We truly enjoyed Shel Silverstein's A Light in the Attic last time and so when we came across another one of his books in our last Library Day, we did not hesitate to borrow it.
As with A Light in the Attic, Where the Sidewalk Ends is also a book compilation of Silverstein's poems and drawings.
His distinctive writing style is playful, filled with clever wordplay, unexpected twists, and a sense of wonder for both children and adults.
And so, let's dive in.
As usual, the kids and I randomly flip the pages and read whatever we think is interesting. Sometimes, we choose the shorter ones, but interesting and engaging through Silverstein's magnificent display of word play.
Of course, the illustrations never fail to give more life to the poems, no matter how short they are.
Out of the blue, I would read a short verse from the book and that would perk up our conversations.
My youngest is eight, turning nine in a couple of months. Yet, we almost never failed our book time at bedtime ever since he was born. To this, I attribute his wit and his eloquence. Recently, Little Miss also joins us in our nightly book time.
So the past couple of weeks, we would choose some longer poems from the book. Poems that are almost like bedtime stories, like "The Unicorn".
The Unicorn is tells is why we no longer see unicorns in the present day. Hmmm, let's just say, we can ask Noah about it.
Although A Light in the Attic also had poems that had some dark humor, I personally took more notice of that here in Where the Sidewalk Ends.
In A Light in the Attic, Silverstein's humor can also venture into darker or mischievous territory, but it often feels more surreal and dreamlike. Here in Where the Sidewalk Ends, it feels slightly more cutting at times, with more poems directly dealing with death, absurd consequences, or grimly ironic twists.
Like, Dreadful...
So, who ate the baby?!
I find the thought of some poems more morbid, although Silverstein still expertly presented them in a light and playful tone that it is not hard to read, even by kids.
Oh, I remember the poor crocodile who had a toothache... You'd have to guess what happened to the dentist he visited. Oh well, I think the dentist also had a role to play in what happened to him!
My kids were previously not too open reading about topics like death or deception. But through these poems, we are able to openly discuss about them through the lens of humor, making it easier to explore more complex emotions and situations with a smile.
We still have some poems from the book that we haven't read, so we're extending our lease time!
How about you, what is in your reaading list?
All photos are taken by the author from the pages of the book, Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein.
