The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss (1957)

Saturday is Dr Seuss' birthday!!!!!!!

So why not use one of my free days to write about the most beloved of children's authors and one of his greatest books? So let's talk about the Cat in the Hat.

In 1954, Theodore Geisel read an article called, "Why do students bog down on the first \R?" (This refers to the 3 Rs-reading, writing, (a)rithmatic. I know, only one of them actually starts with an R.) In the article, John Hershey was upset about the quality of the books available to elementary students for reading.

This article led to a challenge from Houghton Mifflin's education division head, William Ellsworth Spaulding-create a book using only 225 words from the list of 348 words that every 6-year-old should know that will appeal broadly to 6 and 7-year-olds. The story uses a total of 1629 words, most of which are single-syllable words.

Now that I've talked about the history, let's talk about the book that you should already know about:

It's a rainy day, and our two young children are stuck inside while their mother is away. They get a visit from a strange creature known as the Cat in the Hat. He speaks in rhyme and has a messy and dangerous idea of fun, especially if you are a fish.

In the book, the children are overwhelmed by the aggressive nature of the Cat in the Hat, and even a talking fish isn't up to the task of chasing him away. The Cat in the Hat tries to show off his balancing skills by holding a growing variety of items while standing and even bouncing on a ball before everything crashes, and he enlists the aid of Thing 1 and Thing 2 in his chaos.

The story ends with the return of the mother, but before she comes in the door, the Cat in the Hat returns and picks up the mess.

In 1971, there was a musical version of the book in cartoon form. It makes the children more active in enjoying the antics of the Cat in the Hat, and gives the Cat in the Hat more reason for staying. After being expelled from the house, he returns in a search for his  "moss-covered three-handled family gradunza." No one knows what this is, but they turn the house upside down looking for it. The fish gets a name (Karlos K. Krinkelbein) and has more of a role than just trying to kick the Cat in the Hat out of the house.

My favorite part of this cartoon comes near the end when the Cat in the Hat gets to sing a song about his name that includes translating Cat in the Hat into different languages. (Cat, hat, in French, chat, chapeau. In Spain I am a gato in el sombrero.)

If you haven't read this book before, then shame on you. Go get one of the 11 million copies that have been published. Also, check out the cartoon. It is worth the time.