At first glance, the story is straightforward: a tree loves a boy, and throughout his life, she gives him everything she can—her apples, her branches, her trunk—until she is reduced to a stump. The boy, meanwhile, grows into a man who continues to take from the tree as his needs change. It’s told in Silverstein’s signature style: sparse text, simple line drawings, and a tone that feels almost quiet and matter-of-fact.
