Dr. Seuss's enthralling tale, The Cat in the Hat, is full of vibrancy, spark, fun - and madness! Here are three reasons why readers should love it.
1. The story
The story of The Cat in the Hat is fantastically fun and entertaining. When two children are stuck inside on a cold, wet day, they think they're going to have a very dull time of it - until a mischievous cat in a stripy hat strides in through the door, that is!
The Cat in the Hat wants to play a game in which he balances all sorts of objects on himself, including a fish, a book, a cup, a cake and an umbrella - but soon, it all comes tumbling down, and makes an awful mess!
But the Cat isn't finished: he then introduces the children to his two small friends, Thing One and Thing Two, who proceed to fly kites in the house and make even more of a mess!
When the fish looks out of the window and sees the children's mother arriving home, he thinks there can't possibly be a way to tidy everything up in time - but the Cat returns with an incredible machine, which quickly picks up all of the objects strewn around the house.
The children's mother walks in, completely unaware of the chaos that has just ensued, and asks the children if they had any fun. They're not sure what to say to that!
2. The iconic illustrations
Dr. Seuss's iconic illustrations in The Cat in the Hat are full of charm, expression and exuberance. When the Cat is trying to balance all sorts of things on himself, you can really imagine him wobbling and wavering and trying to stay balanced, just from looking at the pictures!
The unique and imaginative pictures of Thing One and Thing Two are truly engaging, as are their lively escapades around the house - causing chaos and making a mess!
On almost every page, you can see the children watching the bedlam taking place in their recently so quiet home, their expressions ranging from shock and bewilderment to delight and fascination.
A simple but vibrant colour palette of blue, red, white and black is used, and this makes the images all the more memorable.
We could spend all day poring over the wonderful illustrations from The Cat in the Hat!
3. The bouncy, rhyming text
The galloping verse in The Cat in the Hat is seriously fun to read and listen to. With wonderful rhymes and bouncing text, it's no wonder kids love this dynamic tale. But the story is also extremely useful for helping children learn to read. The rhymes and repetition help children to match certain letters with certain sounds, improving their phonics and reading skills.
In fact, at the time he was writing, Dr. Seuss thought that the reading books already available for children were usually quite dull, so he set out to write books that would make reading a fun and exciting activity for kids. We think he succeeded!
But it's not just kids who have fun reading The Cat in the Hat. It's hugely enjoyable for adults to read, too, with rhythmic verse and engaging text, so parents, teachers and caregivers can have heaps of fun reading the story, too - whether out loud to children, or to themselves!
