Childrens Literature and Literacy

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Book title and Author(s): 
//Where The Sidewalk Ends// by Shel Silverstein

Introduce the book (Genre and age range):
This is a poetry book for children ages 4-8.

Summary:
This is a collection of short poems. They vary in length, structure and theme. They are all between one and two pages. Many of them contain very interesting and creative drawings to accompany them. Each poem is different from the last, so there is not an in-depth way of describing it besides saying that it is a collection or compilation.

Favorite Part:
Two of the poems are tied for my favorites. First is “Invitation”. This appeals so much to children because it calls upon them to be using things such as their imagination and creativity while reading and that these poems cater to them specifically. I like that a lot, especially since children are so inherently creative. It really is a call to action of sorts. The other poem that I enjoyed the most is “Listen To The Mustn’ts”. This is because it acknowledges the negativity one can face in their life. It does not tell the readers to disregard the negativity because, no matter what, it’ll be there. However, it finishes with a powerful message that anything can happen. It is a simplified way of saying never give up or lose hope because of the possibility that something could, in fact happen, instead of nothing.

Recommendation:
I would recommend this book for children. It has a lot of really silly and clever poems that have unique rhyming schemes and structures. These alone are really entertaining poems that can suck students into the world of poetry very easily and hopefully enjoy it as well. If it was just that, the book would be great. It also has a lot of really heartfelt and impactful poems, like the aforementioned poems. They have really powerful messages for children and could potentially be very influential for them as they grow up. It definitely was for me. If it was not, I would not be revisiting this poem so many years later.