Shel Silverstein (1930–1999)

Author of The Giving Tree

109+ Works 72,963 Members 2,570 Reviews 153 Favorited

About the Author

The most popular current writer of humorous verse for children, Shel Silverstein was born in Chicago, Illinois, has been married and divorced, has one daughter, and currently lives in Brooklyn, New York. His career includes composing popular songs, drawing cartoons, writing many adult articles show more (several for Playboy), and acting. However, he is best known for his self-illustrated children's poetry. His first such book was Uncle Shelby's Story of Lafcadio, the Lion Who Shot Back (1963), the humorous tale of a lion who turns the tables on hunters. It was followed by The Giving Tree (1964), a story of a parentlike tree that gives endlessly and is endlessly used by its son. Several other such picture books followed, including The Missing Piece (1976), about a circle that goes in search of a missing piece, and its sequel, The Missing Piece Meets the Big O (1981). However, two collections of poetry are probably his best-loved work: Where the Sidewalk Ends: The Poems and Drawings of Shel Silverstein (1974), and A Light in the Attic (1981). All of Silverstein's poetry for children employs the language play common to Lewis Carroll and Edward Lear. Silverstein is probably the best of the contemporary nonsense poets for children. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Includes the names: Shl Slvrstn, Shel Silvertein, Shel Silversein, Shel Silvertein, Shel Silvestein, Shel Siverstein, Shel Silerstein, Shel Silverstin, Silverstein Shel, Shel Silverstain, Shel Silverstien, Shel Silverstien, Shel Silverstein, shel silversteen, shel silverstine, Shel Sliverstein, Shell Silverstien, SIilverstein Shel, Shell Silverstein, Shell Silverstein, 谢尔·希尔弗斯坦, של סילברסטין, של סילברסטיין, Illustrator-Shel Silverstein, By (author) Shel Silverstein, Шел Силверстайн, シェル・シルヴァスタイン, Shel; Illus Silverstein Silverstein, Shel, Shel(Author) ; Silverstein Silverstein, Shel(Illustrator)

Series

The Missing Piece

Runny Babbit

Works by Shel Silverstein

Popular Recent

The Giving Tree (1964) 18,764 copies

Where the Sidewalk Ends: Poems and Drawings (1974) 15,821 copies

A Light in the Attic: Poems and Drawings (1981) 10,666 copies

Falling Up: Poems and Drawings (1996) 7,872 copies

Where the Sidewalk Ends Special Edition with 12 Extra Poems (2004) 4,671 copies

Runny Babbit: A Billy Sook (2005) 2,503 copies

The Missing Piece (1976) 2,216 copies

A Giraffe and a Half (1657) — Cover artist, some editions; Illustrator — 1,786 copies

Every Thing On It (2011) 1,554 copies

A Light in the Attic Special Edition with 12 New Poems (2009) 1,316 copies

The Missing Piece Meets the Big O (1981) 1,228 copies

Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back (1963) 1,007 copies

Don't Bump the Glump!: And Other Fantasies (1964) 725 copies

Uncle Shelby's ABZ Book: A Primer for Adults Only (1961) 720 copies

Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros? (1964) 713 copies

Arbor Alma/the Giving Tree (2002) 241 copies

Runny Babbit Returns: Another Billy Sook (2017) 225 copies

Different Dances 25th Anniversary Edition (1979) 193 copies

Falling Up Special Edition: With 12 New Poems (2015) 125 copies

Where the Sidewalk Ends / Every Thing On It (2016) 110 copies

An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein - Acting Edition (2003) 79 copies

Playboy's Silverstein Around the World (2007) 68 copies

Shel Silverstein: Poems and Drawings: Slipcase 3-Book Box Set (1974) — Author — 66 copies

Draw a Skinny Elephant (1999) 44 copies

Shel's Shorts (2003) 30 copies

Where the sidewalk ends 15 copies

The Giving Tree [1973 animated short film] (1973) 14 copies

Playboy's Teevee Jeebies (1963) 11 copies

Hamlet as Told on the Street 10 copies

Now Heres My Pln P (1690) 10 copies

Shel Silverstein Stories and Drawings: The Giving Tree / A Giraffe and a Half (1992) 9 copies

Take Ten (1955) 9 copies

Grab Your Socks! (1956) 8 copies

Where the sidewalkd ends & Falling up (2021) 8 copies

Shel Silverstein 4 Book Set- Where the Sidewalk Ends, a Light in the Atic, Falling Up, and Runny Babbit (1974) 6 copies

