The Cat in the Hat read by Kelsey Grammer Horton Hears a Who read by Dustin Hoffman How the Grinch Stole Christmas read by Walter Matthau Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? read by John Cleese The Lorax read by Ted Danson Yertle the Turtle, Gertrude McFuzz, and The Big Brag read by John Lithgow Thidwick, the Big-Hearted Moose read by Mercedes McCambridge Horton Hatches the Egg read by Billy Crystal The Cat in the Hat Comes Back read by Kelsey Grammer
Theodor Seuss Geisel was born 2 March 1904 in Springfield, Massachusetts. He graduated Dartmouth College in 1925, and proceeded on to Oxford University with the intent of acquiring a doctorate in literature. At Oxford he met Helen Palmer, who he wed in 1927. He returned from Europe in 1927, and began working for a magazine called Judge, the leading humor magazine in America at the time, submitting both cartoons and humorous articles for them. Additionally, he was submitting cartoons to Life, Vanity Fair and Liberty. In some of his works, he'd made reference to an insecticide called Flit. These references gained notice, and led to a contract to draw comic ads for Flit. This association lasted 17 years, gained him national exposure, and coined the catchphrase "Quick, Henry, the Flit!"
In 1936 on the way to a vacation in Europe, listening to the rhythm of the ship's engines, he came up with And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, which was then promptly rejected by the first 43 publishers he showed it to. Eventually in 1937 a friend published the book for him, and it went on to at least moderate success.
During World War II, Geisel joined the army and was sent to Hollywood. Captain Geisel would write for Frank Capra's Signal Corps Unit (for which he won the Legion of Merit) and do documentaries (he won Oscar's for Hitler Lives and Design for Death). He also created a cartoon called Gerald McBoing-Boing which also won him an Oscar.
In May of 1954, Life published a report concerning illiteracy among school children. The report said, among other things, that children were having trouble to read because their books were boring. This inspired Geisel's publisher, and prompted him to send Geisel a list of 400 words he felt were important, asked him to cut the list to 250 words (the publishers idea of how many words at one time a first grader could absorb), and write a book. Nine months later, Geisel, using 220 of the words given to him published The Cat in the Hat, which went on to instant success.
In 1960 Bennett Cerf bet Geisel $50 that he couldn't write an entire book using only fifty words. The result was Green Eggs and Ham. Cerf never paid the $50 from the bet.
Helen Palmer Geisel died in 1967. Theodor Geisel married Audrey Stone Diamond in 1968. Theodor Seuss Geisel died 24 September 1991.
Fantastic recording! Kelsey Grammer and John Lithgow are the highlights. Surprising letdown was Dustin Hoffman reading Horton Hears a Who. His cadence was off so much it's hard to listen.
Classic Dr. Seuss stories with a stellar cast to narrate it? How could you even say no? I felt like a kid again as he rhymed his way to teaching us valuable life lessons! From The Cat in the Hat to Hotorn Hatches the Egg, there isn't a dull moment through this audiobook.
The Cat in the Hat is a wonderful book and I think all children should read it. Everything by Dr. Seuss is so fantastic and creative. And I think it will open the minds of children or anyone really to explore their own creativity.
This book is one of the best pieces of literature I have ever seen. I would argue that this is better than "To Kill a Mockingbird". The characters are thought-provoking and show raw emotions to an extent I have never seen before. Let's begin with the character 'Sally'. Whenever Sally sees the Cat during her sleep, she cries as the Cat laughs and stares at her. These scenes show the horror that the Cat triggers whenever watching Sally in her sleep. The Cat in the Hat makes you feel scared whenever he appears. Thing 1 and Thing 2 are outstandingly crafted characters, especially whenever they see Sally and they start yelling demonic phrases that make her scared. This book is an outstanding example of modern horror, and it is a shame that books on the same level as this rarely come out. Overall, this is fantastic book. I give it 10 out of 10.
1. Kelsey Grammer - The Cat in the Hat (***) 2. Dustin Hoffman - Horton Hears A Who (*****) 3. Walter Matthau - How The Grinch Stole Christmas (***) 4. John Cleese - Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are (*) 5. Ted Danson - The Lorax (*) 6. John Lithgow - Yertle The Turtle (*****) 7. John Lithgow - Gertrude McFuzz (*****) 8. John Lithgow - The Big Brag (***) 9. Mercedes McCambridge -Thidwick The Big-Hearted Moose (*****) 10. Billy Crystal - Horton Hatches The Egg (*****) 11. Kelsey Grammer - The Cat In The Hat Comes Back (**)
Dr Seuss is one of the funniest and most original children's book authors I have encountered, and I have encountered a lot! The Cat in the Hat is probably his most popular, it is a classic, but my favourites would be Green Eggs and Ham, and Oh, the places you'll go!, as the colourful illustrations and clever rhymes enthralled both my parents reading it to my young self, and myself. I still reread Dr Seuss books sometimes, as they are crazy and light-hearted, I would recommend them.
Like Mr. Brown, I think this Dr. Seuss book would also be great for building skills in phonics. It reminds me of activities we have talked about in class where children can explore how adding a new letter to "at" can change the sound and make a new word.
Deceptively simple, but a sort of haiku where Seuss operated under the restraints of a few 100 hundred words, while still managing to create a memorable story.
Having read this 25 times this autumn I am including it in my reading log despite it not filling my 100 page requirement (though it does, the 61 is complete fiction)
It's a fun book, and features a great collection of Dr. Seuss, I believe it encompasses a good variance of both the stories and the regular books. I expected the audiobook to be more calm, but it's theatrical, so I guess it depends on what the listener is looking for.
Strong 5 to a Light 6. Tran-sition, did you give this book a listen, did you love it did you hate it, what did you rate it? You're the best, you're the best, what book should I review next?