I am as skeptical as the next person about works released posthumously, as was the latest Shel Silverstein poetry collection Every Thing On It. However, it looks and feels quite genuine to me — from the oh-so-familiar black and white cover design and font, line drawings (which I never realized were done by Silverstein himself), and the black and white photo of the author on the back cover.
I have such fond memories of Shel Silverstein, from my own years treasuring my collections, laughing to myself and reading them aloud when anyone would listen. Then when Amanda was 9 or 10, she and her friends discovered the hilarity themselves. And it is my 2nd grader, Kyle, who has been enjoying this book. He’s long been a fan of silly poems, so when I asked him to check out this collection, he dug right in.
I know he’s enjoying a book when he carts it to the car and back, which is what he’s done with Every Thing On It. I too have enjoyed Silverstein’s twist of language and meaning in this volume (such as the title poem, also depicted in picture form). If anything, I’d say that these poems seem shorter and simpler, which is perhaps why they never made it into another of his published books, but that was actually perfect for my son.
April is National Poetry month, so we’ll be featuring quite a few collections over the coming weeks (you can also check out all of our past poetry reviews). But remember that poetry should not just be reserved for this month each year. Make it a part of your home library to be enjoyed on a regular basis.
I haven’t seen this one yet, but just the other day I brought A LIGHT IN THE ATTIC outside onto our school’s playground in the afternoon. You’d be amazed at how many children stopped running around or riding tricycles just to listen to some fabulously wacky Silverstein poems. They are so, so much fun to read aloud. 🙂
I know! Silly poetry is the best.
My 11-year-old son love Silverstein. I’ll look out for this.