Summary: There was an apple farmer who lived alone with is dog. One day while going outside to pick apples, a little man by the name of "take" jumps out of his tree. This man then says that if the farmer follows his advice, his life will be fine. "Take" then tells the farmer throughout the day to take as much as he can which includes many pumpkins and advice to make pumpkin soup. After the farmer is exhausted from trying to take as much stuff as he can and made gallons of pumpkin soup, he realiz...

I loved Chris Raschka's Caldecott Award winning, "A Ball for Daisy," so I was really looking forward to "Give and Take," his latest picture book. Unfortunately, as far as the illustrations go in this new book, I have to admit I was disappointed. The design of the farmer, as well as the other characters, is so abstract and expressionistic in style, that at first glance it can be hard to make out what the characters are doing. In some of the illustrations, the characters are shoved to the margins

I’m planning to read a picture book with a class who is studying world views, point of view, and how people learn to compromise for the good of everyone. This is the book I’ll read, a book that will inspire good discussion. What fun Chris Raschka has offered in a good story of a farmer who is persuaded by one side—Give, and the other side—Take, and ends up in quite a muddle of confusion. The ending is a satisfactory surprise, and Raschka’s illustrations are lively and entertaining as always.

Woof. This one was torturous to read and my kids were begging we never pick it up again.Sloppy too-busy illustrations cluttered around a tale that was just too long and drawn out and not very interesting.

I'm not a huge fan of Raschka's illustration style, and in this case some of the pages were way too busy for young children. The story, on the other hand, was a good one, and a way to show children how taking any form of advice to extremes can be bad. The front cover seems to suggest a parallel with the traditional image of having an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other, giving you advice at the same time, but in fact the story isn't quite that.Of course, a second moral of the story co...

Reminiscent of a classic folktale, Give and Take written and illustrated by Chris Raschka is a charming story of finding middle ground; to do so might supply a fine and sweet conclusion. Listeners will be eager to join in when phrases are repeated. I think this would be a great book to use for reader's theater. It's as fresh, fun and delicious as a newly picked apple.My full recommendation: http://bit.ly/1xieFtr

I like the use of rule of three as the farmer picks apples first from his oldest tree, then his highest tree, and last, his greenest tree. An important message, but the illustrations are distracting to me. They seem rough and hurried.

An apple farmer learns to balance listening to the two little men Give and Take.This tale's moral didn't quite turn out the way I had predicted because not only do the little men prompt the farmer to give/take things but also advice. The moral is thus to balance listening and advising, as well as generosity vs selfishness that most would guess this is about. I like Raschka's illustrations of his dog stories, but the broad strokes and such can make some of these pages hard to understand illustrat...

This is a picture book fable about an apple farmer and two elves named Give and Take. It's a simple story with bold illustrations and a common sense message that will be easily understood by young readers. However, the farmer has an odd shape that may be distracting and is a bit out of sync with the other drawings.

Any book that ends with pie is A-OK with me!

One day an apple farmer is encouraged by a little guy to take, take, take, which leads to problems. The next day he is encouraged by Give to give, give, give, which also leads to problems. The following day, hearing Give and Take arguing over what they think the farmer should do gives the farmer the bright idea to both give and take. This story offers an important lesson for all ages: to find an appropriate balance of give in take in all relationships. Raschka's messy, childlike drawings work in...

A farmer who grows apples discovers a strange little man out in his orchard just as his apples are ready to pick. The little man is named Take and he encourages the farmer to listen to him so that he can have a fine life. Though the farmer already has a fine life, Take promises to make it better. So the farmer goes through his day taking everything. He takes all of his neighbors pumpkins when she offers him some. He takes her advice to make pumpkin soup, and he takes a long hike. Left wishing he...

Meh. This wasn't my book. The illustrations detracted from an already wanting story. I gave it 2 stars because I still see the value in sharing it with children, but I would never use this book as a storytime selection.

This is an interesting story about a farmer who learns about decision-making from Give and Take. The apple farmer meets Take on the first day that he goes to pick apples. He listens to Take and follows his advice and winds up exhausted with gallons and gallons of pumpkin soup that nobody likes. The next day he meets Give and takes his advice. That doesn't work out so well either, as he winds up with an empty basket and an empty head. When he listens to both Give and Take, he learns the benefits

This newest offering from Raschka hit shelves in this August, so I can't believe I've just now read it for the first time. What a wonderful story, perfect for at reading at home or lessons in the classroom. I could see this one being a great fit for a lesson on writing parables and fables. Also, this apple-picking farmer's story has a very autumnal feel and focuses on the balance between give and take, which fits well with Thanksgiving and thankfulness. The illustrations might be overwhelming fo...

Which is better, to give or to take? A farmer picks apples from one of his trees. In the process, a wee little man, who calls himself Take, lands in the farmer's basket. Take encourages the farmer to take as much as he can. That doesn't sound like a bad thing, but it can be.The next day, the farmer picks more apples and this time, a little man named Give lands in his basket. You guessed it, Give encourages the farmer to give as much as he can. That doesn't sound like a bad thing, either, but it

Reads like a fairytale/folktale in which a farmer learns about the balance of give and take. Two little elves representing Give and Take bend the farmer's ear promising happiness and a sweet life, but after following advice from both spirits the farmer learns to strike a balance between the two.Interesting premise, supported by ink and watercolor illustrations in a limited color palette (black, green, red, orange, and ocher). A bit long for a read aloud. PreK-2.

An apple farmer meets two clever little men - one named Take and one named Give. From them he learns that all things need to be held in balance. I liked the story that Raschka lays out - it's reminiscent of a folktale, with nameless characters, lessons to learn. The problem I had with this is Raschka's illustrations. I like his style, especially in A Ball for Daisy, but this work borders on the nearly abstract. I think the coloring and the outlines make the illustrations hard to read - especiall...

This is a rather long fable with a message that didn't seem entirely clear to me. I think we are supposed to learn that life must contain "give" and "take" moments, but I believe a lot of discussion will need to occur for children to understand the moral of this story.I also am not a fan of the illustrations. Raschka has evolved his abstract style more to the grotesque, and I did not feel that the colors were engaging. I am not sure children will find this to be a high-interest book.

An apple farmer encounters two little men, one called give and one called take. They both tell the farmer to listen to everything they tell him and his life will be better. However, after each day of following on of them, his life isn't better, it is empty. The farmer then realizes that together Give and Take are the right balance and will lead to good, new things. I didn't love this book, but I did think that it is a good message and that it explains it in ways that kids can understand and disc...