A truly unique and multi-faceted artist, Shel Silverstein was a renowned poet, playwright, illustrator, screenwriter, and songwriter. Best known for his immensely popular children’s books including The Giving Tree, Falling Up, and A Light in the Attic, Silverstein has delighted tens of millions of readers around the world, becoming one of the most popular and best-loved children's authors of all time.
Shel Silverstein never planned on writing for children – surprising for an artist whose children’s works would soon become available in more than 30 languages around the world. In the early 1960’s Tomi Ungerer, a friend whose own career in children’s books was blossoming, introduced Silverstein to his editor, Harper Collins’ legendary Ursula Nordstrom. That connection led to the publication of The Giving Tree in 1964. The book sold modestly at first, but soon the gentle parable about a boy and the tree that loved him was admired by readers of all ages, recommended by counselors and teachers, and being read aloud from pulpits. Decades after its initial publication, with more than five and a half million copies sold, The Giving Tree holds a permanent spot atop lists of perennial bestsellers.

Silverstein drew his first cartoons for the adult readers of Pacific Stars and Stripes when he was a G.I. in Japan and Korea in the 1950’s. He also learned to play the guitar and to write songs, a talent that would later produce such hits as “A Boy Named Sue” for Johnny Cash and “The Cover of the Rolling Stone” for Dr. Hook.
Born in Chicago on September 25, 1930, Sheldon Allan Silverstein grew up to attain an enormous public following, but always preferred to say little about himself. “When I was a kid,” he told Publishers Weekly in 1975, “I would much rather have been a good baseball player or a hit with the girls. But I couldn’t play ball. I couldn’t dance. So I started to draw and to write. I was lucky that I didn’t have anyone to copy, be impressed by. I had developed my own style.”

And indeed he developed his own style. As you can see from his poems below, Silverstien doesn’t take things that seriously and writes his poems in a rather witty fashion. Also, most of his poems are written from the “I” point of view, making it seem like he really is the subject of the poem, e.g. he is a boy named Sue, or he is only one inch tall etc. Also another thing I like about his poems are that they rhyme a lot, and that they don’t sound awkward even though he is trying to make his poem rhyme. Therefore, Shel Silverstien is my favourite poet











A Boy Named Sue by Shel Silverstein
Well, my daddy left home when I was three,
and he didn't leave much to Ma and me,
just this old guitar and a bottle of booze.
Now I don't blame him because he run and hid,
but the meanest thing that he ever did was
before he left he went and named me Sue.

Well, he must have thought it was quite a joke,
and it got lots of laughs from a lot of folks,
it seems I had to fight my whole life through.
Some gal would giggle and I'd get red
and some guy would laugh and I'd bust his head,
I tell you, life ain't easy for a boy named Sue.

Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean.
My fist got hard and my wits got keen.
Roamed from town to town to hide my shame,
but I made me a vow to the moon and the stars
,I'd search the honky tonks and bars and kill
that man that gave me that awful name.

But it was Gatlinburg in mid July and I had
just hit town and my throat was dry.
I'd thought i'd stop and have myself a brew.
At an old saloon in a street of mud
and at a table dealing stud sat the dirty,
mangy dog that named me Sue.Well,

I knew that snake was my own sweet dad
from a worn-out picture that my mother hadand
I knew the scar on his cheek and his evil eye.
He was big and bent and gray and old
and I looked at him and my blood ran cold,
and I said, "My name is Sue. How do you do?
Now you're gonna die." Yeah, that's what I told him.

Well, I hit him right between the eyes and he went down
but to my surprise he came up with a knife
and cut off a piece of my ear. But I busted a chair
right across his teeth. And we crashed through
the wall and into the street kicking and a-gougingin
the mud and the blood and the beer.

I tell you I've fought tougher men but I really can't remember when.
He kicked like a mule and bit like a crocodile.
I heard him laughin' and then I heard him cussin',
he went for his gun and I pulled mine first.
He stood there looking at me and I saw him smile.

And he said, "Son, this world is rough and if
a man's gonna make it, he's gotta be tough
and I knew I wouldn't be there to help you along.
So I gave you that name and I said 'Goodbye'.
I knew you'd have to get tough or die.
And it'sthat name that helped to make you strong.

