Share your thoughts in a quick Shelf Talk!
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
Step off the map and into a playground of wordplay, where doodles dance and imagination never clocks out. Where the Sidewalk Ends gathers unforgettable poems and sketches that invite readers to giggle, wonder, and wander a little further.
Have you read this book? Share what you liked (or didn’t), and we’ll use your answers to recommend your next favorite read!
Love Where the Sidewalk Ends but not sure what to read next?
These picks are popular with readers who enjoyed this book. Complete a quick Shelf Talk to get recommendations made just for you! Warning: possible spoilers for Where the Sidewalk Ends below.
In Where the Sidewalk Ends, did you enjoy ...
... nonsense rhymes, punchline twists, and mischievous wordplay?
I'm Just No Good at Rhyming: And Other Nonsense for Mischievous Kids and Immature Grown-Ups by Chris Harris
If you laughed at the last-line zingers in poems like “Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout Would Not Take the Garbage Out” and the winking reversals in “Smart,” you’ll love the cheeky trickery in I’m Just No Good at Rhyming. Harris riffs on expectations the way Silverstein does—setting up a joke and yanking the rug with a grin—while Lane Smith’s quirky art scratches the same itch as those inky doodles that accompanied “Hug O’ War” and “Jimmy Jet and His TV Set.”
... bite-sized, offbeat episodes that each land a joke (and a wink)?
Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
If the self-contained bursts of silliness in “Sick” or the mini-adventures of “Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me Too” are your thing, Sachar’s thirty zany classroom snapshots will feel perfect. Each chapter is a quick, comic jolt—like a poem-length gag—where oddball students and teachers pull Silverstein-like logic flips and absurdities, delivering that same snackable, grin-per-page experience.
... playful, accessible verse that’s easy to read aloud but packed with jokes?
A Pizza the Size of the Sun by Jack Prelutsky
If you enjoyed how pieces like “Hug O’ War” and “Listen to the Mustn’ts” use simple words to deliver big smiles (and a warm nudge of wisdom), Prelutsky’s poems will hit the spot. The rhythms invite read-aloud fun the way “Sick” does, and the everyday silliness—exaggerated foods, bumbling creatures, topsy-turvy logic—echoes the approachable charm you loved in Where the Sidewalk Ends.
... cheeky send-ups of familiar tales and playful rule-breaking?
The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka
If you enjoyed how Silverstein pokes fun at habits and rules—like the exaggerated consequences in “Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout” or the sly lesson in “Smart”—you’ll relish Scieszka’s fractured fairy tales. They skewer story conventions, talk back to the reader, and twist expectations with the same wry spirit that makes “Jimmy Jet and His TV Set” such a gleeful jab at our foibles.
... whimsical wordplay and wonder-filled journeys to places that feel just beyond the map?
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
If the peppermint wind and chalk-white arrows of the title poem made you want to step past the curb into the marvelous, Milo’s trip through the Doldrums, Dictionopolis, and the Mountains of Ignorance will scratch that itch. Like “Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me Too,” it’s a playful expedition powered by puns and curiosity—and it delivers the same invitation to see the world with wider eyes.
Unlock your personalized book recommendations! Just take a quick Shelf Talk for Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. It’s only a few questions and takes less than a minute.