Shel Silverstein was a composer, an artist, and the author of numerous books of prose and poetry for younger readers. His prose works include such modern classics as The Giving Tree (1963), Lafcadio: The Lion Who Shot Back (1963), and The Missing Piece (1976), while among his immensely popular poetry collections are Where the Sidewalk Ends (Michigan Young Readers Award, 1974), A Light in the Attic (School Library Journal Best Books Award, 1982), and, most recently, Falling Up (HarperCollins, 1996). Silverstein's work, which he illustrated himself, is characterized by a deft mixing of the sly and the serious, the macabre and the just plain silly. Silverstein was born on September 25, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois, where he was writing from the time he was a young boy. His wicked, giddy humor is beloved by countless adults as well as by children. He died in May 1999.
photo: Larry Moyer
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