Wicked and Wonderful

Having been "raised" on Shel Silverstein, I began getting bored with his work when I was elementary school. Then a teacher introduced me to Uncle Shelby's ABZ book. While all his poetry collections include some irreverent works, this book is wickedly funny from cover to cover.

Playing on issues of sibling rivalry, need to protect one's parents, monsters and more, this book has it all. I have never met a child above the age of 8 who didn't love this book, though some mothers were rather upset with me for giving it to their precious tykes.

The word play is classic Silverstein and the view of the world, twisted in a way children appreciate. I've heard this book read at talent shows in pure deadpan and it had the audience rolling. The fact is that most adults love the book, too.

Pure pleasure and fun if you can find it.