Celebrate Dr Seuss Day – Read Across America

I know that Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, but I wanted to take a quick break from all things cupid and hearts to discuss another super fun special day that is coming up real soon! Seuss Day!!  I big fat puffy ? love Dr. Seuss books, and I love Seuss Day, which is March 2nd.

I have such fond memories of reading Dr. Seuss books as a child, and have established a modest collection of them for my children, as well. I try to add a few to our collection each year, but I still do not have them all. Which is understandable, since Theodor Geisel, lovingly known as Dr. Seuss by children worldwide, wrote 70 books for children during his life time! Teachers and parents around the globe celebrate this iconic author on his birthday, March 2nd, with the annual Read Across America Day! On Read Across America Day, everyone is encouraged to pick up a book and read to a child.  I think Dr. Seuss would have liked that more than a million jillion birthday candles on his cake, don’t you? And what’s a Dr. Seuss celebration without a colored bright kazoo and a cat’s striped hat?

While the majority of his books were published during his lifetime, several were discovered and published posthumously.  He used the pen name Dr. Seuss for the books that he both wrote and illustrated. He also authored over a dozen books as Theo LeSieg (which is Geisel reversed) and one as Rosetta Stone.  The books under the penname Theo LeSieg and Rosetta Stone were not illustrated by Geisel. Here’s a complete list of the books written/illustrated by Theodor Geisel as Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg, and Rosetta Stone with the year of publication.

Complete List Of Dr Seuss Books In Publication Order

1. 1. And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street (1937)
   2. The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938)
   3. The King’s Stilts (1939)
   4. The Seven Lady Godivas (1939)
   5. Horton Hatches the Egg (1940)
   6. The Pocket Book of Boners (1941) – originally published as four separate stories
   7. McElligot’s Pool (1947)
   8. Thidwick The Big-Hearted Moose (1948)
   9. Bartholomew And The Oobleck (1949)
   10. If I Ran the Zoo (1950)
   11. Gerald McBoing Boing (1952)
   12. Scrambled Eggs Super! (1953)
   13. Horton Hears A Who! (1954)
   14. On Beyond Zebra (1955)
   15. If I Ran The Circus (1956)
   16. The Cat in the Hat (1957)
   17. How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1957)
   18. Yertle The Turtle And Other Stories (1958)
       1. The Big Brag (1958) – from Yertle the Turtle
       2. Gertrude McFuzz (1958) – from Yertle the Turtle
   19. The Cat In The Hat Comes Back! (1958)
   20. Happy Birthday To You! (1959)
   21. Green Eggs And Ham (1960)
   22. One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish (1960)
   23. The Sneetches And Other Stories (1961)
       1. Too Many Daves (1961) – from The Sneetches
       2. What Was I Scared Of? (1961) – from The Sneetches
       3. The Zax (1961) – from The Sneetches
   24. Ten Apples up on Top! (1961) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   25. Dr Seuss’s Sleep Book (1962)
   26. Dr Seuss’s ABC (1963)
   27. Hop on Pop (1963)
   28. Fox In Socks (1965)
   29. I Had Trouble In Getting To Solla Sollew (1965)
   30. I Wish I Had Duck Feet (1965) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   31. The Cat in the Hat Beginner Book (1966) *written with P.D. Eastman
   32. Come over to My House (1966) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   33. The Cat in the Hat Song Book (1967)
   34. The Foot Book (1968)
   35. The Eye Book (1968) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   36. I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! And Other Stories (1969)
       1. The Glunk That Got Thunk (1969) – from I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today
       2. King Looie Katz (1969) – from I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today
   37. My Book About Me (1969)
   38. I Can Draw Myself (1970)
   39. Mr Brown Can Moo! Can You? (1970)
   40. The Lorax (1971)
   41. I Can Write!  A Book by Me, Myself (1971) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   42. Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! (1972)
   43. In a People House (1972) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   44. Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? (1973)
   45. The Shape Of Me And Other Stuff (1973)
   46. Great Day For Up (1974)
   47. There’s a Wocket in my Pocket! (1974)
   48. The Many Mice of Mr. Brice (1974) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   49. Wacky Wednesday (1974) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   50. Oh, The Thinks You Can Think! (1975)
   51. Would you Rather Be a Bullfrog (1975) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   52. Because a Little Bug went Ka-Choo (1975) *written as Rosetta Stone*
   53. The Cat’s Quizzer (1976)
   54. Hooper Humperdink?  Not Him! (1976) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   55. Please Try to Remember the First of Octember (1977) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   56. I Can Read With My Eyes Shut! (1978)
   57. Oh Say Can You Say? (1979)
   58. Maybe You Should Fly A Jet! (1980) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   59. The Tooth Book (1981) *written as Theo LeSieg*
   60. Hunches In Bunches (1982)
   61. The Butter Battle Book (1984)
   62. You’re Only Old Once! (1986)
   63. I am Not Going to Get Up Today (1987)
   64. The Tough Coughs as He Ploughs the Dough (1987)
   65. Oh, The Places You’ll Go! (1990)

Theodore Geisel died of oral cancer on September 24, 1991.  Believe it or not, he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame!  Following are the books that were discovered and published posthumously, that were either written by or attributed to Dr. Seuss. They are:

1. Daisy-Head Mayzie (1994) – written by Geisel as Dr. Seuss in 1973.
2. My Many Colored Days (1996) – written by Geisel as Dr. Seuss in 1973
3. Hooray for Diffendoofer Day (1998) – based on verses and sketches created by Geisel before his death in 1991, and credited to Dr. Seuss “with some help from Jack Prelutsky and Lane Smith”
4. The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories (2011) – a collection of seven stories written by Geisel and previously published in magazines in the early 1950s, but not previously published in a book.  The collection includes “The Bippolo Seed”; “The Rabbit, The Bear, and the Zinniga-Zanniga”; “Gustav, the Goldfish”; “Tadd and Todd”; “Steak for Supper”; “The Strange Shirt Spot”; and “The Great Henry McBride.”
5. Horton and the Kwudderbug and More Lost Stories (2014)– Quite possibly one of our favorites, this new volume of “lost” tales is a perfect gift for young readers and features Horton the Elephant, Marco, Mulberry Street, and a Grinch
6. What Pet Should I Get (2015)– This previously never-before-seen picture book by Dr. Seuss captures a classic childhood moment—choosing a pet—and uses it to illuminate a life lesson: that it is hard to make up your mind, but sometimes you just have to do it!

I’ll be sharing more on my favorite books by Dr. Seuss in the coming weeks.  Which is your favorite?  Are there any you haven’t read yet?