To those who are ‘’once were kids’’, hearing the word ‘’Dr. Seuss’’ is like hearing ‘’candy’’, ‘’cake’’, ‘’game’’. The man who wrote the many most popular and impactful children’s books has never stopped receiving credits since his first book came out.
Dr. Seuss and his characters appear in numerous sweet packages, TV specials, and films, especially every Christmas. Now as a grownup, we might wonder why kids enjoy such ‘’silly simple books’’ that he wrote. However, don’t underestimate the intentional nonsense Dr. Seuss had put into his books.
Look inside these best Dr. Seuss Books! You will know how impactful they are as you keep scrolling down below.
Books | Pros/cons | Best for |
A library of Classic Case of Dr. Seuss 20 books Collection box set | Pros: – Many best Dr. Seuss books in one set. good price for a nice kid’s library. Cons: – ‘’Grinch’’ is not included. Paper is quite thin. | four-year-olds above |
Dr. Seuss’s Beginner Book Collection | Pros: – Small size so easy to hold – Boxed set, hardcover, easy to preserve Cons: – There are not so many books in one set | four-year-olds above |
Green Eggs and Ham | Pros: – Hardback slick surface so it is easy to wipe clean. shiny and eye-catchy cover – The print is big enough for small fingers to trace words or letters. Cons: – The flaps in the book might distract kids while reading | four to seven-year-olds |
Dr. Seuss’s ABC (1963) | Pros: – Catchy and colorful characters inside – Feel-good content with excellent educational value Cons: – Just be the short version of original one | five-year-olds above |
Happy Birthday To You! | Pros: – Many Dr. Seuss birthday quotes to wish your child a happy birthday – Suitable for birthday gift Cons: – Pocket-sized | four-year-olds above |
Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? (1970) | Pros: – A vibrant gift for any kid with interactive stories available – Gorgeous images and design Cons: – Pocket-sized | five-year-olds above |
Horton Hears a Who! (Classic Seuss) | Pros: – Great quality product, worthy price – Highly recommended for early child reading and kindness teaching. Cons: – The print is a bit small | five-year-olds above |
Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (1990) | Pros: – Stunning cover with precious content – Trigger kids’ imagination and creation. Cons: – Several concepts may not be suitable for young kids. | five-year-olds above |
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937) | Pros: – A good kid reading – Affordable price – Flawless and notable stories for kids on a daily basis Cons: – Vulnerable color that may be faded with ease | five-year-olds above |
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1957) | Pros: – Iconic characters, along with whole-heartedly stories – Satisfactory for evaluation Cons: – Right side up outside cover, upside down pages | five-year-olds above |
The Lorax (Classic Seuss) | Pros: – Printed with recycled materials – Content can teach kids about the environment Cons: – The binding is a bit too tight | five-year-olds above |
Table of Contents
Why do Kids Enjoy Dr. Seuss’s Books?
In case you have not had a chance to read Dr. Seuss, you should flip through the pages and have a quick overall look. From the silly pictures yet beautiful illustrations to rhymes, tongue twisters, and riddles, Dr. Seuss’s books take children through a journey of an imaginative world where gravity seems to not exist and all objects have a soul. Kids love made-up names, and creatures, they feed their imagination and make them engage with things around them.
Additionally, learning how to speak and read with these books brings them such a fun time. There are tons of nonsensical, silly, and funny rhymes, and alliterations that kids can read along. In fact, Dr. Seuss’s books are credited for being a major influence on early childhood reading. According to Jeanne Wanzek, Peabody College Department of Special Education, ‘’young children need to learn to manipulate sound in words, learn how oral language maps onto print, and have rich experiences with words and language’’.
Another big bonus is that Dr. Seuss’s books can provoke early social awareness in children. By writing simple proses with characters that are close and dear to children, yet they can represent a social issue, he opens very subtle questions that you and your child can discuss together.