"Yeah, he said, "Now you have just fought one
helluva fight, and I know you hate me and you've
got the right to kill me now and I wouldn't blame you
if you do. But you ought to thank me
before I die for the gravel in your guts and the spit
in your eye because I'm the nut that named you Sue.
"Yeah, what could I do? What could I do?

I got all choked up and I threw down my gun,
called him pa and he called me a son,
and I came away with a different point of view
and I think about him now and then.
Every time I tried, every time I win and if I
ever have a son I think I am gonna name him
Bill or George - anything but Sue.


One Inch Tall by Shel Silverstein
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 feast
And last you seven days at least,
A flea would be a frightening beastIf you were one inch tall.
If you were only one inch tall, you'd walk beneath the door,
And it would take about a month to get down to the store.
A bit of fluff would be your bed,You'd swing upon a spider's thread,
And wear a thimble on your headIf you were one inch tall.
You'd surf across the kitchen sink upon a stick of gum
.You couldn't hug your mama, you'd just have to hug her thumb.
You'd run from people's feet in fright,
To move a pen would take all night,
(This poem took fourteen years to write--'Cause I'm just one inch tall

Boa Constrictor by Shel Silverstein
Oh, I'm being eaten
By 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, what do you know?
It's nibblin' my toe.
Oh, gee,
It's up to my knee.
Oh my,
It's up to my thigh.
Oh, fiddle,
It's up to my middle.
Oh, heck,
It's up to my neck.
Oh, dread,
It's upmmmmmmmmmmffffffffff . . .

The tented field wore a wrinkled frown,And the emptied church from the hill looked down
On the emptied road and the emptied town,
That summer Sunday morning.

And here was the blue, and there was the gray;
And a wide green valley rolled away
Between where the battling armies lay,
That sacred Sunday morning.

And Custer sat, with impatient will,
His restless horse, 'mid his troopers still,
As he watched with glass from the oak-set hill,
That silent Sunday morning.

Then fast he began to chafe and to fret;
"There's a battle flag on a bayonet
Too close to my own true soldiers set
For peace this Sunday morning!"

"Ride over, some one," he haughtily said,
"And bring it to me! Why, in bars blood red
And in stars I will stain it, and overhead
Will flaunt it this Sunday morning!"

Then a West-born lad, pale-faced and slim,
Rode out, and touching his cap to him,Swept down, swept swift as
Spring swallows swim,
That anxious Sunday morning.

On, on through the valley! up, up anywhere!
That pale-faced lad like a bird through the air
Kept on till he climbed to the banner there
That bravest Sunday morning!

And he caught up the flag, and around his waist
He wound it tight, and he turned in haste,And swift his perilous route retraced
That daring Sunday morning.

All honor and praise to the trusty steed!
Ah! boy, and banner, and all, God speed!
God's pity for you in your hour of need
This deadly Sunday morning.

O deadly shot! and O shower of lead!
O iron rain on the brave, bare head!
Why, even the leaves from the tree fall dead
This dreadful Sunday morning!

But he gains the oaks!
Men cheer in their might!B
rave Custer is laughing in his delight!
Why, he is embracing the boy outright
This glorious Sunday morning!

But, soft! Not a word has the pale boy said.
He unwinds the flag. It is starred, striped, red
With his heart's best blood; and he falls down dead,
In God's still Sunday morning.

So wrap this flag to his soldier's breast;
Into the stars and stripes it is stained and blest;
And under the oaks let him rest and rest
Till God's great Sunday morning.



“O deadly shot! and O shower of lead!O iron rain on the brave, bare head!”
This is an example of a hyperbole. It is an exaggeration of emotion and is a exaggerated statement. In this case, the hyperbole is identified by the “O,” at the start of each sentence and the exclamation marks at the end of the sentences.

“The tented field wore a wrinkled frown,And the emptied church from the hill looked down”
This is an example of personification. It means giving an object or abstract idea human traits or qualities. Here, “ The tented field wore a wrinkled frown” is a good example of personification. It describes the tent as a human, frowning.


