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The Cat in the Hat
by Dr. Seuss
Book Description:
It's cold and wet outside and Dick and Sally are stuck in the house with nothing to do . . . until a giant cat in a hat shows up, transforming the dull day into a wild and wacky adventure! In the mid 1950s, many Americans were asking themselves: Why can’t Johnny read? In a Life magazine article, Pulitzer Prize-winning author John Hersey maintained that American children couldn’t read because their classroom primers were boring and “antiseptic” and could not compete with cartoons, comics, and other more fun and interesting stimuli, so he challenged Theodor Geisel, a.k.a Dr. Seuss, to write a story “first graders wouldn’t be able to put down.” And that’s just what Dr. Seuss did, using a vocabulary of only 236 words. In 1957, Random House published The Cat in the Hat and those 236 words revolutionized the way children learn to read, and made Dr. Seuss a household name.
Author Biography:
“A person’s a person, no matter how small,” Theodor Seuss Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss, would say. “Children want the same things we want. To laugh, to be challenged, to be entertained and delighted.”
Brilliant, playful, and always respectful of children, Dr. Seuss
charmed his way into the consciousness of four generations of youngsters
and parents. In the process, he helped millions of kids learn to
read.
Dr. Seuss was born Theodor Geisel in Springfield, Massachusetts,
on March 2, 1904. After graduating from Dartmouth College in 1925,
he went to Oxford University, intending to acquire a doctorate
in literature. At Oxford, Geisel met Helen Palmer, whom he wed
in 1927. Upon his return to America later that year, Geisel published
cartoons and humorous articles for Judge, the leading humor magazine
in America at that time. His cartoons also appeared in major magazines
such as Life, Vanity Fair, and Liberty. Geisel gained national
exposure when he won an advertising contract for an insecticide
called Flit. He coined the phrase, “Quick, Henry, the Flit!” which
became a popular expression.
Geisel published his first children’s book, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry
Street, in 1937, after 27 publishers rejected it.
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1984, an Academy Award, three
Emmy Awards, three Grammy Awards, and three Caldecott Honors, Geisel
wrote and illustrated 44 books. While Theodor Geisel died on September
24, 1991, Dr. Seuss lives on, inspiring generations of children
of all ages to explore the joys of reading
Additional Information:
The audio version of the book is available from the Recording
for the Blind and Dyslexic, so that all children can join
in the fun. www.rfbd.org
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Links
“As a parent, I know that reading with your child is an important part of their mental and emotional development,” said Mrs. Blagojevich. “I started this program to encourage parents to read with their children, and I hope our recommended reading list helps parents find books that the whole family can enjoy.”
