Wulf C. Krueger

A children’s tale glorifying an abusive relationship with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer

Shel Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree” is often celebrated as a classic of children’s literature, yet, reading it now, I struggle to see the appeal. Where contemporaries in the genre – such as Maurice Sendak’s “Where the Wild Things Are” – bring subtext, wit, and magic, Silverstein’s approach here is relentlessly didactic.

The narrative, centring on a boy’s lifelong (abusive) relationship with a perpetually self-sacrificing tree, bludgeons the reader with its message of unconditional giving to the point of tedium. “The Giving Tree” has all the subtlety of a sledgehammer.

The story’s moral simplicity feels not only outdated but, frankly, rather joyless. One leaves the tale with a sense of manipulation, not enlightenment. This might suffice for those in search of finger-wagging parables, but for those yearning for depth or nuance, there are far better options in the children’s canon.

One star out of five.

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I’m a fan of the entire Josie Quinn series by Lisa Regan. Sadly, “Husband Missing” left me disappointed on several levels.

It started out well: Josie is summoned to the crime scene of a mysterious murder. On her return home, she finds everything in disarray and, worst of all, her husband, Noah, is missing and there’s blood…

Of course, Josie wants to investigate, but is quickly sidelined because both cases seem to be linked. Josie, hardly able to keep a coherent thought, goes on a wild goose chase that leads her to her own past — including the late Lila Jensen.

We get lots of “big emotions” from Josie, but not much of the police procedural that I expected. Turner and Gretchen from her team make some appearances, but for most of the novel, we’re solely following Josie and her stumbling attempts to make sense of the whole convoluted drama that ensues. And, honestly, much of it doesn’t make much sense. Least of all does the all-too-convenient “deus ex machina” moment at the very end.

The rest of Josie’s team is also completely absent (apart from a collective cameo at a celebration at the very end). As a result, the usual dynamics are completely missing. The sole focus is on Josie and her frantic search for Noah.

As always, the writing itself is fine, but for some inexplicable reason, Regan chose to mostly stick to very short chapters – including introducing abrupt, nonsensical chapter breaks. Sometimes even in the midst of conversations that just immediately resume in the next chapter. This causes annoying, completely useless, and meritless interruptions while reading.

For fans and completionists like me, “Husband Missing” is a must-read. Everyone else should probably steer clear of this instalment. It also doesn’t lend itself as an introduction to this series because much of it simply won’t make much sense without knowing how Josie grew up…

Three stars out of five.

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