Title: Treacherous message beneath a pleasant surface
Review: Put me with the vocal minority who had a profound negative reaction to this story. I admire Silverstein's children's poetry, but I don't at all admire this book. The relationship between the boy and the tree is an amazingly accurate metaphor for an abusive relationship. One side is endlessly giving and in the process is destroyed. The other is endlessly taking but never manages reach any kind of satisfaction. I seriously doubt Silverstein intended this parallel, but it speaks clearly to me. It's not an image I'd want in the mind of a son or daughter of mine as he or she grows up.
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