I recently had occasion
to re-read ‘The Giving Tree’ when our Youth Services Librarian discovered it
was not available to our patrons as an audio book. We decided to record it, and I monitored the
recording.
Even though it was
written 50 years ago, it is still relevant – maybe even more so today in our ‘me,
me, me’ society.
In this case, a lovely apple
tree gives and gives and gives of itself to a little boy who grows into an old
man, still accepting the gifts of life given by the tree.
The themes of
self-sacrifice, of taking, and of giving should make readers of all ages think
deeply about what it means to love, and whether love requires us to deplete
ourselves for others.
64 pages
