What Was I Scared Of?

What Was I Scared Of? by Dr. Seuss

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


We got this for our daughter because she's had a lot of issues with nightmares or saying she's too scared to go to bed. Often, she'll wait until we leave the room and then sneak out to try and sleep in ours. As with most Dr. Seuss books, it's a simple story, somewhat silly, told with made up words and rhymes. It made her giggle and smile though, so maybe between that and the message of the story, it will help things click into place for her.

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Six by Seuss

Six by Seuss by Dr. Seuss

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


We tend to read this a story at a time as it's a collection of 6 different works by Dr. Seuss. A nice way to get a jump start on a classic children's collection. Some of the stories draw more attention than others. The easy rhymes and funky pictures always catch the kid's attention though and make for a relaxed and fun story time. I'm glad we were able to pick this one up early for our bookshelf.

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The Cat in the Hat

The Cat in the Hat (2003)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Ah, now it makes sense why all those original cartoons we re-released in 2003; that's when the movie came out too. While there is some catchy music and hilarious fun, overall I felt the movie lost a lot of what originally made the story popular. There is a little bit of redemption towards the end, but it still felt like it fell short. The obvious direct links and plugs to the Dr. Seuss land at Universal Studios also felt overly contrived and a nuisance to have in the middle of a movie. While it is cute, I think they could have done a much better job overall and stayed closer to the original story in the process.

The Lorax

The Lorax (2012)

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars


I have to admit, I like this version of The Lorax the best. Not only is the animation better, but it seems to round the story out more to where the Onceler really makes sense and succeeds in correcting his mistake, resulting in reuniting with his old friends "acquaintances" by the end of the film. The Lorax himself doesn't come across entirely as a tree hugging harpy, but as a calm voice of reason with valid points who is just waiting for the people around him to recognize the same without trying to force their hands. Much more likable characters all around.

The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat/The Hoober-Bloob Highway

The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat/The Hoober-Bloob Highway (2003)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


It's nice to see that these classic stories are still popular enough to recent newer re-releases of the films for family collections. Can't say I was overfly fond of the creation story in The Hoober-Bloob Highway, though this time I didn't know either of the titles prior to watching. Dr. Seuss's characters are getting very good at cheering up their local Grinch, so much so that "grinching" the Cat, backfires on him in a rather amusing manner.

Green Eggs & Ham/Grinch Nights

Green Eggs & Ham/Grinch Nights (2003)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Green Eggs & Ham is another well known story, though Grinch Nights was another I hadn't heard of prior to watching these snippets. Our toddler pays better attention to these versions than reading the books right now, not to mention we don't have to worry about pages being torn. While the animation itself is older and somewhat strange with Dr. Seuss's unique characters, the stories are still intriguing and fun for all ages.

The Lorax/Pontoffel Pock & His Magic Piano

The Lorax/Pontoffel Pock & His Magic Piano (2003)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Newer releases of 2 more Seuss classics. This time it's The Lorax and the Magic Piano. I hadn't actually seen or heard of the Magic Piano until seeing this. I have to admit the for how confusing and ridiculous the animated version seems, I don't feel like I've really missed anything. Of course The Lorax is a well known character and story for multiple reasons. Didn't feel the animations was really on par this time around, though it was consistent with the older and somewhat funky style that marks Dr. Seuss's work.

The Cat in the Hat

The Cat in the Hat (1971)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The old style animated version of the classic story, this very closely follows the book, which makes it more enjoyable to me than many of the other newer adaptations I've seen of the work. It's always fun to see a good story come to life. Bonus if the story will catch my daughter's attention and earn me some cuddle time.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I'm not a big fan of live action Dr. Seuss or Jim Carrey with his overdone humor (think The Mask or the Riddler from Batman), but it seems to fit well with this character. The Christmas classic comes to life, telling the story of a heart that was once to small as a result of the circumstances of his childhood, and how one little girl can help turn it all around so the Grinch isn't really a grinch after all.