More Playboy's Teevee Jeebies (1965) 6 copies

Falling up (Audio) 5 copies

Dirty Feet: A Collection Of Songs By Shel Silverstein [Songbook] (1969) 4 copies

Shel Silverstein - Freakin At The Freakers Ball by Shel Silverstein (2013-04-02) (1972) 4 copies

Best of Shel Silverstein (2005) 4 copies

新装　ぼくを探しに (1979) 3 copies

Playboy Magazine | August 1965 | Jo Collins (1965) 3 copies

Shel Silverstein Pack 2 Book Set: Where the Sidewalk Ends and A Light in the Attic (2014) 3 copies

Uncle Shelby's Scout Handbook 3 copies

Girafa e Tanto, Uma 3 copies

I'm Checkin' Out 3 copies

Uncle Shelby's Kiddie Corner 2 copies

The Smoke-Off 2 copies

Rosalie's Good Eats Cafe 2 copies

My Enemy 2 copies

Never Bite a Married Woman on the Thigh 2 copies

The Guilty Party 2 copies

The Unicorn (1968) 2 copies

Fuja do Garabuja - e outros seres fantasticos (Em Portugues do Brasil) (2019) 2 copies

Two Books by Shel Silverstein: Where the Sidewalk Ends and Falling Up 2 copies

It's the World's Gone Crazy 2 copies

Open your eyes and tickle your mind with shel silverstein 2 copies

For What She Had Done 2 copies

The Giving Tree / A Light in the Attic / Where the Sidewalk Ends 2 copies

The giving tree & other Shel Silverstein songs (1992) 2 copies

Ned Kelly: Original MGM Motion Picture Soundtrack [Enhanced CD] 2 copies

A Light In The Attic, Falling Up, The Missing Piece and Lafcadio (4 Book Set) 2 copies

The giving tree c.3 1 copy

The Best of Shel Silverstein : His Words His Songs His Friends 1 copy

A New Book of Poems and Drawings by Shel Silverstein : author of A Light in the Attic and Where the Sidewalk Ends 1 copy

Rare Shel Silverstein UNCLE SHELBY'S ABZ BOOK Simon & Schuster 1985 8th Printing [Hardcover] Shel Silverstein 1 copy

[By Shel Silverstein] A Light in the Attic Special Edition with 12 Extra Poems Special Edition-[Hardcover] Best selling… 1 copy

Giving Tree - Korean edition (1994) 1 copy

Two Books by Shel Silverstein: Where the Sidewalk Ends and Falling Up 1 copy

Shel Silverstein: Poems and Drawings (where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic & Falling Up) 3 Volume Set with… 1 copy

The giving tree c.1 1 copy

The giving tree c.2 1 copy

Jimmy Jet and His TV Set 1 copy

The Giving tree 1 copy

Eight Balloons 1 copy

“Sick” 1 copy

Der Glomp, der Glomp und anderer Pomp 1 copy

Wer will ein billiges Nashorn? 1 copy

Pat Dailey Sings Shel Silverstein's Underwater Land 1 copy

Stag Party: The Wildest Bash on Record 1 copy

Songs and Stories (2003) 1 copy

Pancake? 1 copy

גותון אל זיתון 1 copy

The Farmer and the Queen 1 copy

The End 1 copy

باغ وحش رویایی: هجده سال به بالا ممنوع 1 copy

Distortion {comic strip} 1 copy

Der Bankräuber und andere liebenswerte Zeitgenossen 1 copy

Uncle Shelby's A Giraffe and a Half 1 copy

Top Cat 1 copy

Unknown Book 10306599 1 copy

Inside Folk Songs (2008) 1 copy

Poems and Drawings 1 copy

The Serendipity Singers sing of love, lies, and flying festoons 1 copy

I'm So Good That I Don't Have To Brag!: Shel Silverstein Sings His Songs 1 copy

A Boy Named Sue (And His Other Country Songs) 1 copy

For Rachel 1 copy

The Devil and Billy Markham 1 copy

Different Dances by Shel Silverstein (1979-08-03) (1859) 1 copy

Snowball 1 copy

Shel Silverstein's 8 Book Set: Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, Lafcadio, The Missing… (1990) 1 copy

The Crocodile's Toothache 1 copy

The New Frankie and Johnie Song 1 copy

Listen to the Mustn'ts 1 copy

Hippo Sandwich 1 copy

Me and My Giant 1 copy

New St. Nick 1 copy

The Enemy 1 copy

続ぼくを探しにビッグ・オーとの出会い (1982) 1 copy

Work Explorer

Associated Works

My Dog Does My Homework! (2004) — Contributor — 865 copies

Free to Be... You and Me (1974) — Contributor — 484 copies

Beware!: R.L. Stine Picks His Favorite Scary Stories (2002) — Contributor — 226 copies

