Customer Reviews

Where the Sidewalk Ends 30th Anniversary Edition: Poems and Drawings

5 star:		(124)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I started reading this and other of Shel Silverstein's books when I was about four or five and to this day I have never "outgrown" him. I mean, who can? His rhymes and poems, songs and riddles, they all work for everybody with half a degree of imagination. The most cursory read of Where The Sidewalk Ends will show you not only how good/funny/imaginative/likable/silly/deep Silverstein is (sigh, was...) but you'll catch on to why he was so darn cool. This man was close personal friends with Roman Catholic Cardinals, hippies, rabbis, other poets, songwriters, and no less an icon than Hef, himself. (Shel practically lived the whole 1970's at the Playboy Mansion.) A little known fact is, Shel Silverstein even wrote a little song for his buddy Johnny Cash called "A Boy Named Sue". Ever heard of it? And of everything Shel wrote, the many books out there, I think this one MIGHT just be his best.

Or, wait...no, maybe it's The Light In The Attic.

No, no....maybe it's actually The Giving Tree....

Maybe? Maybe it was Falling Up?

I can never decide. One thing I do know and that's Where The Sidewalk Ends is Silverstein at his most awesome!

I love this book!! My sister loves it too. It's because it IS a masterpiece and will forever remain one. Silverstein's rhymes and poems, songs and riddles -- they all work for everybody with half a degree of imagination. Another great book that I got as a birthday gift is Why Some Cats are Rascals, Book 2". I found it much more interesting than Book 1

This book was very enjoyable. It made me laugh out loud. My favorite is Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout Would not take the Garbage Out! I really recommend it for everyone!

I don't really like poetry that much but this book made me look at poetry differently. I especially liked the poems "Invitation", "Sarah Sylvia Synthia Stout Would not Take the Garbage Out" and "Ickle me Tickle me Pickle me Too." All of these poems are hilarious favorites and I think other kids will like them too! If you're looking for a book of funny poems, I highly recommend this book.

This Special Edition is a collection of 139 poems by Shel Silverstein, originally appeared in 1974 - some short, some long and most of them are accompanied by his own drawings, overflowing with humor and heart. When asked to pick a book from a list of 40 titles, both my kids (ages 6 & 8; girl & boy) requested to read WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS and their enthusiasm attests to the warm truth that since his passing in 1999, his words, both unique and universal, still speak deeply to today's kids. Shel makes children laugh. Can you imagine a Hippopotamus sandwich? In this book not only will you read one, you will see one, too! Shel makes children think - just about everything in the most daring original way. Shel sees the world through the goofy imaginative eyes of children and his invitation to take a walk to the edge of this silly wolrd is greeted with excitement by both kids and their grown-ups.

"And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends."

Shel Silverstein was a magician with words and the English language, and his linguistic dexterity is on full display in this collection. To read it to the young is to show them the possibilities of language, and in that regard these poems are necessary reading.
Like most of us, I first came across these poems in my elementary school classroom. I bought this collection a while ago, and read through it at the pace of a few poems a day. The memories that came flooding back were astounding to me.
Many have said this is a book of funny nonsense poems. Nothing could be further from the truth. Although this collection has its share of "nonsense" poems, almost every piece in this collection has some point or lesson. Poems like "Invitation", "No Difference", and "The Little Blue Engine" are profound in their simplicity and in the depth of their themes. Silverstein was also a savage satirist and there are more than a few biting pieces in this collection.
Read it to the young, but you will get something from it also!

Every child should experience the genius of Shel Silverstein. His poems "speak" to children, and adults alike. To this day, this is one of our now 18-year-old son's favorite books!

I enjoyed these poems as a child, and now reading them to my children gives me giggles and entertains my young ones too. These poems are unique, fascinating, creative, and always thoroughly enjoyable.

This is my first book of poetry. I like most of the poems because some are funny and some are lovely. I like the illustrations, very nice drawings. I even tried to draw them and they came out very good. The book is very easy to read because most of the poems are short. I also love it because there is a CD that you could hear it while you read the book. Finally I recommend this book because the author is very creative, it is a very nice book!
- Keyli F. Gomez

I've got a lot of fond memories of this book. I used to read the poems over and over again when I was younger. I found them quite hilarious and entertaining. It's no mystery to me that this book has survived and been prosperous for over thirty years.

My favorite poem in it is called: Smart. It is about a boy who is labeled smart by his father. Then, to either live up to his father's expectations or to prove to himself the worthiness of his new title, he goes around exchanging his monetary items for ones of higher quantity, but of lower combined value. Example: he exchanges one one dollar bill for two quarters! The humorous climax when the kid tells his dad of his ventures, and the dad's obvious embarrassment help make, Smart, a cute and mind provoking poem that I really enjoyed as a kid and still do today.

Children will enjoy this book, and parent be warned, your kids probably will come to you with questions (not that that's a bad thing).

Darien Summers, author of The Mischievous Hare, a children's book. The Mischievous Hare