Where the Sidewalk Ends explained

Where the Sidewalk Ends
Border:	yes
Author:	Shel Silverstein
Illustrator:	Shel Silverstein
Cover Artist:	Shel Silverstein
Country:	United States
Language:	English
Genre:	Children's poetry
Publisher:	Harper & Row
Pub Date:	1974
Pages:	309 and Aric

Where the Sidewalk Ends is a 1974 children's poetry collection written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein.^[1] It was published by Harper and Row Publishers. The book's poems address common childhood concerns and also present fanciful stories and imaginative images. Silverstein's work is valued by people of all ages, primarily due to his skill in subtly communicating social implications through his simple language. Controversial because of its satiric approach to difficult subjects and its theme of challenging authority figures, the book was first banned in 1986 in many libraries and schools.^[2] ^[3] ^[4]

A 30th Anniversary Edition of the book appeared in 2004, and two audio editions (1983 and 2000) are also available.

Contents and editions

The collection contains a series of poems, including the title poem "Where the Sidewalk Ends", as well as illustrations. The dedication of the book reads “For Ursula”, and the author gives thanks to Ursula Nordstrom, Barbara Borack, Kadijah Cooper, Dorothy Hagen, Beri Greenwald, Gloria Bressler, and Bill Cole. In 2004, a special 30th Anniversary Edition was published, which included 12 new poems. The following titles are found only in the 30th Anniversary Edition:

The Truth About Turtles
Oops!
Mr. Grumpledump's Song
Naked Hippo
Who's Taller?
Monsters
Weightliftress
Don't Tell Me
Ten-O-Cycle
The Unfunny Jester
Open—Close
Gorilla

Title Poem

“Where the Sidewalk Ends”, the title poem and also Silverstein’s best known poem, encapsulates the core message of the collection. The reader is told that there is a hidden, mystical place "where the sidewalk ends", between the sidewalk and the street. The poem is divided into three stanzas. Although straying from a consistent metrical pattern, Silverstein gives us a simple rhythm, utilizing predominantly iambic tetrameter. This metrical structure consists of four iambs, each holding an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.

Audio editions

Original album

The audio edition of the book was originally released as an album in 1983, which won the 1984 Grammy Award for Best Recording For Children (Columbia/CBS Records). The collection is recited, sung, and shouted by Shel Silverstein himself and produced by Ron Haffkine. Silverstein also performed at the 1984 Grammy Awards. At the 27th Annual Grammy Awards, Silverstein won in the category "Best Recording For Children" for his audio recording of "Where The Sidewalk Ends".^[5]

The following poems can be heard on the album:

Side A

Invitation – An unknown person wishing the reader to sit by their fire.
Eighteen Flavors – The narrator lists the flavors in his tall ice cream cone and is saddened when the ice cream falls on the ground.
Melinda Mae – A girl eats a whale (the process taking 89 years).
Sick – A little girl develops an ingenious plan to get out of school before realizing it isn't needed.
Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me Too – These three characters run away in a flying shoe.
Enter This Deserted House – A decrepit house and its dwellers are described.
Jimmy Jet and His TV Set – As happens to most modern humans, a boy watches TV for so long that he turns into one.
For Sale – Someone tries to sell his sister.
Warning – The poem warns of a snail living in people's noses that will bite their finger if they pick their nose.
The Yipiyuk – A Yipiyuk has bitten someone's toe, and will not come off.
Crocodile’s Toothache – A sadistic dentist is eaten by a crocodile.
Stone Telling – The author throws stones at windows to see if they're open or closed.
Ridiculous Rose – A ridiculous girl eats with her toes.
Boa Constrictor – A boa constrictor eats people.
Peanut–Butter Sandwich – One of Silverstein's longer poems, about a foolish young king who is obsessed with peanut butter to the point that it is all he eats and that the only lesson the schools in his kingdom teaches is "how to make a peanut butter sandwich". One day, he eats an extra sticky peanut butter sandwich which cements his mouth shut. Various methods fail until everyone in the kingdom works together with hooks to pry his mouth open. The people expect the king to have learned his lesson and try some other foods, but his first saying after being saved is (albeit weakly) "How about a peanut butter sandwich?"
Listen to the Mustn’ts – Although pessimists argue otherwise, anything is possible.
I Will Not Hatch – A chick will not hatch because of the terrible descriptions of what's going on in the world.