“That pale-faced lad like a bird through the air”
This is a simile. A simile is used to relate two objects using like, as or than . This sentence compares the young soldier to a bird through the air, because of his speed.

why i like this poem- this poem is very dramatic and i find it interesting that each paragraph ends saying that it all happened on a Sunday morning, but there is an adjective in front of the "Sunday Morning"s. Also, what i found interesting about this poem is that the author could describe a simple situation as trying to snatch a flag but getting wounded on the way into such a beautiful poem. It is a fast-flowing poem in my opinion, and frequent use of exclamation marks show the intensity of the situation.

If many people think something is true,, is it true? Regarding this question, I would have to disagree. Why?
Now, something that is true is something being in accordance with the actual state or conditions; conforming to reality or fact. Thus, the opinions people have is not a factor in deciding in whether something is true or false. Even if they insist that they are right, you just have to find that shred of evidence that has been there all along to prove them wrong. The same went with the Church a long time ago. The event that I am talking about is Genesis.

For countless years, the church influenced the people’s thinking. In, fact, I would say the church pretty much controlled most thoughts of their countrymen. People at that time were religious and thus believed what the priests, the fathers and the nuns told them. For many years, people thought that Genesis was God’s doing. “1:3- And God said, let there be light: and there was light”. However, science proved that Genesis was a scientific event and not some creation of a holy being. The church said the earth was in the center of the universe; science proved that earth was just any ordinary small planet. These and other related events fueled the hatred between the church and science. Science hated the church for lying to the people and not accepting the truth; the church hated science or putting them in a bad light.
And there was La Purga. In 1668, the church branded four scientists with the cross to “purge their sins”. They were quite well-known scientists who tested many of the things the church had been saying for years. After the branding, the church dumped the bodies on the streets of Rome, as a warning for people not to join these scientists. Even though the church had many means of getting their way, the truth is, a fact is a fact. It EXISTS there. A fact exists indefinitely. It is not a believe, it is something that cannot be changed. For example, Job 37:18 says the heavens are hard like a meal mirror. “With him can you beat out the skies hard like a molten mirror? (New English Bible)”; Hast thou with him spread out the sky, which is strong, and as a heavy metal mirror? ( King James)”. But science has proved that the sky is immaterial and even clouds(which are matter) are so soft they can be passed through by airplanes. And with spaceships flying out to space for missions all the time, what has happened to that heavy metal mirror? Thus, a fact is something that exists indefinitely; it is just waiting to be found out. Nothing can change a fact, not even the most influential people. Even if Barack Obama were to say the sky is a heavy metal mirror, science and common knowledge will prove him wrong straightaway. Hence, a fact is a basic law of life and cannot be changed.

Book Review
Book Read: Digital Fortress by Dan Brown
One of the many lessons I learnt from this story is never to trust anybody too much, even if it’s your closest friend or anybody you have known. In the story, Susan trusted Commander Strathmore as she believed him for the patriotic genius that he was, but little did she know that Strathmore also had an ulterior motive: to get rid of her fiancé, David, so that he could be with her as he secretly loved her. Also, he didn’t tell her that so many murders would be involved in the plan to decrypt Digital Fortress. Susan only helped Strathmore as she believed that his plan would help NSA. If she knew that Strathmore was so heartless and selfish, there is no doubt that she wouldn’t have helped him.

There are many differences between the two cryptographers, Greg Hale and Susan Fletcher. Greg Hale was involved in many petty crimes when he was young despite being a computer genius. When Strathmore wrote a back door in a program that the NSA created so that they would have full access to any forms of online communication, Greg Hale discovered it and announced it to the whole country, causing NSA to come under heavy scrutiny from the EFF. The NSA then immediately hired him, figuring that it would be better if he worked for them Greg is a showoff, not afraid to sow that he has a solid salary, buying al the latest gadgets. On the other hand, Susan is a somewhat studious woman, who was hired into NSA based on merit. She is conservative and unlike Greg, she doesn’t like showing off her wealth. She drives a simple Volvo and believes firmly in the work of NSA, unlike Greg.

In my opinion, the climax of the story would be the last part of the story where Jabba, Midge, Chad, Susan and Fontaine were in the command cenrtre of the NSA main databank trying to get rid of the “worm”. Although many other parts of the sory may seem like the climax, I feel that this part should be the climax as this is where the NSA’s fate will be decided. Will the long-dead Ensei Tankado win the battle, or will they get the pass-key in time? That is what makes the book such a good read.

