Want personalized picks that fit your family?
Set preferences to see our top age-appropriate picks for your kids.
A Light in the Attic
Common Sense says
- Shel Silverstein
- Poetry
- 1971
Parents say
Kids say
Searching for streaming and purchasing options ...
Common Sense is a nonprofit organization. Your purchase helps us remain independent and ad-free.
Get it now on
Searching for streaming and purchasing options ...
Common Sense is a nonprofit organization. Your purchase helps us remain independent and ad-free.
A lot or a little?
The parents' guide to what's in this book.
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that the playful language and light look at (sometimes serious) subject matter keep kids entertained. The art is expressive and sometimes pleasingly over-the-top.
Stay up to date on new reviews.
User Reviews
- Parents say
- Kids say
Shel Rhymes With Bell
Introduction to Poems
What's the story?
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?
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.
Talk to your kids about ...
Families can talk about the pleasure of these poems. Why do you enjoy them?
These are great poems for kids to perform aloud and could inspire kids to write their own poems.
Book details
- Author: Shel Silverstein
- Illustrator: Shel Silverstein
- Genre: Poetry
- Book type: Non-Fiction
- Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
- Publication date: January 1, 1971
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 9 - 12
- Number of pages: 177
For kids who love verse
Our editors recommend
Top advice and articles
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.