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Every Thing on It
- By Shel Silverstein
- Genre: Poetry
Common Sense Media says
Another classic poetry collection by the master of whimsy.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this book is a collection of 145 previously unpublished poems and illustrations by the late Shel Silverstein, author of The Giving Tree, A Giraffe and a Half, and the poetry collections Falling Up and A Light in the Attic. The subject matter is all G-rated. Edgiest content is a punch line about pee in "Housebroken": The puppy is housebroken at last?/ Lord only knows he was needin' it/ You've trained him to go/ On the newspaper? Fine./ But please -- not while I'm readin' it.
What's the story?
This is the first posthumous collection of poems and line drawings published since Silverstein died in 1999. He lives on in these kid-friendly gems that reflect his vast imagination and his undaunted spirit as he makes lemonade out of life's lemons. The tone ranges from wry observation to fanciful speculation to outright silliness.
Is it any good?
Silverstein's mastery is on display as he takes mundane or imagined situations and spins them into laughs or meaningful observations. Many of his poems are bite-sized -- just two to six lines longs. Most reflect a kid-like goofiness, some reveal the mature wisdom of someone who remains young at heart, as in "The Dollhouse": You can't crawl back in the dollhouse --/ You've gotten too big to get in./ You've got to live here/ Like the rest of us do./ You've got to walk roads/ That are winding and new./ But oh, I wish I could/ Crawl back with you./ Into the dollhouse again.
Silverstein's line drawings are the perfect accompaniment to his flights of fancy. Some characters have the deadpan, overburdened demeanor of a person in a New Yorker cartoon. Some have the loose, offhanded look of a notebook doodle. All are guaranteed to give a lift to readers of any age.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about what makes a good poem. Is it the rhyme? The rhythm? The way you can say a lot in just a few words?
What makes Shel Silverstein's poems funny? He's not telling jokes, but sometimes he makes you laugh out loud. How does he use humor to get his point across?
Maybe you would like to try writing a poem. Silverstein writes about everyday things like a hot dog, a blow dryer, and cowboy boots, but also about made-up things, like a man-eating plant, a car with legs instead of wheels, a stairway to the sun. And sometimes he just plays with words, like "a lizard in a blizzard." What do you think you could write a poem about?
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Kid, 9 years old
November 27, 2011
AGE
love it
i got this book for my 9 year old for christmas.she loved it i loved it . i hope this helped
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| Author: | Shel Silverstein |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | Poetry |
| Publisher: | Harper |
| Publication date: | September 20, 2011 |
| Number of pages: | 208 |
| Hardcover price: | $19.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 9 - 12 |
| Read aloud: | 12 |
| Read alone: | 12 |
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