Where the Sidewalk Ends/Every Thing On It: Poems and Drawings by Shel Silverstein

by Shel Silverstein

If you are a dreamer, come in, If you are a dreamer, a wisher, a liar, A hope-er, a pray-er, a magic bean buyer . . . If you're a pretender, come sit by my fire For we have some flax-golden tales to spin. Come in! Come in! This Collectible Edition brings together two masterful collections of poems and drawing by Shel Silverstein that are at once outrageously funny and profound. In Where the Sidewalk Ends, you'll discover that where the sidewalk ends Shel Silverstein's world begins. You'll meet a boy who turns into a TV set, and a girl who eats a whale. The Unicorn and the Bloath live there, and so does Sara Sylvia Stout who will not take the garbage out. It is a place where you wash your shadow and plant diamond gardens, a place where shoes fly, sisters are auctioned off, and crocodiles go to the dentist. Every Thing On It is a book with . . .well, everything on it. It's an amazing collection of never-before-published poems and drawings from Shel Silverstein. You will say Hi-ho for the toilet troll, get tongue-tied with Stick-a-Tongue-Out-Sid, play a highly unusual horn, and experience the joys of growing down. Where the Sidewalk Ends/Every Thing On It is one of Barnes & Noble's Collectible Editions classics. Each volume features authoritative texts by the world's greatest authors in an exquisitely designed bonded-leather binding, with distinctive gilt edging and a ribbon bookmark. Decorative, durable, and collectible, these books offer hours of pleasure to readers young and old and are an indispensable cornerstone for every home library.

Genres: Poetry, Classics, Childrens, Fiction

380 pages, Leather Bound

Published September 29, 2016

About the author

Shel Silverstein was the author-artist of many beloved books of prose and poetry. He was a cartoonist, playwright, poet, performer, recording artist, and Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated songwriter.

Shel Silverstein will perhaps always be best loved for his extraordinary books. Shel’s books are now published in more than 47 different languages. The last book that was published before his death in 1999 was Falling Up

Reviews

[Ethan Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I personally love this dorky and wacky out of place poetry. It brings so much imagination and inspires many more to start reading. I like this Poem/Poems because they make me want to keep reading and reading, they grab my attention. It really makes me question, "whats the deeper meaning behind this". Once i find it it gives me the satisfaction and the sudden urge to just keep on going. I would recommend this book to the ages 10 and beyond. 10 year olds because it can inspire them to be creative and read more often, and beyond that because it keeps you an your feet and makes you think about life and poetry itself.

[Brittany Hoversten · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this as a joke from a coworker long ago (I collect leather bound classic novels). I finally sat down one night and read it. So nostalgic!

[Kendall Hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of poems and silly tunes
I read these as a child
when I was perhaps more wild
Oh how delightful to read them today
now that I am older and no one can say
“Alright, time to put our books away”
Small and happy in the library of the school
now I have my own copies and make my own rules
Still so silly these poems are
yet now that I am older, I can see past some of the bizarre
Thank you Shel Silverstein
for then and for now
Now I am a poet
and perhaps he was part of the reason why
I thank him, looking to the sky

[Caitlyn G · Rating 4 out of 5]

some of the poems from every thing on it really went hard

[Julianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had this book as a kid, and my kids have recently pulled it off the shelf. They love the pictures & silliness, and the short poems makes good reading practice for beginning readers.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of these are cute
or bold
or funny
or downright cheesy.

But some of them
are sick
and make me feel
downright queasy.

[Aimée · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shel Silverstein Zitate begegneten mir immer wieder im Internet, weswegen meine Neugier geweckt wurde. Dies eine Barnes & Noble Leatherbound Edition, die zwei der bekanntesten Silverstein-Bücher vereint:

"Where the Sidewalk ends" und "Every Thing on It".

Meine Ausgabe ist nun voller Pagemarker, weil ich wirklich wundervolle Gedichte darin entdecken konnte. Allerdings sind die meisten Marker im ersteren Band, der zweite Band bestand größtenteils aus Kinder-gerechten Nonsense-Gedichten, die zwar witzig, aber nicht sehr bedeutungsträchtig waren.

Silversteins Gedichte lassen sich dadurch eigentlich in nur zwei Kategorien teilen: Nonsense-Gedichte, die total abstrus und zum Schreien komisch sind (über das Gedicht einer Schildkröte, die sich am Strand in einen angespülten Dudelsack verliebt, lache ich heute noch!) oder tiefgründige, wundervolle, emotionale und motivierende Stücke ("Masks" ist ein magisches Plädoyer, immer man selbst zu sein). Immer wieder habe ich vor mich hingekichert oder musste Adam ganze Passagen vortragen.

Silversteins Werke sind Klassiker der amerikanischen Kinderliteratur, ähnlich Dr. Seuss. Und auch in mir hat er nun einen neuen Fan gefunden - auf zur Wunschliste! Obwohl er in den 90ern starb, sind seine Texte immer noch aktuell (Quatschgedichte sind sowieso zeitlos). Faszinierend fand ich, dass er seine Gedichte selbst illustrierte und einige der Gedichte ohne die Bebilderung völlig unverständlich wären - extrem interessant gemacht!

Also, wie ihr merkt, ich bin ganz begeistert und freue mich drauf, die anderen Gedichtbände Silversteins zu entdecken.

