PICTURE BOOK - Imagine That!: How Dr. Seuss Wrote The Cat in the Hat by Judy Sierra

Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes

2017, Random House, NY

HC $17.99
Bos Lib: JB Seuss

40 pgs.

Goodreads rating: 3.91

My rating: 5

Endpapers:  Hats of all sorts, including the famous one that the Cat in the Hat wore.  It would be fun to examine te hats that other characters from some of his other books wore.

1^st line/s:  "1954 was a great year to be a kid."  
"In his head, Ted juggled the words on the list.  Then he thought,
     Why not let the cat juggle instead?
     He can juggle the stuff on the list.  Yes he can!
     He can juggle a rake and a book and a fan.
     He can juggle a fish, and the fish won't like that.
     I will draw two nice kids to have fun with th cat,
     And two naughty Things, and a keen cleaner-upper.
     I think I'll get started tonight, after supper.":
          (And no, the whole book isn't in rhyme like this, only a couple of parts.  But it sure is fun!)

My comments:  I love picture book biographies, and even if they aren't the best written, or leave out information I think should be included, I still really like their existence.  Here's a biography that's really good - interesting, fun to read AND look at, and with lots of really interesting information.  After sharing this book with a group of kids, there are so many things that could be done!  Read the book.  Then read Cat in the Hat, and Green Eggs and Ham.  THEN each child could create their own book, easy peasy fold and sew , than includes silly words they've made up, either individually or as a group.  Best, though, was discovering the process that Ted Geisel went through to make his ultra-popular, long-lasting Cat in the Hat.  Bravo!

Goodreads:  A lively new picture-book biography of the most beloved children's book author of all time: Dr. Seuss! 
          Have you ever wondered how the great Dr. Seuss wrote his most famous book? Did you know that for The Cat in the Hat, he wasn't allowed to make up the fun words he was known for--like OOBLECK and IT-KUTCH and HIPPO-NO-HUNGUS? He was only allowed to use words from a very strict list!
          This bouncy account of the early career of Dr. Seuss (a.k.a. Ted Geisel) proves that sometimes limitations can be the best inspiration of all.
          Kid-friendly prose (with Seussian rhyme for Ted's dialogue) and whimsical illustrations by award winner Kevin Hawkes recall the work of Dr. Seuss himself. Writing tips from Dr. Seuss and exclusive letters from the author and illustrator, detailing how they created this book, are included! 

Why Oh Why Are Deserts Dry? - Tish Rabe

All About Deserts
Illustrated by Aristides Ruiz & Joe Mathieu
The Cat In the Hat's Learning Library, Random House, 2011
HC $8.99
45 pages
Rating:  3
Endpapers:  orange

Not as good as trees or butterflies (the two I've read previously), but informative and fun.  My two problems with it stand out strongly, though.   Some of the rhythm seems off, some of the rhyming seems forced.  And although it mentions and describes deserts - the Sonoran, the Namib, the Sahara, the Mojave, Antarctica, it jumps around giving facts.  Some kids might think camels and kangaroos live in the Sonoran Desert!  It never tells where anything's located.  A map of the world showing these deserts' locations would be a great addition.

The glossary includes abdomen, burmoose, burrow, cell, differ,geologist, glare, habitat, mirage, nocturnal, oasis, and shimmering.

My, Oh My - A Butterfly! - Tish Rabe

All About Butterflies
Illustrated by Aristides Ruiz & Joe Mathieu
The Cat in the Hat Learning Library, Random House, 2007
HC $8.00
45 pgs.

I'm the Cat in the Hat
if you look in the sky,
you might see a butterfly
fluttering by.

This book takes a child through the stages that create a butterfly, from egg to caterpillar, growing and losing and eating its skin; to hanging and becoming a chrysalis and emerging as a butterfly. It shows the differences between a butterfly chrysalis and a moth cocoon. It teaches about color and camouflage and then starts telling about different species - ending with 10 pages describing the habits of the monarch butterfly.

A fascinating book for young kids!

The book ends with a glossary (antennae, chrysalis, cocoon, foe, nectar, nutritious, oyamel, proboscis, protein) and a list of other books for kids about butterflies.

I Can Name 50 Trees Today! - Bonnie Worth

All About Trees
Illustrated by Aristedes Ruiz & Joe Mathieu
from The Cat in the Hat's Learning Library
Random House, 2006
45 pgs.
HC $8.99

A new-to-me science/social studies series, hosted by The Cat in the Hat and his crew.

I'm the Cat in the Hat
and I want you to please
take a few moments
to look at the trees!

The Cat in the Hat uses his lilting rhyming verse to tell how trees grow, how roots and bark function, what fifty different trees look like (and what makes them special). Filled with all sorts of interesting facts and fairly clear illustrations, I'm sending this book to my grandson with the promise to go tree hunting this summer.

Get yourself a blank book
to press leaves that you find.
Glue them onto the pages.
Your mother wont's mind!

Note the tree's bark
and the shape of the crown
Note the shape of the leaves
and then write it all down.

Take a look at this book
or get a tree guide.
Match up your leaves
to the pictures inside.

(The book even shows a sample page.)

We can't have enough of these
wonderful trees.
So when you see bare spots...
...go plant a tree, please!

The book ends with a glossary (drought, germs, heartwood, lobes, minerals, quench, sapwood, spores, whorled) and a list of other tree books kids might enjoy.

This looks like a whole series of books by more than one author (but perhaps the same illustrators?). The hunt is on!

The Boy on Fairfield Street - Kathleen Krull

How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss
illustrated by Steve Johnson & Lou Fancher
Dragonfly Books, 2004
48 pages
paper $7.99 purchased
Endpapers: pale green with various Seuss drawings

1- This is a well-written, somewhat lengthy-for-a-picture-book biography, more like a short story.
2 - This is really interesting.
3 - This is very informative.
4 - The illustrations are expressive, with one bordered painting on each double-page spread.
5 - Included at the bottom of each page of text is an actual Dr. Seuss drawing.
6 - At the end of the book are four more full pages of additional biographical information and a bibliography of his books.

This is a topnotch book. Ted Geisel was a "goof off" who was told that he would never be an artist. Huh!

This will showcase a weeklong unit in my class, including some of his famous books. I bet the kids'll love it.