There are many good writers on this earth, but even if they’re lucky, most people will probably only ever find a handful who can really make a meaningful difference in their lives. For myself, and many others, Shel Silverstein was one of those authors.

Silverstein died on May 11 at his home in Florida. Now seems to be a good time to reflect on the importance of not just Silverstein, but children’s authors in general.

My first exposure to Silverstein was to his poetry collections, particularly “A Light In The Attic” and “Where the Sidewalk Ends.” As a child, I particularly appreciated the humor in Silverstein’s work.

Let’s face it, when you’re seven-years old, a poem about how Captain Hook picks his nose is just about the funniest thing you’ve ever read.

I was several years older when I was exposed to Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree,” which is still, undoubtedly, my favorite book.

“The Giving Tree” is one of those stories that nearly reaches perfection. Not a word is wasted as Silverstein paints the most touching portrait of unconditional love I’ve seen in any book.

The simplicity of “The Giving Tree,” and of children’s literature in general, is something that should be treasured.

Most of us stopped reading “little kids'” books when we decided we were big kids. I know I was thrilled and excited the first times I ventured into the adult section at the Ames Public Library.

So for years I abandoned Silverstein and Seuss in favor of Steinbeck and Salinger. I discovered new favorites like “Of Mice and Men” and “Franny and Zoey,” but I missed something I had previously discovered.

Adult literature is a breathtaking landscape of its own, but in many ways it doesn’t hold a candle to children’s literature.

Adult-oriented books are generally considered to be adult-oriented because they are more complex than children’s books. It is true, as we get older we gain an appreciation and a curiosity for the complexity of our society. But often times, what seems to pass for insight into this complexity is merely muddled thought.

There is so much emotional, social and psychological baggage carried into most adult literature that the author’s message becomes confused, if the author even had a message in the first place.

Children’s stories are told plainly and in the simplest language possible. For this reason, they often strike closer to truth than any other type of story.

When a children’s story confronts a major issue in society, it resonates with more veracity than 100 philosophical essays.

I realized this one day when I went back to the children’s section and read some of the social commentary books of Dr. Seuss.

Books like “The Star-Bellied Sneetches,” and “The Butter Battle Book” deal with issues like racism and global arming in a very potent way.

Again, the simplicity of the story make it easy to see the heart of the issue.

Likewise, psychologists may study the nature of love for years, and map out all of its complications, from physical attraction to codependency.

But do any of them illustrate the nature of true love as well as “The Giving Tree?” I don’t think so.

Some people may accuse these children’s stories of being overly simple. It is true that certain fairy tales of youth can lead children to have unrealistic expectations for adulthood.

But there is a magic and an innocence to childhood that can not simply be chalked up to naivete. Good children’s literature succeeds in capturing a piece of that.

It’s a shame that so many people are seduced by the nature of adult literature. Many people mistake stuffy cultural references and sarcasm for good storytelling, especially in academics.

A couple of years ago, English literature professors and students across the United States and Europe each compiled a list of the 100 greatest books of all time. The number one book on both was James Joyce’s “Ulysses.”

Now, I would not consider myself a well- read person, but I do love to read. And when I do read I’d rather not need a map of Ireland, a dictionary of Irish slang and a comprehensive knowledge of Catholic dogma in order to understand one damn book.

I don’t purport that children’s literature is all great. Some of the worst books you’ll ever read are children’s books.

Children’s stories need to be simple, but that doesn’t mean that they are easy to write, quite the contrary.

An author of children’s stories needs to strip his message of all disguises, until it is completely naked. That naked truth, when told by a talented writer, can be one of the most beautiful things in the world.

Therefore, everyone should discover or rediscover great children’s authors like Shel Silverstein, Dr. Seuss or Paulo Coelho. The simple nature of their stories in no way devalues the power of their truth.

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Ben Godar is a junior in sociology from Ames. He is arts and entertainment editor of the Daily.