[Bobby Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a poem book for ages 6-8. This book had won a couple awards. The awards are. The Outstanding Book Award, and ALA Notable Book Award. This is an amazing book of poems that will have your mind wondering everywhere and have you losing track of time as you get buried in this book. The author is outstanding, and you can tell that's she has put her heart in soul in this book. All of the book she has written are my favorite and I make sure I pick them up at least a few time a month. Not too many detailed illustrations which I don't mind because it it's poems and to me, you want to concentrate on the content of the poems. As you read her books you will have mixed emotions but its good to have different emotions because were human. When I finally become a teacher, this is a book I will have in my classroom and I will find a way to implement it into the daily instructions. The reason is because this book will gain the attention of students regardless of what they like. There are so many different poems that you will eventually find what your students like.

[Natalee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shel Silverstein’s Where the Sidewalk Ends/Every Thing on It is a collection of Silverstein’s poems and drawings that vary in both genre and tones. The majority of the poems are amusing though some I found quite disturbing. It was fascinating how something that looked like a children’s poem could have such a dark meaning. It was quite refreshing picking up the book and finding something I didn’t quite expect.
The book was a wonderful read that was well worth my time. Definitely something I’d recommend to those who enjoy humor and a darker twist of horror. What I especially liked about the book was how the author took metaphorical sayings and twisted it quite literally in the poem. For example, his poem “WRONG WAY” that displayed the simple activity at the beach of burying people up to their neck in the sand and flipping it around so instead of the body being buried, it was the head. I probably found it more amusing than it actually was. Overall, I enjoyed the book.

[Kris Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read the book for nostalgia purposes, and to be honest I could not finish it when it got to the point of the earth being “FLAT” (when it’s not by the way).

I read this in grade school wondering why someone even wrote this but more importantly why the school system thought this was suitable for kids to read. Did they not think I’d be impressionable and think these things? If I’m conditions to think there is wisdom in a book, should this not alarm others too?

It was written in 1974, which is not an excuse but an understanding of how outdated the text is. Even if it is a book for “fun”. Fun should not confuse you on something that is proven like science. I also understand things have changed dramatic in the last 50 years, but it really shouldn’t be an excuse to keep it in circulation. Otherwise, it needs a disclaimer on the book suggesting its inaccuracies.

[Dex Vaughn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great choice when thinking of reading your child a story for bed. It's fun to go through random poems and keeps things fresh when you go through the monotony of bedtime reading with a toddler. I'm biased because grew up on Shel Silverstein like everyone else my age did, but these short rhymes have a greater meaningful impact on me since reading them as a child.

I highly recommend pulling this volume out and going through these rhymes under the lens of adulthood/parenthood.

This last note is a bit pedantic, but the B&N Leatherbound edition of this book is also a nice durable product that looks nice on a bookshelf or coffee table. It makes you want to pick it up and flip through it.

[Joseph Ozias · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shel Silverstein is amazing. The way he can be both simple and complicated, beautiful and scary, and happy and sad at the same time is fascinating. To show what I mean, I will leave the one poem that I always cite when discussing Silverstein:

The Little Boy and the Old Man

Said the little boy, 'Sometimes I drop my spoon.'
Said the old man, 'I do that too.'
The little boy whispered, 'I wet my pants.'
'I do that too,' laughed the little old man.
Said the little boy, 'I often cry.'
The old man nodded, 'So do I.'
'But worst of all,' said the boy, 'it seems
Grown-ups don't pay attention to me.'
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
'I know what you mean,' said the little old man.

[Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didnt read these as a kid so it doesn't have the nostalgic factor that I think it does for some people but I liked this book. Alot of the poems are just silly and would be really fun to read to my kiddos. Some are silly but have a kind of lesson in them, and some are really quite poignant and beautiful.

[William Schram · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shel Silverstein wrote poems for children. My only regret is that I did not read these poems when I was a child. Some of these poems are familiar to me, but most of them are new. My only advice is to read this before you grow up.

[Jess N · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just as enjoyable as when I read it as a child. Mr. Silverstein had a way with words and imagery that is timeless. The line art that goes with poetry is whimsical and makes the book a joy to experience.

This is a must for anyone who has enjoyed his work.

[Macy Kay D · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do not normally read things like this, but for what it was I really enjoyed it. The mix of poems that were seemingly just for fun and poems you could easily read more deeply into created a great balance of thought-provoking content and "kid-like" reading.

[Adam James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poems Ranked, Coming Soon.

Where the Sidewalk Ends
A+
• Boa Constrictor
• "The Crocodile's Toothache"
• "Beard"
• "Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me, Too"


YECHHHH
• "Sister for Sale"

[Madhav Nallani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shel Silverstein is a genius.

[Sam Faye · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Shel Silverstein as a child and really enjoyed any book my picked up by him. This wasn't exactly what I remember as a child but a classic nonetheless.

[Carissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm glad I reread these as an adult. I remember now why I loved them as a kid. I love them for a different reason as an adult. Definitely worth reading again.

[Janet Womack · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute book of children's poetry.

[Jude Brigley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the rhymes and rhythms

[Nancy Lieberman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the poems were worth reading others i would not read to my future kids in case they end up doing what the poem says.

[Jamie Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found it so delightful, refreshing and funny. I love the poem ‘Ma and God”.

[Athena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remember these books from when I was a kid. Had to grab it to read to my kiddos 💕

[R.p. Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. I get his sense of humor and his understanding of children.

[Markie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly and sometimes profound, these collected poems of Shel Silverstein elevate children’s literature to a level of imagination not usually attained.

[oasisity · Rating 3 out of 5]

very talented thinker and poet. his ideas and beliefs shined bright as an older reader.

[Britty Kitty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read as part of the bedtime stories read to my bunnies. They rated it 5/5 meadow loops.

[Drew Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always a fun book to read. The poems are captivating and the illustrations are delightful but also a little scary sometimes.