91. Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson
92. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein (maybe in a future post I'll elaborate on how much I hate this book)
93. Moja Means One by Muriel and Tom Feelings
94. Jambo Means Hello, ditto
95. Corn is Maize by Aliki
96. The Invisible Princess by Faith Ringgold
2 comments:
Oh GOD I find The GIving Tree to be one of the most disturbing books ever. Is Silverstein endorsing this as a metaphor for giving? Give until you have nothing left? If it's an environmental message, it's equally disturbing. Any way you read it, it really really creeps me out.
Now, the Big O - that is a SIlverstein classic.
That's basically why I hate it. I mean, I assume that the point is to illustrate a concept similar to ksanti, where you give to someone who might not deserve it, not because you're giving in or being a pushover, but because you're consciously choosing to give your patience or your time or whatever as a gift (without expecting anything in return), because you know this makes the world a better place.
But when simplified down so much, it just doesn't work. It should be called "the taking guy," not "the giving tree," the way it's portrayed. And yeah, if he were going for an environmental message, wouldn't he do better for the tree to start out getting knocked down in a storm or something, and THEN the people come along and find uses for all the parts?
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