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Book Summary

Reviewed by Peter Lewis

In light verse Shel Silverstein delivers both a moral lesson and mischief. Had everyone who ever read these poems followed their teachings, we would live in a funky, imagination-fevered world free of whiners, charlatans, spoiled brats, and losers.

Is It Any Good?

4

For many modern children, Shel Silverstein is their introduction to the joys of poetry. For decades he has tickled and enchanted generations of kids, and acted as a counterweight to the insipid poems they encounter in their basal readers. Silverstein looks at life from unexpected angles -- full of spirit and merriment and salad days. He sticks it to the naggers and the greedy and the lazy; their only recourse is to get a grip.

He gives voice to fears that are hard to express: "Last night, while I lay thinking here, / Some Whatifs crawled inside my ear." Said Whatifs quickly get to work: "Whatif they start a war? / Whatif my parents get divorced? / Whatif the bus is late? / Whatif my teeth don't grow in straight? / Whatif I tear my pants? / Whatif I never learn to dance?" The poems are complemented with Silverstein's expressive and innovative pen-and-ink illustrations.

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