Theodor Seuss Geisel's The Cat In The Hat

What makes a book a good ole’ “classic”? This question has caused much debate between literary scholars, authors, college professors, high school students, and the common people on the aisles at Wal-Mart. For a book to become a classic, there are no set guidelines that it must follow. Abe Books defines a classic as something your kids will read, you will read, and your parents read (Abe Books). Another source said that a classic was dependent upon how many copies had been sold and if the classroom setting still used them to teach students literature. I am going to proceed with this argument and tell my opinion of the best example of a classic book and what makes me think it deserves such an honorable title. Theodor Seuss Geisel or as

If one is going by what Abe Books says about your kids will read it, you will read it, and your parent’s will have read it, then it fits that criteria. Over the course of Seuss’ career, he published over 60 children’s books, many of those were award winners. Out of the 60, all 60 of the stories have enticed many children and their parents for over 75 years (Porter). If we are going by how many copies sold, The Cat in the Hat sold nearly a million copies before 1960, so that criteria is also met. I continue to find that The Cat in the Hat has a plethora of reasons why it should be considered a classic. The initial success inspired Seuss to found Beginner Books, a section of Random House that published books designed to help children learn to read (Porter).When writing The Cat in the Hat, Seuss was required to contain only first or second grade reading level words. He was given a list of 348 words that he could use, he used 236 different words on that list. Many of Seuss’ books were made in to movies, one of those being The Cat in the Hat. In the Cat in the Hat is steps down on to a child’s level and creates a picture of a child’s imagination. With the lines in his storybooks, come alive illustrations of movement and anticipation. When he taps into this imaginary world, he brings the reader right inside the pages. In the book lies a spirit of playfulness that encourages one to pick up his book and read. His background in cartoons contributes to how he can use curvy lines and white space to engage the readers imagination (Porter). The words are on a simple reading level, yet even adults enjoy to read them aloud. He encourages all people to look at the world differently. In The Cat in the Hat he brings a rainy day to life using fictional characters of the imagination (such as Thing One and Thing Two). The wordplay is striking. “Consider the opening lines to The Cat in the