Side B

Hug o’ War – The narrator states that a hugging game is more fun than tug-o-war.
Smart – A boy is paid a dollar by his father, and soon ends up with five pennies by trading money with his friends. He thinks he’s very smart for doing so, but his father shakes his head in disbelief that he has now been reduced to five cents.
The Farmer and the Queen – A queen is visiting a farm, and the farmer asks the animals for advice on what to do. At the advice of his dog, he bows to her and she smiles for his polite gesture.
The One Who Stayed – The story of the Pied Piper as told by a kid who was too scared to follow him.
No Difference – The author states that there'd be no prejudice if the world was completely dark.
Wild Boar – The author says that it doesn't matter how many teeth you say a boar has, because he doesn't know the answer himself.
Thumbs – A thumb-sucker praises the taste of his thumb.
Sarah Cynthia Silvia Stout Would Not Take The Garbage Out – A little girl refuses to take out her house's garbage, and soon, it piles up so much, everyone stays away from her house. By the time she decides to do so, it is already too late, and she ends up meeting a terrible fate that the author cannot recall (it is implied she was either consumed by the garbage or suffocated by its smell).
My Hobby – Someone spends their time spitting from a window of a tall building.
Early Bird – If you're a bird, get up early, but if you're a worm, sleep late.
Me–Stew – A cook makes stew out of himself.
Captain Hook – The narrator states that Captain Hook should be careful when using his hook, and is glad to not be him.
With His Mouth Full of Food – Young Milford Dupree ignores his parents' pleas to stop talking with his mouth full, and they have it glued shut as punishment.
The Flying Festoon – A child plans to fly around on a strange bird.
The Silver Fish – A boy catches a talking fish, who tricks the boy into setting him free by offering to grant him a wish. The second time the boy catches the fish, however, he doesn't fall for the trick.
The Generals – Two generals named General Clay and General Gore debate amongst themselves about having to "fight in this silly war". They instead suggest a holiday at the beach, which is well-received until they both are overcome with the thought of being dragged out to sea. Deciding that they do not want to die by drowning, they do their duty and charged off to war, "which is why we hear no more of General Clay or General Gore".
The Worst – Shel describes a horrible monster he says is standing behind the readers.
Dreadful – A baby girl has been devoured, and no one knows why it happened (the speaker burps at the end, and it is implied that they are the ones who did it).
My Beard – A man wears his long beard instead of clothes.
Producer & Director: Ron Haffkine, Keith Cozart
Engineer: jb & Danny Mundhenk & Oliver Masciarotte
Mastering: Denny Purcell

Recorded at Bullet Recording, Nashville, Blank Tapes, New York, and in Studio D at Criteria Recording in Miami, Florida.

25th anniversary album

In 2000, the album was re-released on cassette and CD for the 25th anniversary of the book. This collection is copyrighted 1984 and 2000 by Sony Music Entertainment Inc. The collection is again recited, sung, and shouted by Shel Silverstein.

The 25th anniversary edition also contains 11 previously unreleased tracks culled from the original master tapes. They are as follows:

The Little Blue Engine
If I Had a Brontosaurus
One Inch Tall
Long-Haired Boy
Rain
True Stories
Hungry Mungry
Standing
If The World Was Crazy
Hector the Collector
Spaghetti

Controversy

Where the Sidewalk Endss satirical humor and tone is viewed as inappropriate by some adults for young readers, due to its sometimes dark themes and illustrations. The book uses satire to address topics such as religion, death, and violence. According to literary critic John M. Kean, "Critics have made unwarranted assumptions about children and their responses to Silverstein's poetry. They assume that children take everything literally, that they have no understanding of the ironic, satirical, or other form of literary humor."^[6]

Notes and References

Web site: About Shel . 2023-05-24 . Shel Silverstein . en-US.
Margalit . Ruth . 2014-11-05 . "The Giving Tree" at Fifty: Sadder Than I Remembered . en-US . The New Yorker . 2023-05-24 . 0028-792X.
Web site: 23 Banned Books You Should Probably Read Right Now . 2023-05-24 . Reader's Digest . en-US.
Web site: 2011-08-15 . Banned Books Awareness: Shel Silverstein – Banned Books Awareness . 2023-05-24 . en-US.
Web site: Grammy . 2023-05-24 . www.grammy.com.
Book: Kean, John M. . Censored Books: Critical Viewpoints . Scarecrow Press . 1993 . 978-0-8108-2667-0 . Karolides . Nicholas J. . Lanham, MD . 488-489 . Finding Humor and Value in Where the Sidewalk Ends and A Light in the Attic . Burress . Lee . Kean . John M..