One massive learning and fun factor of my childhood was undoubtedly Dr Seuss. The man is a master on so many fronts. From him I learned rhythm, rhyming, speed and comprehension. The man taught me to read, and more importantly, how to love and appreciate it.
There was nothing more enjoyable as a child than yanking up the Seuss-meister from a shelf and poring over it. They were fun books, they were educational, and heck, I learned so much from them. Green Eggs and Ham taught me to try new things, instead of knocking them down when you have no idea. My favourite, The Lorax, taught me to respect our environment, be conscious of the things around you, respect others and how you don’t always need everything you want. Then, of course, there was The Cat In The Hat, so great for many a rainy day. Elementary literacy at its finest! Such a pleasure, however. The Sneetches railed against discrimination and racism of any kind. Everything about the books worked. The colours were so vibrant, the artwork was unforgettable, and so amusing to read. I feel as though his work is timeless, a true stroke of brilliance that has not faded over the decades.
I have pretty much given the movies a skip. I watched How The Grinch Stole Christmas, The Cat In The Hat, Horton Hears A Who!, and I am avoiding The Lorax, being the Speaker of the Trees. I am terrified that they desecrate something that is so perfect and sacred to me. The Cat In The Hat was ruined. They could not have gone worse than casting Mike Meyers as some sexually depraved cat. That destroyed a large chunk of my childhood. So I have learned to avoid the movies, but apparently The Lorax was great. I don’t know if I want to find out, though. Horton Hears A Who! was sweet, but not the book. It was a better forage into the attempts at a Seuss flick than anything else I have seen. I see that there is a remake of The Cat In The Hat in the pipeline, and really wish they would leave the story well alone!
I would love to buy a Dr Seuss box set! Or a whole bunch of little ones… there is only one place that has them here, and they are so insanely expensive, and then they are only little mini sets! Maybe I should add that, too, to my burgeoning and ever-growing Christmas wishlist? Hmmm…
How do you all feel about Dr Seuss?
The Sporadic Chronicles 