We know at this point, you might be very excited to read Dr. Seuss with your children. However, this author had published 45 children’s books, what are the best Dr. Seuss books to buy? Here is the list of ‘’most popular Dr.Seuss books’’ reviewed and recommended to you! You can have a look and decide which one suits your child.
11 Best Dr. Seuss Books To Read With Your Child
The Cat in the Hat (1957)
When two kids Sally and brother Conrad get bored at home on a rainy day, a human-like cat in a bow tie and a striped top hat steps into the room. The naughty cat, together with his mischievous friends, Thing 1 and Thing 2, want to show the kids how to have fun, so they cause numerous mischiefs that turn into disastrous results.
If you want to bring your child tons of laughs and giggles, ‘’Cat in the hat’’ is definitely the number one to go for. The book has very striking images with distinct colors and playful rhymes, for example, “I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny, but we can have lots of good fun that is funny.”
‘’Cat in the hat’’ is so classic that people of generations are familiar with it. The characters have appeared in many movies and TV shows. You can check out the film with the same title starring Mike Myers.
One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish (1960)
Published a few years after Horton Hears a Who, One Fish Two Fish is considered one of the most popular Dr. Seuss books in sales, international translations, and pop culture familiarity.
Using very simple and lovely words, Dr. Seuss describes a wild and wacky adventure of Jay and Kay in which they friend with many fascinating creatures. Plus, the writing style meshes wonderfully with the illustration and will keep your eyes on it until the end.
Simple as it sounds, the book actually displays America’s history of racism, classism, and sexism through the different colors and attitudes of the fish.
‘’Some are sad. Some are glad. And some are very, very bad./Why are they sad and glad and bad? I do not know. Go ask your dad’’. and ‘’Some are high and some are low. Not one of them is like another. Dont’s ask us why. Go ask your mother.’’
These simple, innocent lines are pretty powerful and have passed away in many political articles. The brilliant metaphor in this book shows how racial stereotypes can be passed on through generations, and you can subtly teach your kids about racial discrimination just by discussing it with them.
Green Eggs and Ham (1960)
‘’Do you like green eggs and ham?
I do not like them, Sam-I-am.
I do not like green eggs and ham.’’
One of the best books of Dr. Seuss to help kids learn how to read, Green Eggs and Ham is a brilliant work made with only 50 words, where 49 out of them are monosyllables. Sam – the main character in the story – can teach your kids about stubbornness and trying new things to find out if they like it or not. In the book, Sam I Am was told over and over that he would not like green eggs and ham and would not eat them under any condition. However, once he finally tries them, he finds out he actually likes them! We all know how picky kids can be when it comes to food, right?
Dr. Seuss’s ABC (1963)
This is a highly-recommended book to teach kids how to read, as this was the main goal of Dr. Seuss when writing it. There are many tons of alliterations for your kids to read along, from Aunt Annie’s Alligator to the Zizzer-Zazzer-Zuzz. However, the best one starts with Y: “A Yawning Yellow Yak. Young Yolanda Yorgenson is Yelling on his back”. Your kids will probably love this reading challenge.
Happy Birthday To You! (1959)
‘’Today is your birthday! Today you are you!… There is no one alive that is you-er than you!’’
A lovely birthday gift that you can give your child on their special day to remind them how wonderful their existences are. There are many Dr. Seuss birthday quotes from this book that you can use to keep sending love messages to your kids and people around you.
With birthday activities on every page, your kids can learn how to celebrate being themselves every single day of the year. This is a great book to boost your kids’ self-love and confidence.
Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? (1970)
A wonderful call and response book to learn how to speak that you and your kids should not miss!
Even though there is not much plot, your child can still have fun with all the silly and fun-to-make noises in the book. The tale tells the story of Mr. Brown who can imitate every sound from popping corks (‘’pop pop pop pop’’) to horse feet (‘’klopp klopp klopp). Each page has a different animal or action and an associated sound. What makes this book engaging is that the book asks the readers to make sounds as well.
