for everyone. Especially (I think) about not forgetting to thank those who support all of us, sometimes in ways we cannot see
Rating:  Summary: A well of generousity from Silverstein and the tree. Review: I have loved this book growning up, and continue to be touched by the incredible
generosity shown by the tree to the boy. This book is classic Silverstein, and should
reside in every library - regardless of age. It is simply a classic, and it still makes
me cry.
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