The Giving Tree

Silverstein, Shel. The Giving Tree. Illustrated by Shel Silverstein. HarperCollinsPublishers, 1964. 52 pages.

The Giving Tree written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein is a children’s book that withstands the test of time, and has a message for any reader no matter their age. The Giving Tree is a book about a young boy who loves a tree, but as the boy grows up he loves the tree less and less. The tree and the boy represent a typical mother child relationship. Shel Silverstein uses very basic illustrations to convey his message of growing up. Silverstein uses a variety of thick and thin, straight and curved lines to draw both the boy and the tree. He also just uses a pen and ink in his illustrations leaving most of the pages white. Even though Silverstein uses very bland utensils and colors, his illustrations perfectly fit the story line of the book.

This book raises many ethical philosophical questions for a young child. The child is left wondering if what the boy did is right or wrong. After this book is read to a child one should ask the child their opinion on the novel, to see how they view what the boy did. The tree represents an unconditionally loving parent, while the boy represents the definition of growing up. As the boy grows older he visits the tree less and less, the only time the boy visits the tree is when he wants something. The tree constantly says that she is happy until the boy leaves her with nothing but a stump.

And the tree was happy… but not really.

This could indeed be confusing for children because they would have trouble deciding if the tree was happy or sad. The tree is an enabler and her happiness depends on the boy’s happiness. She herself has no identity without the boy. The core of this children’s book deals with the reality of growing up and the truth behind happiness.