Every Thing On It

>Poems and Drawings by Shel Silverstein

Beloved children’s poet Shel Silverstein passed away in 1999, but this new poetry book just came out in September. It includes many wonderful poems and drawings Silverstein did before he died, compiled by his family and friends and publisher. Thank goodness the world did not miss out on these treasures! I savored reading it, reveling in the absurd silliness just as I did when reading Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, and his other books for the first time when I was a kid.

In this 200-page volume with the classic white cover and ink drawing, you never know what the next page will bring — a 2-line snippet about your hair dryer (“Whoosh”) or a long silly poem about what to do with “A Mouse In This House.” Silverstein’s poems are simple yet amazing, inspiring me to memorize lines and verses so I can pull them out of my memory later when I need a laugh. A few small, serious poems carefully placed amid the inane and hilarious ones take the reader a little off guard. Silverstein is a master at making us both laugh at and think about ourselves and our world.

Please check this one out! You just can’t afford to miss it.

Reviewed by Jennifer

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