Horton Hears a Who! (1954)
Horton, the elephant, is one of the most famous characters of Dr. Seuss. In this story, Horton hears a Who in a speck of dust and decides to save it. But other animals don’t believe him since they could not hear the voice of the Who.
However, Horton eventually tries to save the tiny Whos and convinces everyone that ‘’I’ll just have to save him. Because, after all,/A person’s a person, no matter how small.’’ Such beautiful messages can teach your kids about kindness, respect for any kind of life, and not giving up on adversity.
Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (1990)
‘’Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!’’
You might not expect a kid’s book to be so incredibly profound right? This is the book that can uplift anyone, even adults, for it can be a perfect graduation gift for graduates of every level of schooling. It follows an unnamed narrator (‘’You’’) as they take off on the journey called ‘’life’’.
‘’Life’’ takes them through indecision, loneliness, anxiety, and failure, but also excitement, happiness, and triumph. It reminds you that life might be hard and sometimes lonely, but we can all persevere. Words are simple and upbeat as always. However, behind the beautiful illustration is inspirational optimism.
Another thing that makes this book special is that this is Dr. Seuss’s last book. It was released just one year before his death at the age of 87 in 1991. Although it was his last, it is still one of the most popular Dr. Seuss books.
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937)
This is the first children’s book published by Dr. Seuss and opened to his future success. The idea behind was quite interesting and pretty Seussian. When he took the ship ride back from Europe and was inspired by the engine’s rhythm, he combined that with a street name close to his home in Springfield, and the book came out from this idea!
In this tale, young Marco’s father keeps telling him to keep his eyelids up and see the things he can see on the street. When Marco travels home from school on Mulberry street, he sees a horse pulling a broken-down wagon. He thought this sight was too boring, so he started to imagine how to decorate the horse and wagon to look interesting. Isn’t it a kid’s habit to keep making up their own fantasy? Your children will probably relate to this story!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1957)
This is not just one of the most popular Dr. Seuss books, but also one of the top Christmas books. There are TV specials and movies that have been made from this book, for example, the 1966 TV special by Boris Karloff, the 2000 movie starring Jim Carey, and 2018 by Benedict Cumberbatch.
Most folks who celebrate Christmas must have read or seen some version of this story at some point in their lives. If not, it’s basically a grinch that wants to stop Christmas because he has no heart! (just kidding!)
The grinch is an angry Christmas-hating creature who lives high above the Whoville. From his shelter, the Grinch can hear the noisy Christmas activities that are going on in the town. As he hates it so much, he comes up with a wicked scheme to steal their gifts, trees, and food for their Christmas celebration.
After he does it, the Grinch undergoes a change of heart. In hopes of hearing lament and weeping from the Who’s that got their Christmas gifts stolen, it turns out he listened to the singing sound. He then learns that Christmas ‘’doesn’t come from a store’’. What an interesting lesson for both the Grinch and your child!
The Lorax (1971)
“Unless someone like you… cares a whole awful lot… nothing is going to get better… It’s not.”
We can’t admire enough how Dr. Seuss’s books, with simple and innocent lines, can actually depict something ahead of time. Long before saving the earth became a concern, Dr. Seuss already saw the problem with the way corporations treated the environment.
For that, he wrote the book The Lorax to teach children about environmental awareness. Lorax – the title character, is a diminutive guardian of the environment against the Once-ler, an industrial polluter who is destroying the Truffula trees. The Lorax tries to convince the Once-ler to stop chopping them down, however, he is unconcerned by the hairy man’s words.
The young businessman keeps cutting trees until the last tree is fallen down. Once the Once-ler realizes that he has run out of raw materials, things quickly fall apart for him. ‘’The Lorax’’ is one of the best Dr. Seuss books about the issues of environmentalism that kids will understand perfectly.
The Final Thoughts
Dr. Seuss’s ability to convey strong important messages on of life, nature, and social issues in such simple proses is genuinely astonishing. You can’t go wrong with Dr. Seuss when it comes to kids’ books. They love all the illustrations and rhymes and will want to hear them over and over again!
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