Section: «Poems»

Verse (ancient Greek ὁ στίχος — row, structure), a term in versification used in several meanings: artistic speech organized by division into rhythmically commensurate segments; poetry in the narrow sense; in particular, it implies the properties of versification of a particular tradition ("antique verse", "Akhmatova's verse", etc.); a line of poetic text organized according to a certain rhythmic pattern ("My uncle of the most honest rules").

Captain Hook

Captain Hook must rememberNot to scratch his toes.Captain Hook must watch outAnd never pick his nose.Captain Hook must be gentleWhen he shakes your..

© Shel Silverstein

Batty

The baby batScreamed out in fright,'Turn on the dark,I'm afraid of the light.'

© Shel Silverstein

Bear In There

There's a polar bearIn our Frigidaire-He likes it 'cause it's cold in there.With his seat in the meatAnd his face in the fishAnd his big hairy pawsIn..

© Shel Silverstein

Somebody Stole My Rig

I'm haulin' twenty tons of freight into New York stateStarted thinkin' bout Mary JaneShe lived over the hill I had an hour to kill I thought I'd get..

© Shel Silverstein

Rock 'N' Roll Band

If we were a rock 'n' roll band,We'd travel all over the land.We'd play and we'd sing and wear spangly things.If we were a rock 'n' roll band.If we..

© Shel Silverstein

Enter This Deserted House

But please walk softly as you do.Frogs dwell here and crickets too.Ain't no ceiling, only blue.Jays dwell here and sunbeams too.Floors are flowers ..

© Shel Silverstein

How Many, How Much

How many slams in an old screen door?Depends how loud you shut it.How many slices in a bread?Depends how thin you cut it.How much good inside a..

© Shel Silverstein

Come Skating

They said come skating;They said it's so nice.They said come skating;I'd done it twice.They said come skating;It sounded nice….I wore roller-They..

© Shel Silverstein

Sick

Sick 'I cannot go to school today,'Said little Peggy Ann McKay.'I have the measles and the mumps,A gash, a rash and purple bumps.My mouth is wet, my..

© Shel Silverstein

Better Not Ask Me

(Hey the truth might hurt so I'm tellin' you now that you better not ask me)Hey you better not ask me where I been all nightWhy my eyes are shinin'..

© Shel Silverstein

Hector The Collector

Hector the CollectorCollected bits of string,Collected dolls with broken headsAnd rusty bells that would not ring. Bent-up nails and ice-cream..

© Shel Silverstein

Daddy What If?

(Daddy what if the sun stop shinin' what would happen then?)If the sun stopped shinin' you'd be so surprisedYou'd stare at the heavens with wide open..

© Shel Silverstein

Boa Constrictor

Oh, I'm being eatenBy a boa constrictor,A boa constrictor,A boa constrictor,I'm being eaten by a boa constrictor,And I don't like it--one bit.Well..

© Shel Silverstein

Aphrodisiac

Now, listen to me, folks...Hear what I say.You got to eat oysters everydayThey'll put your love life back on trackThey're nature's own..

© Shel Silverstein

Crocodile's Toothache

Oh the CrocodileWent to the dentistAnd sat down in the chair,And the dentist said, 'Now tell me, sir,Why does it hurt and where?'And the Crocodile..

© Shel Silverstein

A Couple More Years

I've got a couple more years on you, baby...that's all.I've had more chances to fly and more places to fall.And it ain't that I'm wiser...It's only..

© Shel Silverstein

Somebody Has To

Somebody has to go polish the stars,They're looking a little bit dull.Somebody has to go polish the stars,For the eagles and starlings and gullsHave..

© Shel Silverstein

One Inch Tall

If you were only one inch tall, you'd ride a worm to school.The teardrop of a crying ant would be your swimming pool.A crumb of cake would be a..

© Shel Silverstein

Sarah Cynthia Slyvia Stout Would Not Take The Garbage Out

Sarah Cynthia Sylvia StoutWould not take the garbage out!She'd scour the pots and scrape the pans,Candy the yams and spice the hams,And though her..

© Shel Silverstein

Colors

My skin is kind of sort of brownishPinkish yellowish white.My eyes are greyish blueish green,But I'm told they look orange in the night.My hair is..

© Shel Silverstein

Beans Taste Fine

Now a friend of mine, way back in ChicagoYou know, he finally made his pile.Well he got himself a mansion on Butler and SheffAn' he was livin' in the..

© Shel Silverstein

For Sale

One sister for sale!One sister for sale!One crying and spying young sister for sale!I’m really not kidding,So who’ll start the bidding?Do I hear the..

© Shel Silverstein

No Difference

Small as a peanut,Big as a giant,We're all the same sizeWhen we turn off the lightRich as a sultan,Poor as a mite,We're all worth the sameWhen we..

© Shel Silverstein

Eight Balloons

Eight balloons no one was buyin'All broke loose one afternoon.Eight balloons with strings a-flyin',Free to do what they wanted to.One flew up to..

© Shel Silverstein

If The World Was Crazy

If the world was crazy, you know what I'd eat?A big slice of soup and a whole quart of meat,A lemonade sandwich, and then I might trySome roasted ice..

© Shel Silverstein