Silverstein, Shel. Where the Sidewalk Ends. New York City: Harper Collins, 1974. Print.
All of the poems on this page were selected from the book Where the Sidewalk Ends.
Jimmy Jet and His TV Set
I’ll tell you the story of Jimmy Jet--
And you know what I tell you is true.
He loved to watch his TV set
Almost as much as you.
He watched all day, he watched all night
Till he grew pale and lean,
From “The Early Show” to “The Late Late Show”
And all the shows between.
He watched till his eyes were frozen wide,
And his bottom grew into his chair.
And his chin turned into a tuning dial,
And antennae grew from his hair.
And his brains turned into TV tubes,
And his face to a TV screen.
And two knobs saying “VERT.” and “HORIZ.”
Grew where his ears had been.
And he grew a plug that looked like a tail
So we plugged in little Jim.
And now instead of him watching TV
We all sit around and watch him.
Listen to the Mustn'ts
Listen to the MUSTN’TS, child,
Listen to the DON’TS
Listen to the SHOULDN’TS
The IMPOSSIBLES, the WON’TS
Listen to the NEVER HAVES
Then listen close to me--
Anything can happen, child,
ANYTHING can be.
Colors
My skin is kind of sort of brownish
Pinkish yellowish white.
My eyes are greyish blueish green,
But I’m told they look orange in the night.
My hair is reddish blondish brown,
But it’s silver when it’s wet.
And all the colors I am inside
Have not been invented yet.
Flag
One star is for Alaska . . .
One star is for Nebraska . . .
One star is for North Dakota . . .
One star is for Minnesota . . .
There are lots of other stars,
But I forgot which ones they are.
It's Dark in Here
I am writing these poems
From inside a lion,
And it’s rather dark in here.
So please excuse the handwriting
Which may not be too clear.
But this afternoon by the lion’s cage
I’m afraid I got too near.
And I’m writing these lines
From inside a lion,
And it’s rather dark in here.
Hug O' War
I will not play tug o’ war.
I’d rather play hug o’ war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins.
The Fourth
Oh
CRASH!
my
BASH!
it’s
BANG!
the
ZANG!
Fourth
WHOOSH!
of
BAROOM!
July
WHEW!
Homemade Boat
This boat that we just built is just fine--
And don’t try to tell us it’s not.
The sides and the back are divine--
It’s the bottom I guess we forgot. . . .
The Acrobats
I’ll swing
By my ankles,
She’ll cling
To your knees
As you hang
By your nose
from a high-up
Trapeze.
But just one thing, please,
As we float through the breeze--
Don’t sneeze.
Magic
Sandra’s seen a leprechaum,
Eddie touched a troll,
Laurie danced with witches onces,
Charlie found some goblins’ gold.
Donald heard a mermaid sing,
Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known
I’ve had to make myself.
All of the poems on this page were selected from the book Where the Sidewalk Ends.
Jimmy Jet and His TV Set
I’ll tell you the story of Jimmy Jet--
And you know what I tell you is true.
He loved to watch his TV set
Almost as much as you.
He watched all day, he watched all night
Till he grew pale and lean,
From “The Early Show” to “The Late Late Show”
And all the shows between.
He watched till his eyes were frozen wide,
And his bottom grew into his chair.
And his chin turned into a tuning dial,
And antennae grew from his hair.
And his brains turned into TV tubes,
And his face to a TV screen.
And two knobs saying “VERT.” and “HORIZ.”
Grew where his ears had been.
And he grew a plug that looked like a tail
So we plugged in little Jim.
And now instead of him watching TV
We all sit around and watch him.
Listen to the Mustn'ts
Listen to the MUSTN’TS, child,
Listen to the DON’TS
Listen to the SHOULDN’TS
The IMPOSSIBLES, the WON’TS
Listen to the NEVER HAVES
Then listen close to me--
Anything can happen, child,
ANYTHING can be.
Colors
My skin is kind of sort of brownish
Pinkish yellowish white.
My eyes are greyish blueish green,
But I’m told they look orange in the night.
My hair is reddish blondish brown,
But it’s silver when it’s wet.
And all the colors I am inside
Have not been invented yet.
Flag
One star is for Alaska . . .
One star is for Nebraska . . .
One star is for North Dakota . . .
One star is for Minnesota . . .
There are lots of other stars,
But I forgot which ones they are.
It's Dark in Here
I am writing these poems
From inside a lion,
And it’s rather dark in here.
So please excuse the handwriting
Which may not be too clear.
But this afternoon by the lion’s cage
I’m afraid I got too near.
And I’m writing these lines
From inside a lion,
And it’s rather dark in here.
Hug O' War
I will not play tug o’ war.
I’d rather play hug o’ war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins.
The Fourth
Oh
CRASH!
my
BASH!
it’s
BANG!
the
ZANG!
Fourth
WHOOSH!
of
BAROOM!
July
WHEW!
Homemade Boat
This boat that we just built is just fine--
And don’t try to tell us it’s not.
The sides and the back are divine--
It’s the bottom I guess we forgot. . . .
The Acrobats
I’ll swing
By my ankles,
She’ll cling
To your knees
As you hang
By your nose
from a high-up
Trapeze.
But just one thing, please,
As we float through the breeze--
Don’t sneeze.
Magic
Sandra’s seen a leprechaum,
Eddie touched a troll,
Laurie danced with witches onces,
Charlie found some goblins’ gold.
Donald heard a mermaid sing,
Susy spied an elf,
But all the magic I have known
I’ve had to make myself.