Dr. Seuss's ABC

Dr. Seuss's ABC by Dr. Seuss

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was originally one of my books, and now is in my daughter's library. It is a fun way for a young child to learn the ABCs as each page introduces a new letter with words and illustrations to help learn it. On the flip side, many of the names and creatures are made up, as true to Dr. Seuss's style. This leaves a little bit of bafflement to older readers while still being fun. Mercy was delighted with it. If not for fearing she'd tear the pages, I could easily see her handing this one back constantly to read over and over again as she carted it around the house with her. Until she learns not to rip the books though, I believe it will stay on the bookshelf when we aren't reading it together.

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The Cat in the Hat

The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Read this again yesterday for the first time in years. It's a little too lengthy for Mercy to pay attention through the entire book, and I have to watch her with the pages since it isn't a board book. She does seem to like the cadence however and enjoys the pictures, likely because she also sometimes gets to watch the TV show. That being said, I find the book much more disturbing as an adult than I recall as a child.

In my youth, I thought of the book as simply being amusing and that the kids sure got away with a lot. As an adult, the amount of mayhem along with the obvious lack of a real guardian at the time floor me. Where is dad or the babysitter while mom is out? The children don't appear to be that old where they'd be left unattended for any length of time. The end conclusion that the children won't really tell their mother what happened is also disturbing as this is not a precedent most would actually want their children to follow. So at the end I have to think that the book itself is amusing as it's geared towards children and humor, but does not actually follow any values you want your kids to learn at the end, given that the fish who says all the right things is continually ignored.

I also can't help but draw comparisons to the TV show now. Sally and Nick or obviously siblings with the same mother in this book. In the show, they are not, as is even more pronounced by their different appearances (Sally appears to be Caucasian while Nick appears to be Hispanic). The one similarity that I found disconcerting is the repeated line of "your mother will not mind at all if you do." That always drives me batty in the TV show, which is likely a large part in why I don't like to turn it on often. May not bode well for more regular re-reads of the book.

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Wet Pet, Dry Pet, Your Pet, My Pet

Wet Pet, Dry Pet, Your Pet, My Pet by Dr. Seuss

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Received this as a baby shower gift before Mercy was born. It combines the well-liked touch and feel ideas with the childish charm of Dr. Seuss rhyming and odd creatures. Each page represents a different need, activity, or observation about a different type of pet with different textures or toys to explore on the page. Hopefully none of them actually end up coming out of the book as babies do love to grab and yank. She's been playing with it all morning since we read it and refuses to give it up.

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The Cat In The Hat Knows A Lot About That

The Cat In The Hat Knows A Lot About That (2010)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


This is a cute idea and certainly a big hit with children as it features Dr. Seuss's popular character, The Cat In The Hat, and the same types of catchy rhymes and stories that are common in his books. There is a lot of repeated lines and scenes in every episode however that can make it annoyingly repetitive for the adults hearing it with their kids. The flying scene and the kids asking their mom to go with the Cat are always the same. I also have to wonder what message it sends that the mother always responds with "of course you can" and the cat always says "I know, I know you can." Parents don't always say "yes," especially to some mythical trip with a mythical character that could land them lost who knows where. The books are definitely still much better, but I have to admit to seeing the childish appeal for the younger generation.

Horton Hears A Who

Horton Hears A Who (2008)

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars


Based on the book by Dr. Seuss, this is a short film feature Horton the elephant and how he discovers Whoville. The disc also contains a couple of other shorts, only one of which features Horton in his adventure with Maizy's egg. The special features on the disc highlight several other tales, including The Cat in the Hat, Sneetches, Green Eggs & Ham, and some of Dr. Seuss' early political cartoons during World War II. Supposedly this disc is one that Mercy picked out herself while shopping with Nana Waldo (aka they showed her the movies and she grabbed it off the shelf), so we watched it today to see what she thought of it. It certainly had her attention, though I'm sure it will be a bit longer before she really understands any of it. Still, a cute piece to add to her collection, especially since we do have a couple of Dr. Seuss books already and hope to get more.