Everything On It

Author & Illustrator: Shel Silverstein 

© Harper Collins Publishers

195 pages

Poetry

            Everything On It is the newest poetry collection from well known author Shel Silverstein. It was published after his death in 1999 out of poems that he had finished before he died. Silverstein, known for his whit in children’s poetry, does not fall short with his whit in Everything On It. The book starts out with a poem entitled, Everything On It. The boy wants a hotdog with everything on it and the hotdog is so piled high with condiments that the boy can’t even hold it, much less eat it. Silverstein’s books never have an overall theme to the collection of poetry, but they are all to be enjoyed by children of all ages.

            Shel Silverstein is known for his cartoon-like images drawn in only black ink. All of his books do not have any color to them unless it’s the cover or the dust jacket. His use of negative space makes his artwork famous.

            This collection of poems could be used in any classroom for any age. The poems make children of any age laugh. A teacher could use the poems to trigger a writing topic and the students could write one of their own ridiculous poems. The teacher could also use these poems to introduce rhyme or cause and effect. The teacher could also use his poems to introduce the genres of poetry and fantasy, because much of his work is fantasy.

            This book has not won any awards; however, the author is famous for his poetry style and has won awards for many of his other books. What many people don’t know is Shel Silverstein won a Grammy for “A Boy Named Sue,” which was performed by Johnny Cash.

                                To learn more about this author check out his website.  Click here.