I would have to say that I rather like the title of the book as I feel that it has the “two-meaning” thing. Firstly, Digital Fortress is the name of the algorithm that caused all the trouble at the Puzzle Palace (NSA’s Crypto), and secondly, Crypto, where many important events happened, is a “digital fortress” also. So, I think it’s a rather clever titleJ

All in all, I think Digital Fortress is a good read and I would definitely recommend it to all of you:D

Wow… almost five months have passed since I first entered this school… time passes really fast doesn’t it?

These few months seemed like a roller coaster of events that happen so fast sometimes I find myself a little confused. My first experience of Hwa Chong happened in late December. The teacher in charge of wushu(Ms Tan Yew Hui) called me and informed me that there would be a training the next day. Truth be told, I was a little afraid and nervous. I would be the only p6 kid among all the seniors and thus I was mostly afraid about not being able to fit in. However, all my fears disappeared when I reached the EP3 shed. The vice-chairman, ShunXiang, gave me a warm welcome and so did the rest of the team. In that very first training with Hwa Chong’s wushu team, I felt the spirit of Hwa Chong. Another event I cherish is the EP3 exhibition during the first few weeks of school. My seniors told them that I was the only kid that got through the DSA exercise, and when they looked at me with such awe, when I heard how proudly my seniors spoke of me, I really felt that this was where I belonged.
However, wushu wasn’t always an easy thing for me. Because I entered through DSA, i trained as hard as all the seniors- three time a week, 3.30 to 7. For the first few weeks, i slacked during the period in between the end of school and EP3 time, and thus when I reached home, I always had to stay up till the wee hours to complete my work. I realized this big mistake of mine and made changes. Now, I feel more relaxed when I reach home after training because I know that almost all my work is completed. Another setback for me was the competition. I left the class early quite a few times and therefore I missed out on quite a few important lessons. I am not blaming anybody here but myself. If I had put in more effort to catch up, I would have gotten a better grade for my tests.

Moving on to academics, I must admit that I have been pretty slack for the first two term tests. Although it IS true that I do not understand some of the topics taught, I am sure that I would have done better if I actually bothered to put in the extra effort. Truth be told, i didn’t “mug” as hard as I did during the PSLE period. I pretty much took life for granted and assumed that I would get the good grades(not being boastful here) I always had the ability to get. I wasn’t even half as hardworking. For that, I paid a terrible price. My term 1 MSG was a lousy 2.83 while my term 2 MSG was a meager 2.67. I consider this one of the setbacks in my 5 months here in this school

Another thing that I regret is being too trusting. There was this guy(who I shan’t name), he impressed me with his academic performance, citing that his English was the best and whatsoever. For the projects day competition, I decided to do the project with him. He told me beforehand that there would be a Nanyang girl doing the project with us. At that time, she was his, well, girlfriend, but when I asked him if there would be any well, problems, he assured me that there wouldn’t be any. But now, that fella suddenly became a lazy person who used my name as an excuse to go out and “do project” when all he ever did was meet up with his girlfriend, leaving me to plan and do everything by myself. So much for “leader”. Now, I have another problem on my hands. Miss-I-am-a-AEP-student isn’t getting along TOO WELL with him and is not interested I in the project anymore. Great.
Hmm…
On second thought, I would say that this is MY BIGGEST REGRET SO FAR. Ahh… that sounds more like it.:)

One thing I learned about being in a “branded” school is that people think more highly of you and really respect you. For example, when I went for street sales on Sunday as part of my CIP, there was this lady who told her friend,”Eh, look, Hwa Chong leh! These students are really clever you know. Future leaders!” When she bought the wristband from me, she told me that “next time when you become a CEO make sure you take care of lowly workers like us.” My goodness, I was really touched by that. You see, here’s a theory my dad told me(which rather makes sense if you ask me) When somebody looks at the lousiest student in a branded school, they will nonetheless think highly of you. However, if you get the best student from a lousy school(no offence), people will still give them snide remarks. This goes to show how important getting into a good school is.