Dr. Seuss's Children's Books

The number of children's books being published each year seems to be rapidly increasing. The youth sections of bookstores are hardly able to keep up with the volume of works being produced annually - some by very talented authors and illustrators. However, if you are going to leave some room on your bookshelf for the very best children's books, your collection will not be complete without at least three or four selections from the popular works of Theodor Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss.

This beloved children's author and illustrator started publishing books in 1937, with the release of And to Think I Saw it on Mulberry Street. Overall, he published 44 books, including several works that appeal to young adults and children, alike. Dr. Seuss is known for his creative, outlandish creatures, and sing-song rhyming writing style. Its astounding that, despite the world-wide popularity of Dr. Seuss's works, he never won a literary award.

Dr. Seuss started his career as an editorial cartoonist in the early 1920s. Once he turned to writing and illustrating children's books in the late 1930s, he published several books before World War II. He took a brief hiatus during the war, and returned to publishing books for children in the late 1940s. The majority of his works were published over an approximately 25 year period, through the 1960s.

Seuss was instrumental in the cause of childhood illiteracy. In 1954, he responded to a report of the issue in Life magazine and set about publishing Beginner Books that would be easy to read. The most famous of these works include "The Cat in the Hat" and "Green Eggs and Ham." Green Eggs and Ham is said to have only 50 different words in the entire book.

Dr. Seuss's writing style is more complex than it might appear to the average reader. The majority of his works were written in anapestic tetrameter, which is a rhythmic composition of two weak beats followed by a strong beat. This is best illustrated by a line from "If I Ran the Circus." In ALL the whole TOWN the most WONderful SPOT. Seuss's successful use of the meter thwarted would-be imitators who could not effectively write in this constrained manner.

Seuss also used trochaic tetrameter (strong, weak, strong, weak beats) and iambic tetrameter, which is generally the reverse of trochaic tetrameter (weak, strong, weak, strong beats). Re-read some of his works out loud and you'll discover and enjoy his creative genius.

To memorialize Dr. Seuss's passing in 1991, schools in the United States hold an annual event called Read Across America. Each spring, reading festivals, contests and book sales are held to encourage reading to and with young children. The fight against illiteracy continues in Dr. Seuss's honor. On March 2, 2004, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative on the 100th anniversary of Dr. Seuss's birth.

Although he never had children of his own, Dr. Seuss successfully drew many young readers to his books. Of course, a number of these popular works have been made into videos, and a few into full-length studio releases. There is even a Broadway production of "Suessical the Musical"! I still maintain that the best way to enjoy Dr. Seuss is to pick up a hard back edition of one of his books, and read the enchanting stories aloud.

In no particular order, these are my top choices of Dr. Seuss books:

• The Cat in the Hat
• Green Eggs and Ham
• The Lorax
• Oh, the Places You'll Go!
• Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose
• Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You?
• Horton Hatches an Egg
• How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
• Sneetches and Other Stories
• Did I Ever Tell you How Lucky You Are?

I selected these works for a variety of reasons: ease of reading (for young children), amusing illustrations, ear-whig rhymes (the ones that you cannot get out of your head) and enduring social messages.

Dr. Seuss's works will likely endure as classics over the years, with the stories and characters being handed down from generation to generation. You can read them here or there, and you can read them anywhere!

Pick up your favorite story tonight and sit down to enjoy it once again. I'll bet you have a Dr. Seuss book somewhere in your home!