For such a small children's book The Giving Tree has managed to polarize opinions on a very interesting topic: the joy of giving. At what point does selflessness equal madness and folly, or at what point is unconditional love become toxic behavior?



The story is of a boy and an apple tree. The boy grows up and keeps demanding of the tree and the tree keeps on lovingly providing for the boy until there is nothing left but a stump.



Silverstein initially found it difficult to get The Giving Tree published as publishers thought the subject matter was too sad for children. However, upon release, the book became increasingly popular by word-of-mouth. Christian schools and churches found the subject matter of the joys of giving very much to the tastes of biblical stories. Other readers had less favorable views of the story. For instance, the boy in the book never seemed to thank the tree, leading to readers speaking out that the boy was exploiting the tree. Some even went as far as calling the relationship between the boy and tree as masochistic.