The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss

The Cat in the Hat is about two children at home alone on a rainy day and they did not like it. Then a giant cat showed up who knew some good games, but everything the cat did turned into a mess. The cat brought in Thing 1 and Thing 2 to play more games, but the too made a mess of the house. It wasn’t until the fish saw the mom walking toward the house that things got straightened-up, which the cat also took care of.

The Cat in the Hat is a wonderful beginner book. It was the product of a challenge in which to use as many sight words as possible and to make the illustrations seem like a child’s imagination. In this story Dr. Seuss used 223 words from a list of 400 that his publisher provided for him. These words were sight words young readers were learning in school. Dr. Seuss stepped up to the challenge by creating a story with a whimsical tone while using childlike imaginative illustrations. This book still appeals to children because of its simplicity and parent influence. Since a lot of parents started their reading ability with The Cat in the Hat, they like to share this experience with their children. Also, the recent movie did not hurt either.

Many of Seuss’ beginner books illustrates the same tension as in The Cat in the Hat such as A Fly Went By and Ten Apples Up On Top. However, a contemporary book that has the tension similar to Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat would be No, I Want Daddy! by Nadine Brun-Cosme. In this book a family is out-of-balance because of over-tired parents and the way a child deals with it. Some books that teach right from wrong like The Cat in the Hat book includes If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (If you give… series) by Laua Joffe Numeroff, Corduroy by Don Freeman, The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper, The Little Red Caboose by Marian Potter, Bambi by Felix Salten, and No, David! by David Shannon.