The Best American Mystery Stories 2000 (2000) — Contributor — 140 copies

6th Annual Edition: The Year's Best S-F (1961) — Illustrator — 124 copies

Murder for Love (1996) — Contributor — 92 copies

Good Morning To You, Valentine: Poems For Valentine's Day (1976) — Contributor — 70 copies

Murder for Revenge (1998) — Contributor — 70 copies

Laugh Lines: Short Comic Plays (2007) — Contributor — 63 copies

Poems Dead and Undead (Everyman's Library Pocket Poets) (2014) 42 copies

The Signet Book of Short Plays (2004) — Contributor — 28 copies

Monster Poems (1976) — Contributor — 23 copies

The Village voice reader; a mixed bag from the Greenwich Village newspaper (1963) — Illustrator — 21 copies

Report from Practically Nowhere (1959) — Illustrator — 18 copies

Don Quixote [1972 album] (1972) — Composer — 11 copies

Tider skal komme : 15 langtidsvarsler : en science fiction-antologi — Contributor — 4 copies

Playboy Magazine | May 1963 (1963) — Contributor — 3 copies

Cricket Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 2, October 1976 (1976) — Contributor — 3 copies

Playboy Magazine | October 1963 | Teddi Smith (1963) — Contributor — 3 copies

Playboy Magazine | January 1979 | 25th Anniversary Issue (1979) — Illustrator — 3 copies

De krokodil met kiespijn en andere sprookjes (1996) — Author — 1 copy

Paradox, Dec. 1999 (1999) — Contributor — 1 copy

Tagged

childhood (195) children (1,386) children's (2,346) children's book (317) children's books (496) children's literature (984) children's poetry (454) classic (359) classics (273) fantasy (280) fiction (2,153) friendship (757) funny (319) generosity (377) giving (658) goodreads (210) growing up (356) hardcover (463) humor (1,883) illustrated (414) juvenile (254) kids (413) literature (192) love (598) nature (232) non-fiction (203) own (317) picture book (1,250) poems (789) poetry (9,330) read (684) rhyme (235) rhyming (286) sharing (272) Shel Silverstein (622) silly (231) Silverstein (216) to-read (831) tree (324) trees (359)

Common Knowledge

Legal name: Silverstein, Sheldon Allan
Other names: Uncle Shelby
Birthdate: 1930-09-25
Date of death: 1999-05-10
Burial location: Westlawn Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Gender: male
Nationality: USA
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois, USA
Place of death: Key West, Florida, USA
Cause of death: heart attack
Places of residence: Logan Square, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Sausalito, California, USA (houseboat)
Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, USA
Greenwich Village, New York, USA
Key West, Florida, USA
Education: Chicago Academy of Fine Arts
University of Illinois
Theodore Roosevelt High School
Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University
Occupations: writer
poet
composer
cartoonist
hot dog seller (Comiskey Park, Chicago, IL, USA)
children's author (show all 8)
song writer
playwright
Relationships: Nordstrom, Ursula (editor)
Organizations: United States Army
Awards and honors: Chicago Literary Hall of Fame (2014)
Grammy (1970)
Grammy (1984)
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (2002)

Members

Reviews

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

Reading level Prek-2
Awards Growing Good Kids Book Award (Classics)
Kid's Choice Award (Nominee – Favorite Book – 2006)
Tree Parade (2008)

Flagged

jayceyrr | 1,010 other reviews | Apr 25, 2024 |

The Missing Piece by Shel Silverstein

- k - 4th
- This is a very well written story about a piece that is trying to become whole. The story focuses on friendship, perseverance, and the beauty in the journey. I would read this as a read aloud and have it in my library.

Flagged

stewartj22 | 55 other reviews | Apr 24, 2024 |

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

The Giving Tree is a story about the special bond between a boy and a tree. Throughout the boy's life, the tree selflessly gives him everything he needs, from shade and apples to wood for building a house and a boat. As the boy grows older, he returns to the tree for more and more, until there is nothing left but a stump. Despite giving everything it had, the tree is happy because it could make the boy happy. In the classroom, The Giving Tree can be used to spark discussions about friendship, empathy, and respecting the environment.… (more)

Flagged

TravisJ | 1,010 other reviews | Apr 24, 2024 |

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

Independent Reading Level: 2nd-3rd grade
Awards: N/A

Flagged

simmsall | 1,010 other reviews | Apr 23, 2024 |

See More Reviews