And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street
Vanguard Press
1962
ISBN 081490890X
ISBN 9780814908907
Recently because of some media spotlight on Dr. Seuss and his works. I decided to reread the 6 books in question and two others. But alas only had 5 of the 6 on hand. This is the first of the reviews.
Dr. Seuss is famous for his many children’s books. Books that spark the imagination. Surprise, and amaze. There is a large collection of old animated shorts based on them. And these has been several movies both animated and life action. He also wrote two books that though written and illustrated in a similar style and format are considered adult books they are The Seven Lady Godivas and The Butter Battle Book. Butter Battle is a commentary on war and is often found in the children’s sections in bookstores and libraries. Godivas I believe is long out of print, I believe the last printing was in 1988. And I am only aware of it because it is the favorite book of a friend.
I do not know a child who has not engaged with these books on some level. My youngest and my wife have a few of them memorized. And recite them to each other before bed, as much as read. My children loved the old, animated shorts, and like most of the movies. I was less fond of the live action movies but appreciate most of the animated ones. But back to this book.
This is a story, about a story or use of imagination. Marco is walking home from school and knows his father will want to know what he saw. Apparently his father was teaching him to be observant. He only sees a horse drawn card. And the story is his imaginings of how it could be something else. Getting bigger, better, and grandeur with each revision. There are some hilarious interpretations. My favorite is the elephant and 2 giraffes’ pulling it. The illustrations are fun and whimsical. The book is easily read in a short sitting.
A fun read.
Note: I recently heard that 6 of the books by Dr. Seuss were being taken out of print. The 6 are: And to Think I Saw It On Mulberry Street, If I Ran the Zoo, McElligot's Pool, On Beyond Zebra!, Scrambled Eggs Super!, The Cat's Quizzer. We had 5 of the 6 in our collection so I gave them a reread. The 6th The Cat's Quizzer I can only find used in Canada, the lowest price is $740.
Books by Dr. Seuss:
1 comment:
Thanks for the review. I remember Dr. Seuss and how I loved the way he sparked my imagination as a child.
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