Shel Silverstein Poems

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Shel Silverstein
Sheldon Alan "Shel" Silverstein (September 25, 1930 – May 10, 1999) was an American poet, songwriter, musician, composer, cartoonist, screenwriter and author of children's books. He sometimes styled himself as Uncle Shelby especially for his early children's books. To this day he remains one of the most beloved authors of children's books in the United States. Silverstein confirmed he never studied the poetry of others, and therefore developed his own style: laid-back and conversational, occasionally employing profanity and slang. Shel Silverstein's first book, Grab Your Socks! (1956) collected his early 1950s cartoons for Stars and Stripes.Silverstein's talents were already developed by the time he served in the U.S. army. Silverstein was stationed in Japan and Korea in the 1950s, and while in the military, he was a cartoonist for the Pacific edition of the military newspaper, Stars and Stripes. His name is most commonly known for writing and illustrating his children's literature including The Missing Piece, A Light In The Attic, Lafcadio, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Falling Up, The Giving Tree, and A Giraffe and a Half. For adults he wrote Uncle Shelby's ABZ Book, a satirical mock children's book, and created Different Dances, a coffee table book of wordless, adult-themed cartoons. He continued to write colloquial poetry on occasion throughout his life, including a rap version of Shakespeare's Hamlet that was published (on yellow-beige specialty paper) in Playboy magazine in 1998. He also co-wrote the screenplay Things Change with David Mamet.

snowball
 
 
I made myself a snowball
As perfect as could be.
I thought I'd keep it as a pet
And l... [read poem]
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